Reviews of Marugame Monzo. (Restaurant) in Los Angeles (California).

Marugame Monzo

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392 Comments

Restaurant

Japanese restaurant

329 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90012, United States

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Information of Marugame Monzo, Restaurant in Los Angeles (California)

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Reviews of Marugame Monzo

Jason S (Simchelin Guide)

Amaaaazziinngg freaking Udon. Creative innovative dishes fused with udon and other ethnic foods!! The curry udon was a great price and was very very flavorful,and had the classic curry taste with udon noodles A good amount of vegetables, and the pork was sliced very thinly so the meat tasted very juicy and tender. Overall the curry udon was Absolutely delicious 😋 My friends had the uni udon and spicy udon, both liked their dish. I wanna try the miso carbonara udon next time. Yumm

Ling Wang

The udon was great, but the people who ordered after us got their food first. But besides that, the uni udon was really good! It was the best udon I’ve ever had. And I don’t know why people say that the udon tastes bad. It’s actually pretty good, but maybe it depends on what you order since one of the udon my family ordered literally just tasted like spaghetti but with udon. I would recommend this restaurant!

Lily Hoang-Zhu

I eat here EVERY single time I’m in LA. There is always a wait but it moves very quickly!! Get your name on that list!!! The uni cream is a MUST. Absolute MUST. I don’t have a photo of it because I always eat it as soon as it hits table. I always order at least 2 & add double portions. I’ve had pretty much everything on the menu & they’re all great!!! The specialty udons are definitely the most bang for the buck, though! Monzo does a great job of offering well-balanced flavors that are fresh, and exciting to eat.

Frank Howard

It is interesting that I've been to Marugame Monzo many'ies of times but never wrote a Yelp! review. Shame on me.When this place first arrived in little Tokyo I was confused since the name was similar to the Hawaiian spot Marukame. Very big on the mistake because this establishment serves Udon but very differently.Marugame Monzo gives you a new perspective of udon dishes and flavors that regular udon eaters will experience. It is quite difficult to explain other than you have to try this place if you have never been here before. Years after their opening I still find myself visiting every so often. Over the years I did notice some of my favorite dishes have disappeared but they made room for new additions. Sometimes its a good thing. The place does get crowded so be sure to wait it out or go early. Parking: metered street parking, paid structures

Jiyu Qian

Amazing udon with delicious sauce. Very descent price in terms of the quality of the dish. Street parking is hard but I recommend Aiso parking lot one street away which is cheap and easily accessible.

Eddie Gray

Three of us came here on Sunday afternoon around 3PM. We were #8 in line. We waited for about 30-40 mins. Once you got seated, the service was fast and friendly. Ordered Miso Carbonara udon, Fluffy egg beff udon and Mentei Udon, and app 8 pcs Takoyoki. All udon dishes we had were solid 5/5! So ridiculously good and we had food comas after.. lol.. Takoyaki is 3/5. Food came out hot and timely, check delivered once our bowls were almost empty.

Lorenzo Grima Santana

Oh LA your food is so heavenly. This udon spot is worth the visit for a variety of savory and creamy udon. You can get the creamy variety in the carbonara udon with bacon or the savory traditional udon with tempura on the side. The service is great and attentive and the wait is not that bad if you go early like around 5:30pm. The flavors with their fried chicken was so great, a mayo and golden spice that tasted soooo good. Udon that is so fresh and chewy is worth the travel.

Westley Pang

I always love coming here. Literally all their dishes are awesome. The beef with fluffy egg has so much umami. More expensive than Marugame Udon(the quick sit down place) but there’s so much more depth of flavor. They make their udon in house so the texture is amazing. Super bouncy. Gives that QQ texture everyone looks for in good noodles. If you’re lucky you’ll get to sit near the window where they make it :) Also if you’re not looking for a noodle dish, their pork rice dish is just as amazing. Be aware though, their line gets ridiculous sometimes

Justin Ashar

Marugame Monzo is an udon restaurant in Japantown. [APPETIZERS] +Takoyaki (8-pieces of octopus balls) for $10.95 - 4/5 [UDON] +Sea Urchin Udon (hand-crushed sea urchin, cream sauce, udon, and topped with ikura (salmon egg)) for $22.90 - 4/5 +Mentai Squid Butter Udon (with cream sauce with seasoned fisheggs and mixed seafood) for $15.75 - The meat was okay. Nothing special. - 3.5/5 If you’re in the mood for udon, go check it out.

Lauren Dinh

this place definitely lives up to the hype !! we ordered the uni udon, champon udon, and mapo tofu udon - along with the assorted tempura and seafood salad. all the udon dishes we ordered was great! uni was very rich but still delicious, champon was a lighter broth with lots of veggies, and mapo tofu was a thicker broth/sauce type of dish

Travis Sullivan

Got here on a Sunday around 11:15 (they open at 11:30) and we were 14th on the sign-in sheet before they even opened. There is serious demand for this place and it's as good as people say it is. Service is quick and attentive, even with how busy they are. My wife got the uni (sea urchin) udon and I got the champon udon. We also tried the takoyaki (octopus balls) and some tempura. First, the udon itself is handmade in the restaurant - you can literally see them do it through a clear partitioned wall inside. The udon is thick and chewy with just the right firmness when it goes into soup. The uni udon was a cream sauce - good flavor and a good size. Most of the specialty udons are creamy though like the carbonara or baked cheese gratin udon. If you don't like cream, there is also another page of clear broth udons. The champon is a little in between. It's a thin soup but has some milk in it sometimes. This one tasted more like a tonkotsu ramen soup and was good but a bit salty. The ingredients were tasty though, lots of small seafood and cabbage.

Walter Stewart

Nice restaurant! Prices are about $15+ per dish but overall pretty tasty! The soup and flavor are perfect, but to be honest udon doesn't seem like the proper noodle for the these types of ramen dishes. Overall great place to eat!

