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Soooo sad this wonderful place is closing. They had a great run though! We said goodbye with a final meal here this week, and it did not disappoint. We once again marveled at the decor that made us feel like we were on vacation and no longer in Minneapolis (which, by the way is almost all for sale). I first got addicted to her vegetarian gyoza many years ago when I worked downtown and they were located in the skyway. I would get the vegetarian gyoza twice a week or more, it came with that fabulous sticky rice and the kamikaze sauce, such a great, comforting meal. Even after I stopped working downtown, I would stop in just to get the gyozas. We got to have it again this week, and it was even better than I remembered (they deep fry them at the restaurant!). We also had the tofu teriyaki bowl and a plate of brussels sprouts and a plate of Shishito peppers. Amazing as always. We scarfed it down so fast, I barely got any photos! Best of all, the owner remembered me from way back in those skyway days. She even hugged me goodbye! I told her I hope she bottles that kamikaze gyoza dipping sauce so we can continue to enjoy her magic! You can follow them on Insta to keep up with their next ventures.
A Near Perfect Place? Surprisingly, they did everything right. Server was awesome and paid attention to our needs. Was willing to work with our dietary issues. The dinner tonight was with my lady friend who is Vegetarian... You know the one. We ordered a host of items and every one was either was solid. Gyoza (veggie) to the main courses... Solid.
Zen Box is our go-to place when we crave umami. Amazing service, friendly atmosphere and great food and drinks. This time we got a Ramen and pan fried noodles, we also tried a truly fantastic Japanese beer brewed with sea salt and bonito flakes. Great culinary experience, long live Zen Box!
Small restaurant but a good spot for dinner with friends. Make a reservation to make sure you can get in. They have happy hour on Saturday from 5-6 pm. Food was good! We had chicken dumplings, pork noodles and ramen all good flavor. I wouldn't say the ramen flavor was anything special but a solid broth. This is worth a dinner stop.
Zen Box had tons of people on a Tuesday night. I was able to sit at the bar. It was a fun, loud, modern vibe inside the restaurant. The servers and bartender were really friendly, great service. The food was good overall. The gyoza is deep fried which resulted in a hot and crunchy appetizer. The dipping sauce was delicious as well. The ramen tasted good overall, but I've had better ramen so I rated overall 4/5 stars. The broth was extremely salty, the pork was tender and cooked perfect, the eggs were the best part! Delicious food and good drinks! I'd recommend stopping by Zen Box if you're in town.
My husband and I have been here a handful of times and every time is always a great experience. The place is small but cozy and the staff is always super friendly and welcoming. We love the ramen but our favorite is the Blistered Shishsito Peppers They are a must try!
This has been on my list for a long time. Honestly, it felt a little overrated. The fried dumplings were the best thing we ate. The fried chicken bites weren't cooked the best (but the sauce was very good). The ramen was OK, but expensive for what you get.
First time here. Was greeted and sat immediately. Staff are friendly. Food came out quick! I got the tonkatsu ramen and the broth was very mid but the noodles and pork were good! Unfortunately, I asked about happy hour after I got the tab after overhearing and did come in during it. Apparently, there was a happy hour menu and I didn't receive it. But, they apologized and tried to ask if I still wanted the food item I was conflicted about while I was ordering earlier that happens to be on the happy hour menu after I had already dined and paid haha.
before going to Minneapolis we had read a lot of positive reviews about this place so decided to check it out. we originally tried to go for lunch on Saturday but they only had a special menu so we ended up going for dinner to try their entire menu. overall good food but horrible service. we got the brussels sprouts to start and then we got the veggie ramen with tofu and the bento box with beef ribs. the brussels sprouts were good, flavor was more at the bottom but a large portion and decent flavor. the ramen was also a good size portion and also had good flavor but needed to be mixed to have the flavors combine well. the bento box was also good in size and had edamame, salad, rice, as well as the main - the beef ribs were good but we've had better elsewhere. we also got a side of kimchi but it was average, also had better elsewhere overall decent flavored food and good portion size but horrible service
I really wanted to like this place more than I actually did. I came on a Tuesday night and the restaurant was fairly busy, both inside and outside. The ambiance was pretty cool, with lots of fun decorations all over the place and overall good vibes. I'm a big ramen fan and I was excited to try the Tonkatsu Ramen. Unfortunately, I was a bit underwhelmed. When it came out, the soup wasn't actually very hot. I even contemplated asking the waitress if the ramen could be microwaved, no joke. The broth didn't have the rich umami taste I was hoping for and it was very salty. The actual toppings in the ramen were tasty, though, and I enjoyed the chewy consistency of the noodles. Given the place was so busy, I'm hoping most of their other menu items are a bit better!
