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    Soen

    5.0 (15 reviews)
    Closed 10:30 am - 3:00 pm

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    Wasabi Tuna
    Ploy N.

    Delightful Kakigori and Makis. We loved botht the Wasabi Tuna and Tamago Makis that were filled with delicious fresh ingredients. These made for a nice and light meal. Their current seasonal Kakigori is the Blueberry Coconut. The fresh berries pureé was so tasty on the finely shaven ice. The fresh whipped cream tied everything together perfectly as well. Their ambience couldn't be cozier, tucked within Courier coffee you can get stuffs from both spot!

    Fall Kakigori
    Miki M.

    This Japanese cafe is tucked away inside the cozy and kitschy Courier Coffee and it's adorable! There's only a small handful of tables so it led to a relaxing atmosphere. We ordered a couple of drinks from the coffee side and some food and shaved ice from Soen. We ordered a Tuna Mayo Norimaki and the autumn seasonal Kakigori (shaved ice). They are known for simple but authentic Japanese food and that really comes through in their flavors. The norimaki was yummy, the wasabi oil in it tasted fresh and paired well with the tuna inside. But the highlight of the meal was the Kakigori. The pumpkin and sweet potato purees on top had a natural sweetness to it. I love how finely shaved the ice was, the texture of the ice with the purees and toppings were such a great pairing. Highly, highly recommend!

    Ume-taku Norimaki + Buckwheat Tea
    Dana S.

    Soen/Courier Coffee is a small Japanese café. It's one café and one counter for ordering, so there is no functional distinction between Soen and Courier Coffee, I think the coffee menu and small baked goods selection is from Courier Coffee and the rest (norimaki, kakigori, and tea) is Soen. Kakigori is available seasonally - I was lucky that I visited during the last week of kakigori for the year. It's a pretty small space, a few tables tables inside and a few outside on the sidewalk. There's not much room for standing, but the staff will bring your food to your table so you don't have to stand around waiting after you order. The staff members were very nice! I got there 45 minutes before closing. They were out of most of the norimaki but had one ume-taku norimaki left, so that was what I ordered, along with an apple cinnamon kakigori and buckwheat tea. I really enjoyed the norimaki even though it wasn't my first choice. The pickled plum and radish gave it a big pop of flavour and the inari added some nice sweetness. Perfect interplay of sweet, savoury, and vegetal flavours. The kakigori looked huge but since kakigori is mostly ice it wasn't heavy or hard to finish. The apple cinnamon flavour came with a creamy sweet potato sauce, a shot of hojicha, and of course baked apples. It was a really interesting and unique combination of flavours. Very good. The tea was a nice warming accompaniment to my meal. I think for the high quality the prices were fair.

    Mary E.

    Im extremely happy I was able to visit Soen on my trip last week, it almost didn't happen. I've been seeing photos of the kakigori's for some time now and knew it was something I needed to try. Parking was a bit of a challenge but after a few tries we finally found a spot. The coffee shop itself is somewhat on the smaller side inside but there are a few tables outside. I wish I would have gotten there earlier because most of the food had sold out by then. I arrived an hour before closing so it makes sense. Next time though! I was lucky enough though to finally get the Kakigori. And wow wow wow. Yes.... So delicious so worth it. So many different flavors that pair so well with another. And a beautiful presentation. The girl I who makes them is truly talented. I also ordered a mocha latte and loved that they used good quality chocolate, not like other places that use syrupy sugary stuff. Overall I had a great experience and will be back next year.

    Matcha strawberry kakigori
    Cynthia L.

    Small kakigori counter that shares its space with courier coffee. Close to powells bookstore but tucked away on the corner such that it is still quiet/peaceful. They do sell savory nori rolls as well if you're looking for some food items aside from sweets. Limited tables and seating, but very friendly service. Coffee and baked goods from courier coffee also pair well and a good hit.

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    Charlie T.