Kevin Chau

Marugame Monzo is an udon restaurant in Little Tokyo. Space is small and they don't do reservations but they have a waitlist where you can put your name down. I was in a party of 4 and it took about 45 minutes for us to get seated and once seated the service was quick. I tried the mentai squid butter udon and seafood tomato cream udon. The udon noodles are made in house and were nice and thick. The mentai squid butter broth was delicious and had a nice strong seafood taste. The seafood tomato cream udon was very creamy and the flavors of seafood and tomato worked perfectly together. I also ordered their kaarage which was very crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. I feel like portions could have been a little bigger for the price but overall one of the best udon I've eaten in LA. As for parking, there's street parking as well as some parking structures within the area but it's a very busy area so can be hard to find parking especially during the nighttime.

Juniper Moon

The udon here is so fresh and delicious! Tastes like places in Japan. this was our first time eating here and we will definitely be back again! PROS -Clean and cozy inside -They have outdoor seating but make sure you check ahead of time if you don’t feel comfortable eating indoors. We went during lunchtime and they did not have outdoor seating available. -Staff is friendly, attentive and welcoming -Great selection of udon and other options if you don’t want noodles -The spot is located on the block with other great authentic Japanese restaurants -A cold udon was so good and refreshing on a hot day. The mentai was fresh tasting and delicious soup base. YUM! -I decided to order a side of shrimp tempura and that was amazing and fresh! I love shrimp but sometimes I have an allergic reaction when it’s not fresh. This place definitely serves fresh shrimp. -The eggplant tempura was super fresh and cooked perfectly. -Their tempura is cooked to perfection and tastes so good. Not oily like other places.

Lauren Donahoe

There’s usually a wait but it moves quickly. Worth sticking it out. Really great udon with creative twists

Yoshitaka Katayama

The eggplant is amazing. The uni udon is OMG. The fried chicken... o man. This place is worth the wait.

Margaruite Nixon

Excellent food with fast service. Noodles are hot and fresh. Agedashi tofu wasn't quite the way I enjoy it,but it may just be preference

Flower T

Delicious and unique variety of udon options here. Really worth it to check out. They are really popular so there might be a long line.

Millie Simmonds

The Uni Sea Urchin Cream Udon is a MUST TRY!!! I've also tried the Mentai Squid Butter Udon and the Miso Carbonara Udon which are also both really good but the Uni udon is what I always come back for! There's usually a pretty intimidating line but it goes down a lot faster than you would think. Personally, I've always had to wait around 30 mins whenever I come but it's well worth it! The service is great. Even though they're always packed the staff are super fast and attentive! Uni Cream Udon: Udon noodles were super bouncy, chewy, and perfectly cooked. The sauce was thick and creamy with a slight seafood flavor from the uni. This bowl is topped with a shiso leaf and ikura. Because the sauce is so thick and creamy, the popping ikura helps to brighten the meal up a bit so you don't get sick of it. Miso Carbonara Udon: Again, udon was perfectly cooked and like the uni cream udon, this sauce was also super rich and creamy. The miso adds some umami to the sauce and they don't overdo it with the bacon which makes for a super flavorful and rich sauce. Highly recommend! Mentai Squid Butter Udon: Definitely has a strong seafood flavor and they are generous with the squid pieces. A great choice if you're a seafood lover and don't want something too rich and creamy. However, I don't think I'd personally order this one again. Overall, highly recommend and I cant wait to come back to try their new Seafood Tomato Cream Udon!

Zhuo Z

The soup base is so delicious and umami!! I had the tempera udon. I love the noodle which is fresh and chewy but I really hate that the put the fried tempera bits in the udon soup. It ruined the soup!!!!

Ian Wong

Visited Monzo located in Little Tokyo for dinner and there was a little bit of a wait where you put your name on a clipboard. Ordered the uni sea urchin cream udon and it was extremely delicious. It had such a creamy texture with bits of uni for those hints of umami as you eat through the dish. Definitely recommended to visit and try.

Nicole

I love Monzo this is the best udon in California. I have yet to have a bad experience here. Between my boyfriend and I, split 3 bowls of udon and ordered more to go. Highly recommend the uni udon. Could not get enough of that or the eggplant tempura. Update post pandemic - still freaking delicious. Had a bite of their tomato basil udon, miso carbonara and they were both still good. Didn't have anyone to share the uni with so opted for the mushroom udon instead and I could never be disappointed. Still enjoying the eggplant agadashi.

Marcela Emanuele Dos Santos Carvalho

This place was worth the wait! you have to sign your name on a waitlist outside and they will call your name 3 times before crossing it out and moving onto the next group. definitely wait within hearing distance as the list moves faster than you might think. the dishes came out quickly and were delicious. i prefer marugame udon if you want a classic udon meal as the beef udon here wasn't as flavorful/sweet as the one i get at their udon exclusive chain. i got the gratin and everyone said my dish was best! everything else was delicious and fun. carbonara was amazing, though we didn't taste any miso. the uni was great as well but just a bit pricey. get that if you want more of an umami taste. not a 5 because the only unique thing was the addition of udon. the beef udon wasn't as good as Marugame Udon. the other dishes weren't life changing, but i don't think they were meant to be and my expectations were incorrect. perfect for a rainy day and filled us up!

Emma B

handmade udon in complimentary broths!i had a craving for cold udon, was not disappointed by the selection! I went with the sour plum shiso udon, it was so delicious. deeply lovely atmosphere! my partner got the mapo tofu udon also delicious

E J

Worth the wait! I waited about one hour to be seated. The Uni Udon is the favorite dish here. The place is small, probably only fits about 25 people inside. But they offer outdoor dining too by the street.

Sharlen Nguyen

Super great place to eat! I've tried the classic favorites in the past (uni, miso carbonara) but I love mushrooms and didn't see many reviews about the mushroom cream so here's a pic. It's really good but the favorites are favorites for a reason!

