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    The Chow Mein Guy

    4.2 (67 reviews)
    ModerateNoodles, Food Trucks
    Closed Closed
    Updated 3 months ago

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    $12 for a large Thai Chili Chicken Chow Mein泰椒雞肉炒麵 (comes with free add on of soup). Incredible value!
    Nicole G.

    Honestly I think this truck smacks. At $11 for the OG bandit chow mein (comes with chicken), you get a hefty portion that can feed two and tastes good. If they have it in stock, you can add on a free soup too which is also really flavorful. Each time i've come, the serving looks slightly different.. sometimes more veggies and sometimes less.. but the signature taste stays the same. :)

    Thai Chili Tiger Shrimp Chow Mein三椒虎蝦炒麵
    Jade T.

    AMAZING!!!! Full of flavor, generous portion, great service, just really good! This is my 3rd time having this place and it just doesn't disappoint me at all. Will drive all the way from Carson, just to come eat here.

    Black Tiger Shrimp Chow Mein
    Catelin D.

    I cannot be convinced this food was cooked made to order. The noodles were dry and the seasoning was stale, the shrimp were stale and the dish tasted like a 2 day old reheat. I tried to pick the shrimp out, but they were rubbery. The radish were the freshest thing on the plate. I purchased from the truck parked outside of USC Village, though I wish I hadn't.

    Olena A.

    Flavorful. Fast. Good value. This food truck in Little Tokyo has the most amazing chow mein options that are packed with flavor and come in a portion that is incredible value! I got the spicy chili chicken this time but my favorite option is the spicy shrimp chow mein. Service is fast and if you come here at night in Little Tokyo, especially on the weekend, you'll get the best late night street food vibes.

    Thai Chili Chicken Chow Mein
    Justin A.

    If you're ever walking around little Tokyo, chances are you've see this chow mein truck. They're usually parked on 2nd street right across from somi somi. For only $7 you get this heaping amount of chow mein. So flavorful with lots of chicken and has the perfect amount of heat. They really load you up and it's easily shareable. The workers are all very nice and shoutout to the lady working who gave me a free drink! Definitely plan to come back.

    Lots of noodles
    Alex C.

    Looking for a great place to pick up a quick bite in Little Tokyo look for the truck with all the stickers on it. The truck has a neon Bandit Chow Mein on it right on 2nd street. Plenty of noodles to choose from. You order from a kiosk. Couple of lunch specials for $6.99 which is a good deal if you ask me. I ordered the Thai Chili Chicken Chowmein. Great flavor and very spicy and it's a great portion for lunch for the price you're paying. The noodles were still hot when I got back to my desk too. I'll be back to try something else from this truck.

    Truck
    Audrey B.

    This was genuinely the best chow mein I've ever had in my life. It was rich, flavorful, and the noodles are perfectly cooked. The only thing I would say is that I got the Thai chili tiger shrimp chow mein and the shirt came with the shell on and was incredibly hard to peel. Also they were out of the free soup and the Thai iced tea but that also could be due to coming later at night so factor that in if you'd like those things on the menu.

    Thai chili noodles, pork broth soup, lime Thai tea all super flavorful!
    J H.

    Tasty food at an affordable price. Huge portions and friendly service. We enjoyed the Thai chili noodles, Bandit noodles, and the lime Thai tea was super refreshing - so good in fact I went back and ordered a second. The staff was really friendly. There is some seating outside the food truck or you can head over to USC village and eat in front of the fountain. Highly recommend checking them out!

    Lazy Dragon Chow Mein
    Sharyl J.

    Stumbled upon this food truck while walking around little Tokyo. I was intrigued because the photos on the truck look good and because of their Yelp reviews! I ordered the Lazy Dragon Chow Mein. It was good, but didn't blow me out of the water. My expectations were a bit higher due to their great reviews. I don't know if I would get it again but I am interested in trying their other noodles! They do give you A LOT of noodles so the price can't be beat!

    Lazy Dragon Chow Mein fried egg
    Shaheen N.

    This was a nice flavor excursion. I'm a sucker for for noodles, and this place hit the spot. We tried the bandit, chicken noodles as well as the lazy dragon . Both were delicious, especially with a side of fried egg, soy sauce, and Sriracha packets. I will admit, although delicious , the noodles weren't as moist as I had imagined, they would be. It was a good and the workers were nice enough to remake my wife's order because it was a little spicy for her.

    Thai Lime Tea IG: @ammysalamii
    Angela G.