    This place has some really good shaved ice! It's a small counter located in Courier Coffee. They also have small snacks to eat. We got the Hojicha Kokuto Kinaco shaved ice, and it was pretty good. I liked the hojicha flavor and the combo with sweet adzuki beans. It's a pleasant dessert that's not too heavy. It's definitely worth a try.

    Scott N.

    Awesome. All around awesome, especially on a hot day. Easy to get to and very friendly people too

    Tuna roll, tamagotchi roll. We already ate half of each!

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    1 year ago

    A really fun place to grab quality unique Japanese treats made from scratch. I enjoyed chatting with the owner who is very sweet.

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    Obon Shokudo

    Obon Shokudo

    4.4
    (292 reviews)
    1.0 mi
    $$

    ONE STAR?? Hilarious that i got on here and the entitled out of towners are on here giving a one…read morestar. I love obon. The udon noodles are heavenly. The broth is nourishing. The onigiri is art. And the service is always polite and professional. Always. I was physically at the restaurant the night these one star people were there. From what I could tell sitting at the bar and observing the ID in question, it looked fliiiimssy even from where I was sitting. I kinda get both sides ya know , sure one person in the group wants a drink w dinner but dude just tough it out and have your dinner. Instead they popped off and all started fussing and being entitled and it was just gross. I was enjoying a fantastic dinner but that table was like trying to take the stage. I think they ended up storming out and one girl like stomped off and said she was keeping her cup !! lol I worked in food a long time ago. And I've worked in cannabis under the watchful eye of the olcc so I'm on the servers side. Don't take chances and don't listen to these kids scramble for a secondary ID. Sketch. Go to obon. Get the Sando. Enjoy.

    What should have been a straightforward ID check became an unnecessarily confrontational…read moreexperience. Rather than communicating professionally or reviewing additional identification, staff escalated the interaction, culminating in my friend being called a "bish." I can't recommend this restaurant. Also just don't treat people that way. It's not cool.

    Photos
    Obon Shokudo
    Tempura Udon
    Tempura Udon
    The combo (now with gluten-FULL kakiage-)

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    The combo (now with gluten-FULL kakiage-)
    Wa Kitchen Kuu

    Wa Kitchen Kuu

    4.5
    (241 reviews)
    0.9 mi
    $$

    Parking is still sketchy in the area. Nevertheless, their rice texture is perfect…read more Sushi fresh, service excellent & hardworking owners makes this a repeat spot.

    I absolutely recommend this place! I went to Portland for a road trip and was watching the Trail…read moreBlazers vs Bucks game at the Moda Center- this restaurant is located 8 minutes from the center! I was looking for food nearby and came across this restaurant. The food was surprisingly delicious! We ordered the chicken katsu curry, kama-age udon (hokkai miso soup), and the kama-meshi seafood. The chicken katsu was cooked perfectly: crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside! The sauce also was the perfect texture and taste. My favorite was the kama-age udon with the hokkai miso soup. I love udon but sometimes don't like how thick it is because it fills you up faster and is harder to digest, the udon here is thinner which I fell in love with! It's soft and chewy and the perfect thickness: you dip it on the soup when you eat it. I also loved the soup, I usually have leftover soup when eat noodles, but I finished every last sip! Definitely recommend this dish if you were to only order one item! We also ordered the kama-meshi seafood. I thought this one tasted okay! The flavors of the seafood come through, but I personally like stronger and heavier flavors. It was worth a try! Parking: This restaurant is in downtown portland so it was difficult to find parking. We ended up parking at a nearby garage and paid for parking. They do have a few street parking spots near the restaurant if you want to test your luck! Seating and service: We were seated really quickly as we went on a weekday! They have several tables and a large table that can be reserved as well as bar spots. The restaurant overall looks really nice and is pretty spacious. The servers were really nice and fast to get you what you need! A side note: they have heated toilet seats in their restroom so that's always a plus!