Minh Do

Such a long wait, but well worth it once you slurp up those creamy udons. Got the Uni udon with a side of shrimp Tempura.

jared rosenberg

The place in LA for inventive handmade udon dishes. Tried the creamy uni and carbonara udons, and both were delicious, but have to give the nod to the uni. The bowl was packed with fresh urchin, which incorporated to make an earthy and decadent sauce for the thick, chewy noodles. Also had the tempura appetizer, which was perfectly fried and light, and a great way to start.

Tania Pimentel

I've been here twice and I have had no waiting time for both times which I think is out of pure luck since this place seems very busy. I recommend getting there ahead of time before they reopen for dinner since a line starts to form by the time they reopen. The service is fast, the staff is very attentive and nice. The food is amazing. I love the lunch deal they have of the mini rice bowls. Definitely a good addition to have with your Udon.

Alisa F

Uni udon is creamy and flavorful, almost has a “mac and cheese type” richness. The roe and perilla leaf introduced new textures and flavors that work very well together. Overall an interesting and tasty bowl of udon! We also enjoyed the light clear broth of the shrimp tempura udon. Bonus: the tempura is served on a separate little plate so that it stays crispy (instead of getting soggy in the broth, my biggest noodle pet peeve…). Staff are attentive and friendly too.

pyn bow

Wait for 15 min. Tasty Signature sea urchin uni cream udon. Udon is quite good and cream is thick enough. Smell uni in cream. Love it so much. Risotto seafood mentaiko cream is quite delicious. Unique taste. Recommend!!

a

Best udon in LA hands down! Unique flavors and perfect noodle consistency. So good that I dream about these noodles sometimes lol

Jess Chu

AMAZING!! I had the Uni Udon and the Agedashi tofu. Both were really really flavorful. I loved it and consumed it all. Will be back for sure!

Aaron A

Great food! Lots of fun udon flavors. Definitely worth a visit!

April P

A trip to LA wouldn't be complete without a stop at Marugame Monzo! One of my all time favourite udon places in NA! If you're a fan of uni you must try the Uni Udon! It's so creamy and flavourful, it will have you dreaming of your next trip back to LA just to get some! (Unless you're in the area.. lucky you) I also usually get a side of the small rice bowl! Delicious! Super long wait though, but totally worth the wait!

Van Ngo

Nice foods, good environment. Tasty udon and rice bowl. Would recommend to come early, like 20 min before it open. Would definitely would come back if near by.

Kenzo Sato

I’ve been here twice and I haven’t had to wait either time, but I think that’s just pure luck since this place seems very busy. I recommend getting there ahead of time before they reopen for dinner since a line starts to form by the time they reopen. The service is fast and the staff is very attentive and nice. The food is amazing. I love the lunch deal they have of the mini rice bowls. They’re definitely a good addition to have with your udon.

Daniel DeNinno

Deeeeeeeelicious udon! Very happy with the meal, there will be a little wait around dinner time and they only call out the names so plan accordingly :) Very nice and wholesome spot with a great vibe

Pranav Krishnamurthy

So far the best vegetarian broth from a Japanese restaurant I have found. The udon noodles themselves were also excellent providing for a filling and tasty experience. The place is kind of small so expect to sit close the people around you. The wait times can also be very long (45 minutes) but make sure to be there with your full party when they call your name.

Hannah Deng

Amazing food! Cant go wrong with anything on the menu! The uni was good but much creamier than expected!

Mindy Feldman

Great service, small place but delicious udon, ordered the lobster rolls but could not taste the lobster and they were a bit greezy.

Ryan Oscar

If you love Udon, you'll love this place! I don't, so I ordered other items. Good food nonetheless, but I didn't like being seated so close to others. We're still not done with the pandemic yet.

Diane Vue

This spot is always a go to place for my friends and I when we want some udon. Flavor never fails us. Service never fails us. It does get super busy during certain time of the day so I would recommend going early. Place isn't so big so big parties may have to wait longer for a table. But worth the wait.

Cyrus W

Ordered the mentai cream udon. Was good but lacked a bit of flavour. Came with lots of shrimp and scallops.

Uyen Nguyen

The uni cream udon is really delicious. The duck one is fairly normal. There is a lot of udon options for you to choose. The restaurant is not too big so the wait might be long during peak hours

Linda Liu

I don't normally like udon but this place is an exception for me! The handmade noodles make the biggest difference.. paired with their perfectly flavored broth. My party got all 4 of their "favorites" and they were all so flavorful without being heavy: 1) Beef udon - tasted just like gyudon! 2) Sea urchin uni udon - their most popular dish and for good reason! Each bite is so creamy with a burst of uni flavor 3) Hot dragon - the broth for this was really good just like the others 4) Miso Carbonara udon - not too salty like one would expect Carbonara to taste!

Esteban Q

Pretty great udon. I would come back again. There was a waitlist but it moved pretty fast

Kay Torres

Favorite restauraunt in LA, hands down. Just get the Sea Urchin Udon! You won't regret it.

Kruger092 Sanders

It’s raining day in LA. Having Udon 🍜 in such weather feel so good. Udon is so delicious, will definitely come again

Maggy Alvarez

The place is soo popular, honestly the food is good but for the time for get one table it's too long. Like a one hour

D J

Quality udon, tried the fusion udon, fun, interesting but I like the traditional udon better. Udon noodles tasted good and good chewiness. The broth was good as well. There could be a wait so go early, but regardless they seem pretty efficient. Would go again and recommend to friends.

Joyce Huang

Ive finally found the one place that has decent takoyaki in California. The sea urchin risotto is very flavorful, would definitely recommend as it is cheaper than udon. The udon noodle is super good quality and the flavor is good. Lots of creative variety. Although the cream can be a bit too fulfilling.

