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    Zen Ramen & Grill

    4.2 (96 reviews)
    ModerateRamen
    Closed • Closed

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    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Dogs allowed

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    Veggie Shoyu Ramen Soup
    Ravi Kiran T.

    I was hungry yesterday night and wanted to get quick dinner. I found this place less than a mile from my house. I came here around 8:45 pm and had 45 mins (as they were closing at 9:30 pm). Inside space is nicely laid out - I liked chill vibe of the restaurant. However, they have interesting set up for order - you have to use kiosk to place the order and I didn't see much of change options for entrees like ramen change requests. The food that I got was very delicious- enjoyed it and portions were generous. I felt it would have been even more nice to have some sake options to go with this food.

    Orange Chicken Bowl
    Dana P.

    How delightful! This place hit the spot after a long day. The orange chicken with fried rice looked amazing in the photo and had to grab the spring rolls. I was thinking about broccoli after ordering and actually received the orange chicken with some delicately cooked broccoli perfectly. Great flavor and peas and carrots in the rice are just the right touch. Legit orange chicken bowl. Upon calling to ask about a menu item's ingredients (whether it was dairy free) and they were very helpful. Thank you for a great dinner.

    Pork Tonkotsu Ramen Soup
    Kristena R.

    I found this restaurant on Yelp. We ordered takeout and the food is delicious! I ordered the pork tonkatsu ramen and the spring rolls. We also got two sides of egg fried rice. The ramen was perfect. The pieces of pork were big and plentiful. Broth was exactly what you'd expect for a dish like this- exceptional flavor. Service was convenient and our food was ready for pickup at the designated time. The inside of the place looks nice so maybe one day we'll dine in.

    Kathleen L.

    It must be an off day. The waitress told us to pick a table. Our table had soy sauce spilled on it. We only had two people so we just avoided that side of the table. We waited a long time for the waitress to come take our order... so ended up using the kiosk. The calamari came out at the same time with the soups. The small pieces of calamari were perfectly fried... the big pieces were very rubbery. The egg was gray, smelled funny, and tasted funny... my husband ate his and I did not eat mine. Last time we really enjoyed our food... must just be an off day. Not taking off stars this time.

    Inside
    Alexandra A.

    Small and locally owned, Zen Ramen & Grill offers ramen and other Japanese food and drink items. It is located in a strip mall which makes parking easily accessible. At max capacity it can hold 97 individuals. This surprises me since it looks a lot smaller. I personally think it should hold 50-60 people max to be comfortable. Service was very quick. My fiance and I were seated right away and a staff member had asked for our drink order within seconds. We stuck with water and for some reason the tap was not good. Tasted stale and with a lot of iron. For food we started with chicken karage and unfortunately this was a miss for me. Seemed more of a chicken nugget and the flavors just weren't what I normally expect. For our entrees we both ordered 2 different ramens: Chicken Miso & Black Garlic Pork Tonkatsu. The chicken miso was also a miss for me, the broth tasted very tomato based and the texture of the chicken was off. It felt undercooked but looked way over cooked. The vegetables and half egg were also cold and lacked flavor. Fortunately the black garlic pork tonkatsu was better - the broth was OK and we both preferred the black garlic ramen over the chicken miso. Zen Ramen won't be my 'go to' ramen spot however if someone were to coordinate a meal here I would happily join!

    Black garlic is either a clever marketing trick or hidden within that milky cold broth
    Mehul P.

    I imagined how satisfying it might have been biting into entire clove of roasted black garlic until I realized that was not the reality of ordering that dish on the menu. Instead, I did find the noodles thin enough & the veg & soup ingredients satisfactory. Increase in one star, because I'm willing to find my zen & will likely not forget this place. However, if you were to serve that soup temperature hot it would be so much better for every single customer. Also, cry until you cry spice request starts with fresh green or red chili, especially of the Thai variety. I sweated it out, probably because the sriracha was handy nearby. No tears of joy yet, maybe next time?

    Lesley Anne Y.

    Service was great. Place is not too big but theres a few tables and booth and bar seats. They has the kind of ramwn noodles that i like. (Not Udon). For appetizers we had fried brussels sprouts and Chicken Karage. I love the chicken Karage it was tender and seasoned perfectly. My Spicy Shiyou and Tempura Ramen was really good. A bit too spicy for me but someone suggested the Shrimp Ramen so i. Going back to get that! I also want to try their hibachi. So i am definitely coming back! Happy Eating!!!

    Ho T.

    I ordered pork buns as an appetizer, which came in two and were served on a plastic taco holder. The buns are light and fluffy, with a hint of sweetness. The pork belly is char grilled on both sides. I believe they overdid it because it was burned and the meat was bit dry. It's bizarre how they cut the cucumber; it's thicker than the pork belly, and from afar, it seems that I'm eating cucumber buns. It is not worth it, and I would not recommend it. The ramen appears pitiful. I wouldn't tell what's in the bowl because the contents are drowning in the soup. They need to work on the presentation. The pork belly is prepared similarly to the appetizer. The noodles were firm and chewy, and the boiled egg was cooked exactly such that the yolk was runny, just way I like it. The soup was average, and the flavor was linear; unfortunately, it tasted like instant noodle package. I left feeling quite disappointed and wishing I could go somewhere else except this eatery. I promised myself that my dinner would be more filling than my lunch.