Always love coming here for their Kimchi ramen! This time we tried the Aburi Salmon, Chicken Karaage, and Takoyaki for the first time. The Aburi Salmon was super refreshing with a little bit of smokiness from being torched. My partner, who loves trying every restaurant's chicken karaage, really like the one here. It has just the right amount of crunch and comes with a delicious dipping sauce that I learned you can actually buy a pint of lol. My sister ended up getting the Takoyaki and she loved it. They came out piping hot so be careful on first bite! We also tried the Lychee Soda and Matcha Lemonade and those were also delicious and refreshing and not too sweet! Definitely recommend making a reservation if possible ahead of time. The space is kind of limited so you'll have a better chance at getting a seat especially on busier nights. As for parking, you'll have to do street parking but it's not too expensive. We parked behind the building and only paid $1.25 for one hour. They also use Toast Tab here which is super nice since each person can open their own tab and you can keep ordering until you're ready to close the tab. It was nice for today since half of our party was a few minutes late so we were able to time to apps and drinks so they'd come out as soon as the rest of our party got to the restaurant. Then once everyone was present we could all order our entrées together at the same time and then afterwards everyone is able to pay for their own items individually.
I live around the block from Zen Box and it has become a staple for when I'm craving any form of hearty asian dish. My partner and I usually start with an order of gyoza or NHK depending on our mood. The spice in the NHK provides an ideal level of heat Whiel still being flavorful and the gyoza is usually the right level of crispy while not being dry. I've ordered everything from a variety of ramen dishes, the spicy karaage sandwich and the pork katsu curry depending on my mood. The ramen is a large enough portion that I usually end up taking some home but the pork katsu is so good that I usually need to be carted out because I am so full LOL. We love both the shochu highballs (my favorite is Yuzu) and the cocktails but equally enjoy just getting water or takeout. Sometimes when it's super busy the service can be a little slow but it's always worth the wait.
1 year ago
Saw this cute Izakaya on the street, decided to try!! Street parking only, busy spot in downtown Minneapolis. They're only open for lunch on Saturdays and no other day of the week! The menu is limited. We got the Mapo tofu mazemen, which is this brothless ramen with a Mapo tofu blend, mushrooms, eggplant, tofu, and doubanjian blended together. I wish we could see some of the distinct ingredients alone besides the tofu as it was a bit too blended for me. I liked how unique this ramen was!! The chicken karaage basket had the most addicting trio of sauces - yuzu mayo, nori ranch; and honey mustard. The yuzu mayo was so light and citrusy, and I could practically drink the nori ranch. The fries were shoestring and perfectly crispy. The issue lies in the chicken karaage - it almost felt burnt, and it was quite dry inside. The chicken age gyoza were yummy. I did love the crispness and the tangy kamikaze dipping sauce! Service is efficient! read more
I was sad to hear that they were closing permanently on November 22, so I wanted to make an effort to go again before that date. My group made sure to have a reservation anticipating that there would be lots of people and thank goodness we did. Those that went as walk ins had a wait time of 90+ minutes. When we arrived, we were promptly seated and ordered food right away as we knew what we wanted. We got an order of NHK (spicy chicken karage) and it was the perfect appetizer to gear us up for our entree. The Tonkotsu Ramen was so rich and fulfilling, the broth had an incredible umami flavor to it and the noodles had the perfect texture to it. The staff were all so friendly and attentive to what our needs were. I want to congratulate the staff at Zen Box Izakaya for an incredible 20 year run, we'll miss them greatly read more
Stopped by Zen Box for their happy hour yesterday. Ended up arriving around 5:45PM, seated shortly after, and server arrived at table at 5:55PM. I asked about the happy hour specials as we weren't given a HH menu and the server shared it ended at 6PM. After reading other Yelp reviews, it appears other customers have had concerns regarding the transparency around the Happy Hour. I ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen and it was good and especially loved the egg. The other people in the party felt the server was dismissive of their questions about substitutions due to a medical condition- willing to give the restaurant another try and do a follow-up review if the experience is drastically different. read more