Derek Wu

I got the Curry Udon and it was pretty dang good. While not the best I've had, this one was pretty flavorful and not too salty. The chicken could have been more tender, but overall it was very tasty. My girlfriend got the Carbonara and, oh man.... That was wonderfully tasty as well. Next time I'm in Little Tokyo, this is definitely a place I need to visit again.

patrick Doyle

Sea urchin udon is like having a liquid lobster bisque, very nice and the roe adds nice saltiness on top

Kelci Davis

Trying to pick a single restaurant for noodles in Little Tokyo seemed like an impossible feat, but we definitely picked the right one coming here. I'm a huge fan of udon, ramen, and pho and this place gave me a whole new appreciation. First, the homemade udon is phenomenal. We ordered the beef udon and the sea urchin cream udon so we could try something fusion and something traditional. We loved both. If you're a bit unsure about the sea urchin, I would encourage you to take the risk. It's almost like if seafood alfredo and classic udon had a baby. The taste is new and exciting without feeling extreme or alienating. We went during COVID (March 2021) and had seating outside. It all felt very safe, clean, and we'll organized. I was a little sad we couldn't actually see the udon being pulled, but you can absolutely taste the difference - there's nothing like it.

James Chavez

I love this place. They have a shortened menu right now I'm guessing because of covid but if you ask for certain dishes they can still make them. The Gratin Udon is boyfriend's favorite dish and it is not on the menu anymore but when walking out someone had it on their table. He asked one of the workers and they said they can make it but you just have to ask. I had the Hot Sansai Udon and it was very very good. As a vegetarian my options were limited to that one pretty much but it was still really good. Back in my meat eating days I also have tried the mapo tofu udon and tomato seafood bisque udon. Both of those are very good as well. Love this restaurant and my go to udon place if you're willing to wait for a table as there is usually a wait.

Vic

Amazing freshly made Udon noodles. Recommend the uni with s side of 🌶️ paste. Warning long lines so arrive early to sign in. No reservations

Sean Ferrell

Delicious food, great service, lovely dining space. This is a place that we looked forward to visiting for weeks in advance. Our one year old son was with us, and he went crazy for the fried chicken, broth, and udon. We had a great experience here, and would recommend this place to anyone.

Jeremy Wong

The creamiest udon I have ever eaten. There are chunks of uni in there so don’t waste the sauce. We added rice to eat with the leftover sauce and it’s so good!

Khoi Nguyen

My favorite udon place in LA. Stopped by on a busy Thursday evening. It took about a 30 minute wait for our large party to be seated. We ordered the creamy uni udon, duck udon, chicken curry udon, small tuna rice bowl, beef rice bowl and some beef rice balls. The uni is a must order if you love sea urchin. Its a creamy rich broth with some salmon roe at the top. You also get a generous portion of uni. The other udon's were delicious. Very light yet rich in flavor and the noodles had great texture. The small rice bowls are nice appetizers if you want something small. Overall, this place is a great place to enjoy some authentic Japanese dishes. It can be tight for some, but don't expect a long wait. Food comes out quickly and you can tell everything is really fresh here

Mark Liu

Tempura shrimp and scallops bowl - best dishes over tried here. The sauce wasn sweet and spicy. Very flavorful. Uni udon - because it's a cream soup, I felt it's very blend, can't taste the uni. Kind of disappointed. Gratin udon - my son said it's delicious. I think it's better than the cream soup udon. Mental seafood cream udon - also very blend, shrimp tasted boring, scallops are tiny one and the creamy soup are to rich and again seems like everything with cream soup is heavy and flavor blend. All in all, it's ok.

Michael Kim

The four of us put our name down for dinner on a Friday night and were seated in about 25-30 minutes. We knew exactly what we wanted to order and got our order in as we sat down. The udons came out quickly! My Hot Dragon udon was not spicy, but there was a healthy serving of ground pork, with tasty pork bone broth! The Uni Cream Udon was phenomenal! It is quite expensive but uni is universally expensive uniwhere you go. We're going to come back to try their other udons! The noodles are so fresh and chewy. Can't wait to run through their whole menu!

Ce Li

The udon at this place was worth the 44-60 minute wait. It was so so good. I had the creamy miso one with bacon bits and it was very creamy and the noodles were springy and rich in flavor absorbing the broth and the thick broth just clung onto the noodles. A friend ordered the clam one and I tried one of the clams and it was good too. There is always a line so get there early. They can't really host large parties, we had a party of 8 and it was tricky timing to accommodate all of us together.

Angela Zhang

You can always trust the udon and pork belly rice here!

Yoki Wang

Cute little restaurant in little Tokyo. I love their sea urchin udon, the texture with the creamy sauce is fantastic. I don’t recommend the tempura tho as it’s fairly average. I’ll definitely come back again :)

Grace Xiaozhou Li

Their udon is soooo good. I had the clam one on their house special list and the soup was so delicious. The portion wasn’t enough though. I would totally add an appetizer. The wait wasn’t too long at 5:30pm on Memorial Day. Their service is very nice.

pompberry

This is one of my favorite restaurants in town. I always come and order the same thing: Sea Urchin Udon. I've tried some other options from their menu, but the Sea Urchin one is still the best. Their Crab & Egg udon (picture attached) from their limited time seasonal menu was quite good too!

YUMI

I love Marugame Monzo when I want to eat udon noodles. Their culinary creation of udon noodles is yum. Especially, Mentai Cream Udon and Mentai Squid Butter Udon are my favorite dishes. Inside the restaurant is clean and cozy, and staff members have the knowledge to choose the menu. Also, their serving speed is pretty quick, so you don't need to wait a long time to eat udon. Looks like most of their staff members can speak the Japanese language, so if you are not good at speaking English, you don't need to worry about that. I think they choose a nice menu for you.

Jessy Vasquez

This place specializes in udon dishes and sells some appetizers. I personally did not like this resturant. It's a little too contemporary for me and did not satisfy my craving for traditional udon. The best tasting dish I had here was the appetizers which was pork belly. If you are looking for traditionally cooked udon, look elsewhere. Also, I felt the service here is not up to par with the surrounding establishments. Just my two cents.