    As soon as my bf saw this truck while we were in the area, we knew it was going to be our dinner! Haven't seen this truck the last few times we've been so we had to try it since we both love noodles!! They have a small seating/table area in front but too busy since people are walking by, ordering, and just crowding around. After we ordered, I walked over to the cafe around the corner for outside seating and grabbed a table while my bf waited for our food. Didn't take long at all and we were both very excited. We tried their Thai Lime Tea which was ABSOLUTELY amazing. It still had that strong Thai tea flavor but without any cream!! It was still sweet but the lime flavor really adds to the overall taste. It almost tasted like a Mexican watermelon lollipop drink. Like Tajin without the spice. It was so delicious and we loved it! He got the bandit chow mein with egg, super delicious and I got the Tom yum shrimp chow mein with egg as well. I got an extra lime which was perfect for me but they forgot my egg that I paid extra for. Bummer but we were both enjoying it too much to walk the few steps to complain. Really hoping they will come to the San Fernando Valley, specifically Granada Hills Grub Fest one day!! IG: @ammysalamii

    Counter
    Sophie C.

    Cheap filling meal in Little Tokyo. We were having decision fatigue while choosing lunch, so we were lucky to happen upon this food truck. You order through an iPad, our food came out within 10 mins. There's seating, but it's pretty limited. I got the shrimp ho fun, I thought it was okay but nothing special. The noodles were cooked well, strong lemongrass taste and I loved the long slices of onion. I wasn't a fan of the jalapeno sauce provided, I wish they have chili oil instead. They skimped on the shrimp a bit too, wish there was more! But, I left full, it was a decent meal.

    Lazy Dragon Shrimp chow mein with bandit chicken

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    18 days ago

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    28 days ago

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    5 months ago

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    4 months ago

    Not bad. A bit greasy but very good food and overall service. I did have to wait a bit for order.

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    9 months ago

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    3 months ago

    Awesome snack spot easy to go tray works well, delicious combo with a nice side would also jus pick up menu

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    2 years ago

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    8 months ago

    Flavorful, cool decorations, filling and comes w free soup if you order the shrimp chow mein

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    Ask the Community - The Chow Mein Guy

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    Marugame Monzo

    Marugame Monzo

    4.4
    (5.2k reviews)
    0.1 mi
    $$

    Late-ish lunch on Juneteenth. Of course there was a wait. 8…read moreparties down so we had plenty of time to pursue the menu. QR code at sign in. It's a typical sized place for a restaurant on First St. (I.e. small & narrow). They do make use of every space though. Parking is...Little Tokyo...sigh. IF you're lucky enough to get street parking, go buy a lotto ticket on your way home. Parking structures near by. We shared: Agedashi eggplant: Japanese eggplant beautifully "fan" sliced. Dashi was VERY good. Generous amount of grated daikon. Assort. Tempura: Saw this being served while waiting. Looked really good and it WAS! Large shiitake mushroom. Fan cut Japanese eggplant, kabocha pumpkin, shrimp tempura & two (2) shiso leaves. All VERY crisp not oily. Warm dashi side had deep umami rich flavor. Probably made the legit kombu & bonita flake method. #1 ordered the Miso carbonara: garlicky carbonara served with their signature house-rolled out udon. Wonderful dish. Portion sizes were adequate. #2 ordered the Uni carbonara: same garlicky carbonara with uni bits strewn about. Estimating one whole uni broken. This actually works for ease of eating. Plus, uni ranges in the $18/oz on the low end to $60 or more/oz on the higher end. Yes we love & appreciate their gonads. Udon noodles were chewy, bouncy & worth the wait. Yeah yeah....the dough is purchased. Not house made. But, seriously you've seen the YouTube videos of restaurants specializing in Japan? Yes there are places in LA who make their dough & roll it out. It's Hella lot of work! Yamachan produces large scale udon/ramen in San Jose. It's fine. Let them work out the dough to water ratio. Also portion size was decent since we shared a couple apps. Might want to consider the option of extra noodles. The table to our right full of younger male co-workers were there to socialize. They probably all grabbed an afternoon snack. Was it worth the 30-40 min wait? ABSOLUTELY! Michelle 2025 Star. Yes it's worth the wait even with the sucky parking. Got so excited forgot to take photos of our udon. That's ok. Just take a look at the 3,000 photos.

    Sometimes you just want a simple well made meal…read more I love coming by to watch the udon masters make the udon, so freshly made! I love getting a kake udon, just great handmade udon with really flavorful broth and some green onions as complements to the noodle soup. Amazing!