    Marisol H.

    I had a pleasant first time experience at Zen Ramen Grill. The service was friendly and attentive. The atmosphere was filled with greenery and ample seating. They have a convenient online ordering station located inside the restaurant. The Black Garlic Tonkotsu was flavorful 8/10 and the Spicy Shoyu w. Shrimp tempura has a spicy kick 7/10. The Edamame and Gyoza were also delicious though i felt like the Edamame was super super salty. I noticed they had a lot of foot traffic going going in and out for both dinning in and takeout. Could be a positive sign their takeout is consistent - will likely follow up.

    Pork Tonkotsu Ramen Soup (husband waited 10-15 mins for his food)

    To start off, I'm new to ramen, I only started eating it a couple of months ago. I've also only had ramen from a different state, so I'm basing my opinions off of comparing Zen to ramen places in the state I normally buy them. The pros: I like the ordering system, it's cool and efficient. I enjoyed being able to sit in a booth rather than table/chairs. The cons..... -I ordered the pork tonkotsu, it was maybe luke warm when it was served to me. It wasn't steaming or hot in anyway. Within 10 minutes it was cold. -my food was delivered pretty quick, we waited 10-15 MINUTES for my husbands food. Had we been on a first date, that would've been so awkward! -the meat was charred & overcooked *compared* to the other ramen I've tried, which was very lightly cooked. I didn't like the meat over cooked. -the bamboo shoots smelled absolutely disgusting, almost like sewer. Now- this could be "normal", but again, the ramen I have had did not have foul smelling bamboo shoots, they didn't really smell like anything. I had to remove them from my soup because it smelled so bad and tainted the broth. -the boba smoothie was absolutely TERRIBLE! This may be personal preference to be fair, it's super icy and may have been my fault for not asking if it's made with milk. Again, in the state I get boba from, if it says "smoothie"- it's made with milk, as opposed to "icy" which is water. The tapioca was TERRIBLE too, I've never had tapioca in all my years drinking it to be MUSHY tapioca! It wasn't chewy, but straight mush like it was old?! Overall, I will never be coming back, and did not satisfy my ramen craving. Upset because this place is so highly rated! I wish the boba would've been worth $7 at least!

    Hot Green Tea
    Alana S.

    I'm so glad that this place is doing well. I always see little local businesses come and go, but Zen Ramen continues to grow everytime I visit! They are always adding new things to the menu, so I'm able to try something new each time I go. The katsu curry chicken was so delicious, I think it might be my new favorite after the ramen. It's a HUGE portion, but soul warming. The steamed broccoli was a welcome addition in between bites of slightly spicy curry. I'm definitely going to be ordering again.

    Spicy Shoyu w Shrimp Tempura
    Edward M.

    Very friendly service with decent food. Pork Tonkotsu Ramen - broth is a lot thinner than I would have expected, decent flavor but not as deep as I would like. Ramen was cooked perfectly, more like fresh ramen, so more chewy. I will probably go to Kitikata or something.

    Chicken Kara-Age
    Dan N.

    I was excited to have a new Ramen place close by. It is nice inside and it is in a nondescript strip mall. We sat at the counter and there were maybe 2 other people on a Thursday night. The Server was very nice and friendly and seemed to know the menu very well, we asked questions and she knew all the answers. We started with some excellent Chicken Kara-age, well breaded, not greasy, crunchy, Hot! and good. The Gyoza was almost like deep fried, but it also was very good with a perfect black Vinegar sauce. The Appetizers were both good so I had high hopes. When our Ramen came it looked good. The first big shocker was the temperature, it was kinda lukewarm at best, and the noodles were not toothy or elastic; they were like egg noodles that sat in liquid for too long, no real texture. I wasn't crazy about the black garlic taste, it had a bit of an odd flavor, I finished it, it wasn't bad, just I would not get it again. The Spicy Ramen had some real heat again, not a lot of complexity but it was fine, the broth reminded me of instant spicy ramen. I don't think I would go back for Ramen, the other food we had was very good, I would like to go back and try some of the other things they have

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    1 year ago

    Nice ambiance. Pleasant staff. Food mediocre. Better options in the area. Will likely not return.

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    1 year ago

    This place was recommended for ramen and I was not impressed. It seemed overpriced and not all that tasty to my liking.