Anh Tran

I LOVE THIS SPOT! The udon noodles are made FRESH and is amazing! We tried the takoyaki and fried chicken skin appetizers. Both were just okay but the udon was out of this world!! Try to sit at the bar area where you can see them make the noodles.

Shelley

UNI UDON. YES YES YES YES YES And grab a seat next to the kitchen so you can be mesmerized by the hand pulling and tossing of udon dough. The slicing is also incredibly satisfying to watch. AND THEN YOU GET TO TASTE THE FRESHNESS. Niku (beef) udon is simple but delicious Beef with fluffy jidori egg udon is like an upgraded nikutama udon, also great My friend also enjoyed his mapo tofu udon Uni udon is still my fave, though!

Paul Ericksen

Uni Udon was very creamy and rich. Often sea urchin can taste very oceany but with the right preparation, it won't. Only my second time here but it's worth the wait!

Rebecca Pedro

Best udon place in town. Line was long but worth waiting... I have ordered different kinds of udons and out of all, my favorite was cold udon. I didnt even know cold udon exist... Cold udon sounds weird but it was BEST. Be sure to do double portion for few bucks more since single portion can be too small. When I try to pay with credit card, their credit card terminal was down and I have to wait 10 minutes but eventually it worked...

Bryn Hildyr

Delicious udon! I had the creamy mushroom and my friends had the sea urchin and carbonara. All rave reviews. The server was really sweet and attentive.

Harvey Bedford

The real deal. Had the chicken udon that came with two pieces of tempura chicken on the side. Amazingly tasty noodles. They are some of the best I've had. I've been to the Marugame udon in the Macy's plaza but this one takes it easy. The noodles are fresh and super flavorful. Check this place out, won't disappoint

E C

I got the kake udon and added the pork belly for 4 bucks. Also got the assorted tempura. As well as the carbonara udon. The food taste good. The carbonara udon is interestingly good and by that I mean I've never had udon that way. The assorted tempura was good. I was hoping for better vegetable selection. Long lines and parking is always an issue

Jordan Hsieh

I have been to this place for some time now. They always deliver the best udon in little Tokyo I recommend trying any of their creamy udon. If you have a bigger party remember to come early, because the place is relatively small and people start crowding up.

Colton Cooper

This place is the bomb... - Fried Calamari -- Nom Nom 100% - Hot Dragon Udon -- Spicy & tasty - Sea Urchin Udon -- Creamy & yummy Service -- Attentive & friendly Udon -- Perfect texture and fresh This place is getting full easily since it's not a big restaurant. I would suggest to come here before 12 during lunch time or be ready to wait at least 30 min. Try their additional menu rice bowl on lunch special. The only thing i complain is the white wine....it comes in a very small glass and very less, this is the reason why i give 4 stars instead of 5.

Michael Polo

Keto or low carb friendly? (I'm not a dietician) No it's an udon place. So I was planning on watching the family eat bc trying to stay away from udon. The waitress thought we were sharing so she didn't allow second mini rice to be part of the combo. Charged full price for the second mini beef rice. Which is fine, only $2.75 difference, but so you know... if you have more people than udon bowl.. for lunch they won't allow more than one mini bowl. I did order a fried calamari but that till didn't count. As for the food, good as usual.

Esther J

It’s a basic order but shrimp tempura udon was the best one ive ever had. Don’t skip it. I liked it more than the carbonara.

Jozo Zovko

I absolutely love this place. The wait isn't as long as it looks, especially if you are going by yourself (which is a very nice treat since you'll probably be seated at the bar overlooking the kitchen area which is very active and intriguing.) I've had a good deal of items during my visits and everything was at least "good" and sometimes "absolutely amazing" like the carbonara udon (So good!) The prices are nice and the service is fantastic. You'll surely come back many times.

K Min

Sea Urchin Udon has great flavor and I absolutely love it. But the sea urchin are cooked so the texture is rough rather than creamy. I'd recommend trying it once, but it won't be my go-to udon. The beef udon is probably the best on the menu - really refreshing and the beef quality is really good, but I was pretty disappointed by the duck/shrimp/chicken udon mainly because of the meat texture.

Paul You

This was probably the most legitimate udon restaurant I’ve tried in the States. And I’ve been looking for a long time. They make all the noodles in-house (as you can see through the window) and many of the workers are Japanese speakers. Their service, the ceramics, and decor all transported me back to Japan. This is the real thing. Def get their beef cold udon.

Kenjiro Yagi

Strange that I just heard someone raving about this place just a few weeks ago about the Hawaii location then it showed up when I was searching for a place to eat in Vegas. It lived up to the hype, but my expectation for udon was not that high to begin with. Location - It's in the Chinatown plaza. It's on the side with all the restaurants. Don't go around in a circle like me. There was no problem parking and no line at 1:30pm. Value - The pricing was surprisingly good. Every hyped restaurant in the bay area where I come from have jacked up prices. We are talking $6-12 udon depending on which one you choose. Food - I really loved the Negitoro Wrap appetizer! That's what makes me interested in coming back to try others. I was confused when it arrived first but once you build and insert it, it makes sense. Fresh and crisp. Yes, the udon was chewier than most restaurants that use the prepackaged noodles, but don't expect too much. Service - This was VERY GOOD! The waitress was very friendly and the workers all said thank you when I left.

Gi Kim

Adjacent to one of the most popular ramen restaurants in the world, is Marugame Monzo, a restaurant specializing in udon noodles. The flavor is very traditional and the chewy texture of the noodles are consistent with typical udon bowls. Where they are extinctive are the broth options, Italian fusion dishes, and their supplemental mini bowls which unfortunately aren't sold in larger portions (these bowls alone hold up on their own). The beef udon was very sukiyaki-like, which was amazing. The mini pork belly bowl was good, but I definitely expected it to be different. It was still good nevertheless. Finally, the mixed tempura was fantastic; cooked perfectly and used a perfect tempura batter.