    Photos
    Inside
    Inside
    Agedashi Eggplant ($6)
    Agedashi Eggplant ($6)
    Miso Carbonara ($17)

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    Miso Carbonara ($17)
    Hangari Kalguksu

    Hangari Kalguksu

    4.4
    (3.3k reviews)
    3.4 mi
    $$
    Women-owned & operated
    10 years in business

    I came here with a big group of 10 people and we were allowed to make a reservation! Since we did…read morehave a lot of people we were excited to eat family style. The service was also quick. The restaurant was kind of small but it was clean. Everything was so flavorful and delicious! Seafood kalguksu 9/10: it was def filled with various seafoods. The flavor was super bold and a bit spicy but not intolerable. I love the texture of the noodles. Perfectly cooked. Bossam 9/10: also such an amazing dish! Perfect ratio of fat to meat. I do wish that for this large plate they gave us more cabbage. We ended up ordering more for $5 but I think it should be included given the amount of meat. Parking was valet and it's a small lot. I think we paid $5 for parking. I think there's also street parking but we wanted to play it safe and just do valet. Overall it's such nice place to eat with a group of friends. The portions are large and food taste better shared!!

    Good but not amazing. I was expecting to be mind blown by the amount of people who rave about this…read moreplace but I think it is pretty on par with many other Korean places in ktown. I especially wanted to try their bossam but didn't think it was out of the ordinary. With that said, food was still very good. Parking was difficult to find (obviously it's ktown) but they do offer valet. Food comes out very quick. I would recommend coming with a group because portions are large so you can try many things.

    Photos
    Belly and Jowl & Chicken-KALGUKSU
    Belly and Jowl & Chicken-KALGUKSU
    Bossam jowl combo
    Bossam jowl combo
    (MEDIUM) Hangari Bossam (Serves 2)

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    (MEDIUM) Hangari Bossam (Serves 2)
    Afuri

    Afuri

    4.4
    (946 reviews)
    1.1 mi
    $$

    I love yuzu shoyu ramen. It's hard to find a place that serves yuzu flavored ramen, so I was…read moreexcited to see that Afuri is known for it. I had it in Japan before and it was delicious! They offer Yuzu Shio (salt broth) and Yuzu Shoyu (soy sauce broth) Ramen. I went with Yuzu Shio ($19.50). The yuzu gives it a refreshing/bright taste that really cuts through the fatty broth and pork. Yuzu Limeade ($7) and although I liked the drink because it had a strong yuzu and lime taste, I wouldn't recommend getting it with a yuzu flavored ramen because it takes away the yuzu flavor in the ramen. Service was friendly and attentive. The space is open and bright. We paid for parking just to the side of the restaurant so that we didn't have to deal with street parking.

    Good ambiance, definitely. Good service, yes. Good food, yes. Good value.. no, not really…read more Came for their 6th anniversary where it was 50% all ramen. Got their signature Yuzu Shio which was about $10 (normally $19.50!!), as well as their Afuri Roll which the server recommended ($23). The ramen rather had a small portion, but was balanced and pretty good - and the broth was definitely on the lighter tasting side, good for people who wants a cleaner taste. I ended up using chili oil on the side to spice things up. The Afuri Roll wasn't anything special, and a bit on the dry side but it had a nice variety of different fish inside. Overall, considering all the other competitive ramen joints in the area that have a more competitive price/portion/variety, I'm not sure if I'd give this place another go given the price. Great vibes though!

    Photos
    Interior
    Interior
    Order at Toast tab https://order.toasttab.com/online/afuri-los-angeles-688-mateo-street
    Order at Toast tab https://order.toasttab.com/online/afuri-los-angeles-688-mateo-street
    Uni Toast (special)

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    Uni Toast (special)
    MDK Noodles

    MDK Noodles

    4.1
    (1.9k reviews)
    3.8 mi
    $$

    Came here on a Saturday around 5 pm. There seems to be $2 parking for the restaurant but me and my…read moregroup took the metro here. The restaurant is just down the street from the closest metro station. We were greeted immediately and told to wait while they set up the table. When we got to the table, kimchi and water were already set up! The inside is very bright, with modern light wood furniture and bright tile flooring. The ceilings are pretty high and there is a decent amount of seating. Half of the tables were probably taken around this time and there were a few TVs on playing a live FIFA World Cup game which people were watching. I decided to order the 3 of us: 1. Kalguksu, 17, bibim nengmyun, and 25. Beef bulgogi. Everything was out pretty quickly and everything was delicious. The beef bulgogi was good but nothing too special. Sweet and savory with plenty of onions and served on a hot plate. My dad has been to Korea more than a dozen times and says that this bulgogi isn't close to as good as he's had, but that the noodles were very good. He says this bulgogi could be more Smokey, with a grilled flavor. I've probably had better bulgogi around as well so probably wouldn't come just for it, but it was nice to have a dish with rice in addition to the 2 noodle dishes. The kalguksu was my favorite. Very savory and the broth was so good. The other 2 dishes came with little bowls of extra broth as well. Inside the kalguksu was 3 dumplings (yum), some well seasoned ground meat (yum), and very good al dente noodles (yum). The spicy cold noodles were also good. I typically prefer the cold noodles that come in the slushy broth but my boyfriend prefers this spicy one! It had fresh veggies, a slice of Korean pear, an egg, and a lot of delicious sauce that ended up not being too spicy. The red kimchi was more spicy than the noodles! Overall good food and good service, fast and efficient, no nonsense. Would come again for the noodle dishes which were around $18.