1 year ago
9 months ago
10 months ago
Soooo sad this wonderful place is closing. They had a great run though! We said goodbye with a final meal here this week, and it did not disappoint. We once again marveled at the decor that made us feel like we were on vacation and no longer in Minneapolis (which, by the way is almost all for sale). I first got addicted to her vegetarian gyoza many years ago when I worked downtown and they were located in the skyway. I would get the vegetarian gyoza twice a week or more, it came with that fabulous sticky rice and the kamikaze sauce, such a great, comforting meal. Even after I stopped working downtown, I would stop in just to get the gyozas. We got to have it again this week, and it was even better than I remembered (they deep fry them at the restaurant!). We also had the tofu teriyaki bowl and a plate of brussels sprouts and a plate of Shishito peppers. Amazing as always. We scarfed it down so fast, I barely got any photos! Best of all, the owner remembered me from way back in those skyway days. She even hugged me goodbye! I told her I hope she bottles that kamikaze gyoza dipping sauce so we can continue to enjoy her magic! You can follow them on Insta to keep up with their next ventures. read more
A Near Perfect Place? Surprisingly, they did everything right. Server was awesome and paid attention to our needs. Was willing to work with our dietary issues. The dinner tonight was with my lady friend who is Vegetarian... You know the one. We ordered a host of items and every one was either was solid. Gyoza (veggie) to the main courses... Solid. read more
1 year ago
Zen Box is our go-to place when we crave umami. Amazing service, friendly atmosphere and great food and drinks. This time we got a Ramen and pan fried noodles, we also tried a truly fantastic Japanese beer brewed with sea salt and bonito flakes. Great culinary experience, long live Zen Box! read more
Small restaurant but a good spot for dinner with friends. Make a reservation to make sure you can get in. They have happy hour on Saturday from 5-6 pm. Food was good! We had chicken dumplings, pork noodles and ramen all good flavor. I wouldn't say the ramen flavor was anything special but a solid broth. This is worth a dinner stop. read more
Zen Box had tons of people on a Tuesday night. I was able to sit at the bar. It was a fun, loud, modern vibe inside the restaurant. The servers and bartender were really friendly, great service. The food was good overall. The gyoza is deep fried which resulted in a hot and crunchy appetizer. The dipping sauce was delicious as well. The ramen tasted good overall, but I've had better ramen so I rated overall 4/5 stars. The broth was extremely salty, the pork was tender and cooked perfect, the eggs were the best part! Delicious food and good drinks! I'd recommend stopping by Zen Box if you're in town. read more
2 years ago
My husband and I have been here a handful of times and every time is always a great experience. The place is small but cozy and the staff is always super friendly and welcoming. We love the ramen but our favorite is the Blistered Shishsito Peppers They are a must try! read more
This has been on my list for a long time. Honestly, it felt a little overrated. The fried dumplings were the best thing we ate. The fried chicken bites weren't cooked the best (but the sauce was very good). The ramen was OK, but expensive for what you get. read more
10 months ago
1 year ago
First time here. Was greeted and sat immediately. Staff are friendly. Food came out quick! I got the tonkatsu ramen and the broth was very mid but the noodles and pork were good! Unfortunately, I asked about happy hour after I got the tab after overhearing and did come in during it. Apparently, there was a happy hour menu and I didn't receive it. But, they apologized and tried to ask if I still wanted the food item I was conflicted about while I was ordering earlier that happens to be on the happy hour menu after I had already dined and paid haha. read more
before going to Minneapolis we had read a lot of positive reviews about this place so decided to check it out. we originally tried to go for lunch on Saturday but they only had a special menu so we ended up going for dinner to try their entire menu. overall good food but horrible service. we got the brussels sprouts to start and then we got the veggie ramen with tofu and the bento box with beef ribs. the brussels sprouts were good, flavor was more at the bottom but a large portion and decent flavor. the ramen was also a good size portion and also had good flavor but needed to be mixed to have the flavors combine well. the bento box was also good in size and had edamame, salad, rice, as well as the main - the beef ribs were good but we've had better elsewhere. we also got a side of kimchi but it was average, also had better elsewhere overall decent flavored food and good portion size but horrible service read more