Laura C

Amazing and fresh udon. Staff was very helpful in regards to allergies. Lunch special is worth the extra cost as the mini rice bowl was amazing.

ngan huynh

I am a huge fan of ramen. This place was rated best ramen in LA. But it was underwhelmed for me. My group of 3 stood under the rain and waited 45 minutes, which was fine in LA. We were super hungry, we ordered 3 combos. The bowls were huge, but the broths were just ok. Noodles didn't go with the broths. The Ikura rice bowl was fine, the 2 other rice bowls were also nothing special. I felt like I had better ramen than here.

Tracy Liu

Excellent handmade udon. Tried the Uni and duck udons, negitoro, garlic clams, and tempura. All delicious. Duck was a little chewy but broth was smokey and flavorful. Cold udon on a hot day is amazing too....they have like 10 kinds of cold udon!

Christine Kang

Fresh handmade, handcut udon noodles. Watching them made before your eyes is very entertaining. Try their mountain vegetable udon! Amazing quality of veggies. Broth is clean, not too heavy or salty. Cold udon was good too. Would love to come again.

Christiaan Bollen

The curry Udon is great. We also took some appetizers. Everything tasted great. Much better than the Japanese food I've had in Barcelona and other places.

Travis

Cream. Uni. Udon. Modern style udon, will never find another udon shop that can compare. I tried finding similar uni udon here in NYC to no avail. I want to cry as i miss the incredibly amazing savory taste that i can't find anywhere else. Places like this make me miss LA.

Mimi C

Service was excellent. Wait staff were friendly and helpful. I ordered the udon with clams. The broth was flavorful and just the right amount of Udon. Perfect portion to leave some room for dessert. It's nice to see how they make the noodle right in front of you. The beef rice bowl is small, don't expect to be full with eating just one. The line can get long, so sign your name and explore the area close by before coming back.

Richard G

Really exceptional freshly made udon noodles. The miso carbonara seems to be the hit udon bowl many choose. I'm not big on cream sauce so opted for a more traditional udon broth. I chose the hot dragon udon with spicy ground pork, bean sprouts and nira. I added toppings of green onions, mashed daikon radish, chili oil and a tempura fried egg. I loved it. Bursting with flavor and soft, tender udon noodles. Big thumbs up. Was about a 25 minute wait to get a table

Chloe Grey

I've been looking for udon for a long time. I missed the place I used to frequent when I lived in a different city. Especially the beef udon. I couldn't find a decent beef udon here for a while! A lot of places just put beef in a bowl and pour bathwater on top. No depth to the broth. No flavor. At this restaurant I got really excited when the server brought my bowl and the broth was glistening and aromatic. I added seaweed and a tempura octopus in the side. The octopus was so tender, not chewy! I'm impressed. Thanks so much guys!

Hannah

Amazing udon place! The noodles are the best udon noodles I have ever had. I got the shrimp tempura udon and it was very nice. The shrimp was fried perfectly! So light and crispy :)

D Pak

Monzo udon provides contemporary and traditional udon at high quality and affordable price. Having tried traditional udon all the time I was curious of their speciality udon which may have influence from American and Asian tradition. The spicy dragon udon was lighter and provided a nice touch of spice. The broth was flavorful and comforting. The uni udon consisted of a deep seafood flavor and creaminess from the uni gave it a nice lightness to it. Mapa tofu udon is much deeper and provided more emphasis in the savory broth. The mapa tofu is in broth so the udon style does not really suit it, but overall it is very delicious.

C H

Best place for udon in all of little Tokyo. Affordable, plentiful options, fresh and absolutely delicious. Expect a wait on popular dinner nights, but not as long as the wait at Daikokuya (incredibly popular ramen spot next door).

조현아Hannah

HUGE BOWLS of udon. My first time eating Japanese udon, the Kakuni Udon. My husband LOVED it, he loves Japanese food. I also enjoyed it, but the meat was a little on the sweeter side than I am used to, but it was still good. We also ordered the fried pork skins and mushroom salad. They were my favorite! The fried pork skin was very light and crispy. Id definitely go back to try the other types of their udon.

Chelsea Josette Dy

I love the Uni Udon!! The cream sauce just pairs with the uni and the fish roe up top is a nice touch. The texture of the udon is nice and firm and presentation of the food is simple but well done! The line here is always long but service is fast and efficient and always worth the wait!

Linh Quan

This is a regular spot I come to whenever I’m in Little Tokyo. They have the best udon. It’s cool you can see them cook and make the food through the glass window. I usually get the cold udon with a soft boiled egg with a mini pork belly rice bowl. The cold udon makes the udon a little firmer and the sauce you pour over it gets absorbed by the radish. Their soft boiled egg is cooked to the right consistency and the yolk is gooey. The rice bowl is seasoned just right.

Rachel Sala

This is an udon joint many people have sung the praises of to me. Well, finally decided it was time, walked over to little Tokyo, popped in. Ordered the mappo tofu udon. It was delicious. Bit of a spicy kick. Broth was rich, tofu chunks were silken and generous, the noodles nice thick and chewy. I devoured my bowl in no time flat, was basically scraping the bottom wishing for more.

Gus Fan

Hot Sansai Udon - quality noodles, with excellent naturally and lightly flavored veggie broth.

Bobby Sruale

I ordered sea urchin udon and kikage. Udon is so rich and creamy. Made right decision not to order lunch set which come w small bowl of rice. Udon alone made me fill. I wish kikage come in slightly bigger p lo ste fir bowl. When take it apart to eat, drop outside small plate and made a mess on table. And it is not hot either. Just warm. Quite a decent amount of shrimp in there. The other customers beside me didn't get the dip sauce for it . They order in lunch set. Would try other udon again if happen to be in area. Small place. Nit good for big group. After 12:30 , place is packed and outside , the line started.