    Standard lunch spot for Korean soups & dumplings…read more Loud, crowded, busy. The hyped cold arrowroot soup was just ok and did not live up to the reviews. Famous for its garlic kimchi ~ the most garlic ever tasted in kimchi, almost too much whileeating over powering the soups. Regretful eating so much of it with garlic burps all day long! LOL Dumpling hot & fresh to taste. Overall decent spot for lunch but a couple $$ too much for what you get. Parking garage validation across the street was a headache. Instructions do download the garage app in the restaurant was in Korean so needed a translation. When trying to exit the gate, the app would not detect the rental and we had call the support number and wait for a live person to assist over the phone :/

    Photos
    Menu AYCE Shabu & Kalguksu daily from 5pm-9pm.
    Menu AYCE Shabu & Kalguksu daily from 5pm-9pm.
    Outdoor seating for AYCE Shabu & Kalguksu open daily from 5pm-9pm.
    Outdoor seating for AYCE Shabu & Kalguksu open daily from 5pm-9pm.
    AYCE Shabu & Kalguksu daily from 5pm-9pm.

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    AYCE Shabu & Kalguksu daily from 5pm-9pm.
    Tsujita Artisan Noodle

    Tsujita Artisan Noodle

    4.1
    (165 reviews)
    0.3 mi
    $$

    Tasty ramen and tsukemen! I was in the area looking for something hearty and this hit just the…read morespot. We ordered a tonkatsu ramen and a tsukemen which had a choice of cold or hot noodles We did a hot noodle and both dishes were tasty! The tonkatau wasn't overly heavy but just enough to not be bland either which was perfect for my taste Interior was clean and service was awesome. We came on a Sunday early afternoon so we didn't have to wait. Parking is unfortunately just street parking but there's also a lot nearby if you're willing to pay. This place was also dog friendly and my small Maltese was allowed to sit with us even though there was no outdoor dining

    I have not been to Tsujita in a few years and this was my first time at their Art district…read morelocation. I'm a fan of their tsukemen at their original Sawtelle location. During the pandemic, I loved ordering their ramen kit and making our own tuskemen. However, I have to say the quality of the food from this location seems to be poorer. I ordered the spicy pork tsukemen. The noodles were a bit soft that I think they were overcooked for a few seconds longer. It didn't have the chewy bouncy texture that I was expecting. The broth seemed to be missing a few toppings that was promised in the menu, there was no green onion, chopped chashu and menma. Overall I enjoyed the ramen, and it was still good, but just not as good as I remembered. The service was just okay as well. I did think the waitress tried her best, but she was the only one person working during Sunday lunchtime. It was very hard to get her attention. I can't help but feel a bit disappointed with this experience. I'm not sure if I'm going to come back.

    Photos
    Tsujita Artisan Noodle
    Spicy Tuna Bowl
    Spicy Tuna Bowl
    Chashu Ajitama Tsukemen

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    Chashu Ajitama Tsukemen
    Pine & Crane DTLA

    Pine & Crane DTLA

    4.5
    (1k reviews)
    1.4 mi
    $$

    This is the 3rd time I've been here and each time I love it more. Their flavors are well balanced…read moreand if you need more salt or spice you can add that with the side sauces. The popcorn chicken and Sha Gua Mian & Side Braised Beef Shank has been one of my favorites. I think everything I've had is a must try. The space is very cute and minimal with adorable light fixtures. The acoustics are decent, but sometimes hard to hear the person across from you. The people are so kind and helpful.

    A great spot near the Crypto.com arena!…read more Despite the line, we put in our orders at the counter and got a table fairly quickly. We shared the dan dan noodles, the 3 cup Jidori chicken, pan-fried pork buns, and cucumber salad. I also got the soy milk, which I believe is made in-house. The food came pretty quickly and arrived before our drinks, in fact. The cucumber salad was fresh, and the cucumbers had a nice crunch. I liked the flavor of the chicken, but I thought it a bit on the dry side. The dan dan noodles and pork buns were excellent, however. The noodles were flavorful and had an enjoyable chew. The pork buns were tasty as well and filled with juicy meat. I also really liked the soy milk. It wasn't too sweet, and it had a nice thickness. The staff was friendly. The restaurant is a casual spot with a self-serve water station.

    Photos
    Interior of Pine and Crane
    Interior of Pine and Crane
    Popcorn chicken!
    Popcorn chicken!
    Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken 鹽酥雞

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    Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken 鹽酥雞

    The Chow Mein Guy - noodles - Updated June 2026

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