I really wanted to like this place more than I actually did. I came on a Tuesday night and the restaurant was fairly busy, both inside and outside. The ambiance was pretty cool, with lots of fun decorations all over the place and overall good vibes. I'm a big ramen fan and I was excited to try the Tonkatsu Ramen. Unfortunately, I was a bit underwhelmed. When it came out, the soup wasn't actually very hot. I even contemplated asking the waitress if the ramen could be microwaved, no joke. The broth didn't have the rich umami taste I was hoping for and it was very salty. The actual toppings in the ramen were tasty, though, and I enjoyed the chewy consistency of the noodles. Given the place was so busy, I'm hoping most of their other menu items are a bit better! read more
Always love coming here for their Kimchi ramen! This time we tried the Aburi Salmon, Chicken Karaage, and Takoyaki for the first time. The Aburi Salmon was super refreshing with a little bit of smokiness from being torched. My partner, who loves trying every restaurant's chicken karaage, really like the one here. It has just the right amount of crunch and comes with a delicious dipping sauce that I learned you can actually buy a pint of lol. My sister ended up getting the Takoyaki and she loved it. They came out piping hot so be careful on first bite! We also tried the Lychee Soda and Matcha Lemonade and those were also delicious and refreshing and not too sweet! Definitely recommend making a reservation if possible ahead of time. The space is kind of limited so you'll have a better chance at getting a seat especially on busier nights. As for parking, you'll have to do street parking but it's not too expensive. We parked behind the building and only paid $1.25 for one hour. They also use Toast Tab here which is super nice since each person can open their own tab and you can keep ordering until you're ready to close the tab. It was nice for today since half of our party was a few minutes late so we were able to time to apps and drinks so they'd come out as soon as the rest of our party got to the restaurant. Then once everyone was present we could all order our entrées together at the same time and then afterwards everyone is able to pay for their own items individually. read more
1 year ago
I live around the block from Zen Box and it has become a staple for when I'm craving any form of hearty asian dish. My partner and I usually start with an order of gyoza or NHK depending on our mood. The spice in the NHK provides an ideal level of heat Whiel still being flavorful and the gyoza is usually the right level of crispy while not being dry. I've ordered everything from a variety of ramen dishes, the spicy karaage sandwich and the pork katsu curry depending on my mood. The ramen is a large enough portion that I usually end up taking some home but the pork katsu is so good that I usually need to be carted out because I am so full LOL. We love both the shochu highballs (my favorite is Yuzu) and the cocktails but equally enjoy just getting water or takeout. Sometimes when it's super busy the service can be a little slow but it's always worth the wait. read more
When that craving for Ramen strikes...this needs to be your go-to!! It's the perfect rainy day, cool weather spot year-round! Street parking is available on most of the block surrounding the restaurant! The space itself is intimate, but there's plenty of good spots to sit! I would always recommend a reservation if you can snag one! They currently utilitize a QR code menu and order system, so service is used primarily to bring your order to you, but we had great servers that answered any question we had! The food is phenomenal! Haven't had a bad item on this menu...but my favorite is the Pork Yakisoba! Such a yummy serving of noodles, tender pork, and yummy sauce! Right now, it's only served on weekdays, making it a perfect weeknight pick-me-up. Whenever I'm in the downtown area, I make an effort to visit Zenbox! read more
1 year ago
2 years ago
Stumbled upon this corner restaurant. Pleasantly surprised at how high-quality the Ramen was. Would highly recommend this place for people looking for a yummy place to eat while visiting Minneapolis. read more
SO delicious! Best ramen I have ever had. We visited on a rainy spring evening for dinner in search of some ramen to warm us up. The restaurant was very busy so a reservation is definitely recommended. We got the tonkotsu ramen and it was perfect! The broth was creamy and flavorful, and I really liked the wood ear mushrooms in the broth. I thought the ingredients were unique and well balanced. The gyoza appetizer was also very yummy- crispy and clearly homemade! I will definitely return and try something new like one of their bento boxes! read more