Ho Sung

The hostess and waiters were friendly. We waited about 30 minutes in the cold. I had high expectations for the place, but Udon was little above average. The noodle itslef was good, but the flavor of the base was just okay. You have a choice of the traditional Udon and fusion style Udon. I don't think I'll wait in line to come back.

Ormand Deen

Outstanding service. I ordered the beef Udon with a side of chili oil. Lovely fish-based broth with a significant sweetness to it. Loved watching my udon noodles made infront of me

Trisha Fernandez

I honestly was never a fan of udon til I tried some from Monzo! They make their noodles fresh and if you sit by the bar you can see how they make it. They have different types of udon dishes as whether you want a traditional hot udon or the ones with a cream sauce. I got the carbonara udon which I thought wasn't going to be good, but it is! The sea urchin udon is a must try too! The line could get pretty long and could take an hour to get seated since this place isn't that big. But it's definitely worth the wait.

Liam Fitzgerald

No frills, excellent udon for a reasonable price. Have both the classics and interesting fusion (eg, mapo tofu and carbonara udon).

Michelle H

I think the vongole udon had a really good flavor (my friend ordered it), and was worth trying. I was not too impressed with the udon I ordered -- with mountain vegetables and mushrooms. It was good, but not amazing. I didn't like the tempura I ordered -- squid -- it was a bit watery inside the batter.

Lydia Cheng

Udon here is really good and the broths are flavorful. This spot gets busy so come early and be prepared to wait after putting your name down.

Wa Bang

The amazing made fresh in house Udon noodles that you can sit and see them make in front of you just adds to why the food is so delicious. With noodles so good already its easy to ignore everything else but they don't. Amazing soups, broths, curry, & sauces that they combine with their Udon noodles just simply makes you say delicious.

Kendra S

I’m loving the seafood curry udon !!! Added soft boiled egg oh my ! Also enjoyed the shrimp tempura Too bad I’m leaving tomorrow 😩😩😩

Shameck Arroyo

Spicy Pork rice bowl was awesome! Beef Udong on picture was soo tasty. Service was outstanding. Definitely want to come back!

David T

Really enjoyed the meal here, the fresh, handmade, chewy thick udon absorbs alot of the rich creamy seafood flavour of the sauce. And the uni actually had a slightly charred/smokey flavour. There was a big lineup for a weekday lunch, around a 45 minute wait. Make sure you go in and put your name down on the list.

Mao Chen

Their uni udon is the best. Must order!

ilan magen

We got 4 different udon, curry, veggies,shrimp and chicken. Every portion is good.

Stephen Tsang

I had to try this place twice. My advice is stick to the more traditional Japanese dishes as the fusion dishes didn't really appeal to me. Overall a great experience though.

Avinash Salgam (Avi)

The udon is superb. The carbonara is a must.

Kenji

Best udon in town! The uni one is so rich and delicious! The mentai squid butter udon is also great.

Leo Swordsman

4.5, I was questionable since I heard all udons have fish broth and different meats you can add. I hate fish and anything related to it. I was super surprised that it didn't taste like fish at all (cept it smelled like it) but I thought it was amazing how they masked the flavor of fish. It was about $13-14 for a beef udon. Wish it had more noodles but still filling I'd recommend here if you don't mind waiting for a line (line was fast anyways).

Anthony (Beer Chronicle) Gorrity

Uni Udon was great, and the Dragon Udon was FIRE! So good. Worth the wait. Took it to go and walked over to Mumford around the corner. Win.

Bennett Smith

Very solid!! I enjoyed the carbonara but I would’ve liked a bit more miso flavor personally. Next time I think I’ll try the uni pasta

Francis Ramirez

One of the best udon places in DTLA with the some of the most unique & flavorful udon bowls. The udon noodles can be seen made in front of you & it's texture is astounding. I had the Miso Cabanara which has a creamy base with a hint of miso complimented by some smokey bacon. Delicious. Usually has a long wait time to get seated but definitely worth the wait.

Musho Pea

The mentai squid butter udon was great with soft boil egg. The tempura shitake is awesome too. Love the hot tea

Philip

Location is between the Miyako Hotel, Little Tokyo Hotel, and other popular noodle houses like Daikokuya, Hachioji, and My Ramen Bar. The line is real — 930pm on a Sunday night and thirty minutes before closing — it was a wait. I ordered vegan 🌱 udon and it was incredibly delicious. Also ordered eggplant and pumpkin tempura with extra daikon — also phenomenal. Monzo confirms a fact: Latinos are the heart of excellent Japanese cuisine in Los Angeles. The kitchen at Monzo is consistent with most great Japanese restaurants in L.A. — a mix of Japanese and Latino chefs. If you miss the closing time, the other noodle shops next door are open later.

Blake Wettstein

Great food. Kids loved it and begged for more (ages 6&7). Beef udon was great. Urchin and Bolognese were awesome.

Kate Qiu

Super creamy and yummy! Worth a visit

Kendra Vander Vliet

The udon is yummy. Hand made noodles, hot broth. Really satisfying. I found the uni udon to be a bit too rich for my tastes and the uni had an odd bitter flavor. I would recommend this to share since it is so rich. Skip the duck udon. The meat was so tough it was kind of disappointing, the broth and noodles were fantastic. My favorite thing to get here is just the classic udon. It's perfect.

Young Shin

“Best of the best”, perhaps better than the ones I’ve had in Tokyo and Sapporo. Uni Udon was superb, highly recommended for Uni lovers.

Yuan

Amazing! Sea urchin udon was the favorite, miso carbonara was a close second. Super creamy, well flavored

Tristan Noack

Phenomenal udon in Little Tokyo. I mean absolutely phenomenal. I get the dragon udon which is great. I've spent a few months in Japan and the udon here is comparable to the best I've had in Japan. Very good and quick service, and you can watch the udon be made from the bar.