    Photos
    Wa Kitchen Kuu
    Salmon Collar
    Salmon Collar
    Spicy Tuna Maki ;)

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    Spicy Tuna Maki ;)
    Hachi

    Hachi

    4.4
    (119 reviews)
    0.2 mi
    $$

    Food was good, service was good and Gavin was great! Ambiance was good and their hours are great!read more

    I give this a hachi out of hachi in my book! Basically a 10/10 with some minor notes. We felt so…read morelucky coming in on a Friday night with no reservations. There were large groups of people lining outside but we put our name down on the iPad and got seated within 10 ish mins! Scoreee. This is your sign to be patient cause this Izakaya is so worth the wait! Price point for quality was chefs kiss. You don't really get fresh sushi like this anywhere with reasonable prices! Im taking 5 PCs of otoro sashimi for $25?! Speechless! We outdid ourselves and ordered like 3 rounds of sushi for the three of us and bill came out to $200 ish with drinks! Really easy to do since they had such an extensive menu with just about everything from appetizers, tapas sashimi, hand rolls, nigiri, fried items, sushi ROLLS, ramen/noodles, and skewers! Highlights were definitely the: -otoro (5 pcs ~$25) -salmon medley (salmon belly and 3 other cuts) -scallop nigiri -karaage (5 pcs for $8.99) *pro tip to add their house negi sauce $1 or spicy mayo $0.50 -agedashi tofu (fried tofu) -wagyu beef skewer $8.50 -citrus YTG roll ($15) so refreshing with hamachi (yellowtail), tempura flakes, and a house jalapeño ponzu sauce ! (Apologies for the lack of photos lol. We got too excited since the food kept coming out soo quick we couldn't keep up lol) We also ordered the uni and volcano roll! I might try for the Alaskan roll next time considering it was hard to identify the scallops in the baked roll but still kinda tasty if you're into the warm baked rolls! I was unfortunately really wanting to taste the scallops! Overall we had a great time! Service was nice and attentive! The drinks were really affordable and generous too! My brother in law ordered a chu hi and it came in this huge mug for $14 with an option of refill for ~$7! Such a deal! Arigatou, Hachi!

    Photos
    5/25/2025 - Dropping in for a very early and very delicious dinner before a show on a gorgeous Sunday.
    5/25/2025 - Dropping in for a very early and very delicious dinner before a show on a gorgeous Sunday.
    Chicken thighs
    Chicken thighs
    Good cocktail selection

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    Good cocktail selection
    Murata Restaurant

    Murata Restaurant

    4.4
    (537 reviews)
    0.8 mi
    $$

    This place is so hard to get into on weekends, and even harder to do so when there is an event…read moregoing on across the street. Reasonably so! They are delicious. We arrived 10 minutes to 5pm thinking that we were early. Little did we know they were fully reserved for the night! After speaking with the staff, they kindly moved the earth to fit us in to give us the taste of Japan we had been missing. With such graceful service, a calm atmosphere, and authentic flavors, we were transported back to Japan during our time at Murata.

    Friendly service and decent portions, but lacking in freshness…read more After seeing their authentic website and finding out they only accept reservations over the phone, I was really excited to try Murata. The service was wonderful--the staff were mostly Japanese and very kind--and the portions for the dinner sets were generous for the price. However, the quality of the sushi felt like a standard neighborhood spot. The fish appeared to be pre-cut and frozen rather than freshly broken down in the kitchen. The biggest disappointment was the Hokkaido Uni. At $40 for two pieces ($20 each), I expected top-notch quality, but it sadly lacked freshness. The tempura was ordinary as well, though the complimentary amuse-bouche (tofu, broccoli, and asparagus) was surprisingly delicious. It's a decent spot if you want a high-value, casual sushi dinner, but since I prioritize the freshness of the fish, I don't think I'll be back.

    Photos
    The entry and waiting area
    The entry and waiting area
    Chirashi A
    Chirashi A
    Storefront

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    Storefront

    Soen - japanese - Updated July 2026

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