2 years ago
The restaurant is small. Street parking during the day very early evening before 1800, was easy to use and find a spot. They did take reservations. I went for a child's birthday dinner. They did give free mochi for the birthday. The food was good small portions but tasted fresh and came out hot. The appetizer was flavorful and had a nice boldness to it. I wouldn't call it spicy but the child said a little spicy. The cocktails were not tried but looked good. The main courses were a chicken rice bowl and also a noodle dish with char siu pork belly, the consistency was surprisingly moist, not crispy it was closer to tofu chewing but was flavorful. The matcha tiramisu was delicious great flavor and the combination of matcha and the sponge cake fingers was excellent. The price was on the expensive side for ordering off the early bird menu after tip it was just shy of $100.00 read more
3 years ago
Zen Box Izakaya serves up a solid bowls of ramen. Compared to other ramen restaurants in the Twin Cities, I would say that Zen Box is the best. There was plenty of indoor and outdoor seating available when we got there on a Saturday night at 7pm. The staff are very helpful, so if you need something don't be afriad to ask! Ordering and paying for your tab is pretty easy. Scan a QR code and pick the menu items. At the end of the email, add your card and close out the tab. We ordered a Tonkatsu and Tori Tantamen Ramen. The Tonkatsu Ramen broth was velvety, lushious and not too salty. The pork chashu was tender and savory. The only thing that I thought was a bit underwhelming is the egg. The egg was soft and custardy, but lacked flavor. The Tori Tantamen was savory and delicious. We added pork chashu to the ramen and it definitely held up! read more
4 years ago
This was my second time at zen box and decided to get something different than the ramen I had last time. The chicken karaage bento box was good but not great, I felt like the chicken itself wasn't prepared in any special way and it just had more breading than the actual chicken. I think I will stick to ramen next time. Our service was great though and I'm glad we were able to get squeezed in about an hour before they closed - it was awesome to get to chat with some of their UMN student workers! read more
I went to Zen Box Izakya on a Tuesday evening with 3 friends. This place was recommended to me so I was excited to try. It wasn't a busy night in Minneapolis so we were able to find street parking close to the restaurant. It is a decent size restaurant especially when provided with the option of sitting outside which we did. Everything here is done via QR code, including paying for your dinner. For half of us this was no bother but for the other half it was a bother as some may not be so tech savvy. We chose to order all of our food and drinks on one phone. I ordered the pina colada drink and it was delicious. I ordered the chicken ramen and two of my friends ordered the pork ramen. We all enjoyed our ramen. I love having the egg in ramen and thought the chicken was done in a unique way. However, a little after finishing my ramen I got a headache and found out there was MSG in the dish. This is always a risk when eating ramen but it is not my favorite to experience. Otherwise, the taste and location was great. read more
3 years ago
Great service and relaxing ambiance. Good place to meet friends. Food qualify is good. Recommends: Short ribs: worth a try. But the performance is not that stable. First time I eat the short rib is thinly sliced and easily to tear of the bones. But second time it's thick and hard to chew. But overall it's great. Chicken curry: crispy chicken dipping with curry, plus smashed potato and carrots. I hope it has more vegetables in it lol. Not my favorite: Ramen: kind of salty and greasy for me Pork Chashu Donburi: pork is over fired and also, the ingredients is simple. Better to choose chicken donburi read more
Zen Box was recommended to me by THREE separate individuals so you would think it would completely rock your socks off. It did. It does. Whatever. We went to Zen Box on Valentine's Day because I had never been. I would've missed the building if my boyfriend didn't know where we were going. It's subtle on the outside and explosive on the inside. It was like walking into a different city. Everyone was moving and there were a lot of people but it never felt crowded. It was very cool. Multiple people acknowledged our arrival and we were seated after the host cleared a table for us. We settled on Ramen, Steak & Rice, and a shared plate of smaller foods. What was different from other places I've been was that they brought everything out as it was ready instead of all at once. This meant my food was hot and I had ample time to enjoy my date. Major plus: servers were attentive but not annoying. There's nothing worse than taking that first bite of food and being asked: "How is everything?" It reminds me of the dentist. The food was AWESOME! I highly recommend the short ribs. Everything was very well cooked and seasoned. I really have no complaints. ありがとう、Zen Box！ read more