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    Zen Ramen & Grill Reviews in Other Languages

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    US Ramen - Shoyu Ramen

    US Ramen

    4.3(47 reviews)
    4.8 mi

    We normally go to Ramen Misoya or Chicago Ramen, both great options with vegan and "halal" options…read more I saw this on some Chicago Halal Foodies reel and decided want in. I got take out and everything was well packaged and remained hot after it got to it's final destination about 1h away. My partner is vegan and enjoyed the vegan option. It wasn't anything fancy however most places slap vegan after taking things out and you pay the same price. This place more or less built the ramen with vegans in mind and so the ebb and flow of the ingredients worked out to be a delicious ramen dish. I had the spicy halal ramen, it was also delicious. We also got two halal chicken ramens which, you guessed it, was delicious. The broth wasn't as thick as ramen misoya or as light as chicago ramen. It was in between but actually really good and not as salty. We also got the spring rolls, sesame balls, and agedashu tofu which tasted well. The spring rolls and tofu weren't as crispy but it was a long trip so not on them. I could've sped, but I was getting great mileage. They still tasted great. Now this place also has Chinese dishes which makes it a great option when in the mood for various Asian cuisine and going to one shop. I forget the name of another joint in Chicago on the west side that does the same but it has all the things and it's great but that's an even further. Regardless everything we had was enjoyable and the halal chicken tasted significantly better than Ramen Misoya. It was seasoned very well. At Ramen Misoya, it's not "zabiha" but it's considered halal. I'll try to explain it as best and fast as I can. In Islam halal/haram means permissible/impermissible. Halal in terms of food mainly applies to fauna (i.e. animals, fish, insects, etc). For example corn, pineapple, bread, strawberries are exempt and are thus always halal. Zabiha is the term which means the animal was sacrificed, while being thankful for it, and a process was followed to ensure minimal pain and suffering and it was cleaned, prepped, etc properly. Basically to be thankful for what you have since you're benefiting from something living / cognizant and not just being flippant because it's livestock. Now for some animals in order for them to be edible, it has to be permissible (i.e. halal), as such it has to be Zabiha. However there are schools of thought where so long as the food you are about to receive and or consume isn't haram (i.e. pork) and it was given with pure intention, you can say "Bismillah" and enjoy your dish. Zabiha and halal are often conflated but I hope this explains why.

    We finally got to dine in at US Ramen recently! I appreciated their appetizer selection the most…read more Crab Rangoon was our favorite appetizer. Out of the ramens we tried, the spicy miso and spicy tonkotsu (with kimchi) were our favorite! The regular tonkotsu was just missing a bit more flavoring. We visited on a weekday evening and while it got busy around dinner time, it didn't get too loud and the service was great. Our food items came out quickly and were very fresh! : crab rangoons, takoyaki, sesame balls, tonkotsu ramen

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    US Ramen
    US Ramen - 32. Spicy Miso Ramen

    32. Spicy Miso Ramen

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    Kai Mom's K Food Togo

    Kai Mom's K Food Togo

    4.6(63 reviews)
    2.1 mi

    The fried chicken is a must - perfectly crispy (not greasy) on the outside and juicy on the inside…read more You get so much food for your money! I work in Itasca and this place is luckily pretty close for my lunch hour. It's the perfect take-out place, but honestly decorated so cute and cozy inside that I would be perfectly happy taking my time eating in too. It feels like you're waiting for your halmeoni to cook you a home cooked meal. There isn't always someone at the front desk, but a bell will ring when the door opens. If they don't hear it, no problem, you just have to peek in the back and say, annyeonghaseyo! and someone will be right out to help you. It has become my regular lunch hour spot.

    My first Yelp Review of 2026!…read more Kicking off the year with Kai Mom's K Food To Go -- and I'm so glad I finally tried it after seeing all the buzz. They have quite an extensive menu offering both Korean & Chinese entrees. It was tough deciding what to choose but we ended up ordered the Jjampong + Jjajangmyeon combo, Pork & Stir-Fried Squid, Galbitang, and Soy Garlic Fried Chicken (Bone-in). Out of everything, the Jjajangmyeon was the clear standout. The flavor was so good that I'd honestly come back just for that alone. Absolute comfort food. The Jjampong didn't quite hit for me -- it wasn't bad, but it felt a little bland and lacked the umami I usually look for. I've had better elsewhere, so I'd probably skip that next time. Similarly the Pork & Squid stir fry just didn't pack the right punch for me so I would pass too. Other highlights were definitely the Soy Garlic Fried Chicken and Galbitang. The chicken was packed with flavor, perfectly crispy on the outside, and juicy on the inside -- a must-order. The Galbitang was comforting and hearty, with about four bones in the soup, super tender meat, and a clean, soothing broth. The space itself is small with only four tables, and we lucked out getting one. It has such a cozy, homey feel -- like you're sitting in her kitchen while she cooks you a homemade Korean meal. Service was excellent too; they checked in often and kept our drinks refilled. Overall, a great start to my 2026 food reviews. I'll definitely be back -- especially for that Jjajangmyeon and Soy Garlic Fried Chicken. I can't wait to try more of their dishes.

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    Kai Mom's K Food Togo
    Kai Mom's K Food Togo - Bibimbap

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    Zen Ramen & Grill - ramen - Updated September 2026

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