Tried the tonkatsu ramen here! Great flavor, I'd give the broth a solid 8/10! They did a great job making it flavorful but not too salty. As for the experience, Zen box izakaya has some cool decorations on the wall and hanging lights. You can sit at the bar if you'd like as well. It's relatively small so you may have to wait for a table without reservations. read more
As always, 3 stars is not a bad review in my book. Zen Box Izakaya is perfectly fine, but I think there's better Japanese food to be had in the Twin Cities. We came prior to a Guthrie Theater show (there are few restaurants of any repute near the theater). Zen Box recently re-opened for dine-in but doesn't take reservations. Zen Box labels all its vegan options, which is awesome and helpful. We got the seaweed salad ($7) and appreciated its freshness, but it definitely had an ocean-y quality to it that was borderline too much. I've had more subdued seaweed salads that either had more spice or a teensy bit more firmness. The age gyoza ($7) has a vegan option and I liked them: they're savory and fried, so hard to go wrong. The tofu curry ($13) has extremely subdued flavors and didn't give me the same "wow, I must eat more" feeling I got from other Japanese curries I've had. I'm glad they offer brown rice as an option, though it felt a tad starchy (maybe they didn't wash the rice?). Lastly, they have one vegan ramen option, but it's brothless: the mapo tofu mazeman ($14). This dish had an overwhelming saltiness and lack of spice and Szechuan peppercorn. It was edible, but barely. All checks have an 18% surcharge added, so factor that into the prices. I think all restaurants should use this surcharge, but instead of adding it to the final tally, just add it to the menu prices (maybe that's not allowed?). I like that Zen Box has labeled vegan options and decent food in an area devoid of options. But you can get better Japanese food at Tori 44, Ramen Kazama and Midori's Floating World Cafe. read more
3 years ago
Zenbox is the place to go to for great ramen and Japanese comfort food. Everything shines here, from the interior decoration, service and menu! Our family love to come here to dine and there are so many favorites, their ramen in particular is outstanding. The broth is cooked for a long time so that the flavors are fully extracted, giving it a rich and deep flavor. read more
Went here before exploring the north side of Minneapolis, was able to get in before the dinner crowd showed up. Ordering at the table was through a QR code, and the food arrived promptly. Ramen hit the spot for dinner. Good value for an urban location. read more
I feel like this place is hyped up way more than it ends up being. Atmosphere: this is a very very small venue. I'm very glad I called a week ahead of time to make our reservation for 12 people as they do not have a lot of tables. Also it's kind of stupidly laid. Out they tell people to go wait by the bar which has a narrow hallway behind it that all the waitstaff brings the dishes ect. through. Also it was extremely loud in there even though I feel people were talking normally which gave me a headache. Food: I had the fried avocado and mackerel. The fried avocado was good but the mackerel was fishy tasting and the sauce was very acidic. It left my teeth hurting and feeling uneasy because there were tons of little bones that I ate. I was debating getting the ramen and I'm glad I didn't it looked like spaghetti noodles in it rather than ramen. Service: because the we had a big group the waitress was automatically getting 18% tip on all of our orders. I feel like she took forever to bring drinks and she even forgot part of our groups meal (their miso soup) multiple times. This is not a hard thing to get and she blamed it on that there was a Lizzo concert. This is no excuse. Overall I was not impressed at all by this place and do not need to go back. read more
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More info about Zen Box Izakaya
602 Washington Ave S
Minneapolis, MN 55415
Downtown Minneapolis
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(612) 332-3936
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http://www.zenbox.com
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