Luca Lee

During my first visit, I spent 25 minutes at this restaurant. I spent 10 minutes outside the door at 4:50 waiting for the doors to open at 5:00pm, and 15 minutes to order, eat, pay, watch the cooks, and walk out. It was possibly the best 15 minutes of my visit to LA. To be completely honest, you don't go here if you want good service, good drinks, or a great ambience (although the interior is still great). You go here for one thing only: the udon. Make SURE that you get the sea urchin udon. Your only excuse is if you hate seafood or hate something creamy. The udon is the epitome of a sensational spin on a traditional dish. The noodles themselves, being handmade, had a really nice chew to it and the cooks got the amount of udon exactly right. The creamy soup surrounding the island of udon was just to die for. And when you eat it, you get bursts of the flavor of the sea from the popping salmon roe and creamy sea urchin. For how busy they were, the staff were very friendly and did their best to cater to the needs of every table. I will make sure to visit again when I go back to LA. You simply cannot miss going to this restaurant.

Rachel

I got the cheese gratin udon and it was delicious. They make the udon in front of you ! The amount of cheese in this dish was really generous and it was amazing. Highly recommend and well worth the wait.

Priscilla Cardona

I enjoy the cold udon more than their got ones, but both are really really good! This is my favorite place for udon!

Om Mahida

Delicious udon noodles and a fun twist with the Italian-Japanese dishes! The takoyaki was okay but the main udon dishes were great!

Jessica Chai

Marugame Monzo is located in little Toyko. We had a brief wait, but were able to look at the other neighboring stores while we did. We ordered the urchin udon and it was a wonderful combination of umami and creaminess. Definitely not an experience that we have had anywhere else.

Benjamin Mei

I came here on a Friday night and there was a long line. Despite that, it was a relatively quick wait. I got the Miso Carbonara Udon and it was really good. The sauce was very rich and creamy, I savored every bite. However, I was disappointed with the amount of meat that was in the udon. I had a few pieces of bacon. To compensate for the lack of meat, I ordered the tempura soft boiled egg and tempura chicken. The tempura egg was reallllllly good. I will definitely be coming back to check out the other menu options.

Samuel Simons

Got the seafood tomato udon—a very well balanced and rich sauce with well prepared scallops and shrimps. A very large and filling bowl. Noodles had a very nice bite.

Joe

Service was great. Hot Dragon Udon was what needed after Coachella

Petros Koulouris (PK)

The tempura was perfect and great serving size. I had kake beef udon and it was amazing. You can really taste how fresh the udon noodles are. I was here from Sydney on a work trip and felt like I was in Japan. Can’t wait to come back again

Pouya

Fantastic food, worth the wait. Uni udon was great and the hot dragon udon 😍 …

Steven Gutierrez

Popular noodle soup 🍜 restaurant. Much busier than others in the area. Sitting at the bar gives you the opportunity to watch the chefs prepare food. If you don't like soups (perhaps visiting with a friend that does) there're a few side dishes to try. Service was friendly and although there was a big queue it only took about 15 minutes to get a table for two.

Faris Ahmed

I frequent here a lot and have ordered delivery many times during the pandemic. Definitely one of my favorite places in LA. The mushroom cream udon is so good and the freshly cut udon is cooked to perfect al dente. Also recommend the Sea Urchin Uni Udon

Lilian Hu Nguyen

Delicious low key spot for udon. We went for lunch on a Monday, and around noon there were about 4 tables present. We tried the tempura and a couple of soup based udons. Both were very good, with the noodles cooked well. The tempura was light and airy and still crunchy even after cooling down. Pricing is decent, recommended!

georg kochi

Best handmade cold udon noodles in town. Get it simple. Get it cold. Chewy and delectable. I can eat two bowls!

Ann Luu

Worthy of the 45+ minutes wait! The carbonara is always great and the beef tataki is a must at dinner-time

Millie P. Surapol

The Best udon in LA! My favorite is Mentai squid butter. I usually don’t eat squid. But they make it taste like fish! So soft and yummy ♥️

anthony e.

Went here with my boyfriend and best friend and have to say it was absolutely delicious. From the agedashi tofu to the tempura to the veggie udon, everything was fresh and delicious. Highly recommend.

Andy

I really wanted to try this place for the longest time. The first time I came, the wait was too long and I had to go catch my train. I eventually did come back another day, coming when it opened. The place was already packed. The food was really delicious. It was definitely heavy and I wasn't able to finish all of it, so I took it to go. I can see why it's a popular place.

Kewalee S.

Not bad

Alexis de Laurens

N’ébruita good place for udon’s !

Rayanna Beltran

The best Udon place I've tried!!! This place really is a bang for your buck. The serving was so freakin' huge, the soup/broth was so tasty plus they put a lot of the seafood on the Curry Udon! The assorted tempura was good, just wished they included more assortment since it's priced at 9 bucks. Regardless, we had a very pleasant dining experience and we will definitely come back to this place!

Rei Chen

The serving size for the udon is modest but filling. I'm comfortably full after a meal. On top of all, the price is very consumer friendly. There's a line outside but wow was waiting for a bowl worth it!

Michelle Gan

Sometimes I worry when a restaurant recommends something that it's overhyped, but the uni cream udon very much earns its place as a bestseller. It was so delicious - you can definitely taste the uni while also tasting delicious creaminess. I ate this today and I wish I could have more.

D.on디온

Nice service and food :) mentai cream seafood udon is sooooooo good !!!

Tommy Bencharit

Number 1 place for freshly made udon. Thumbs up. Always a queue to get seated but worth the wait.

Thy Pham

So worth the wait!!! Just gooooo. You will not regret it. Uni pasta was the bomb dot com.

Marco M.

Love the variety of Udon flavors they have here from Uni cream Udon to Curry Pork Udon 🤤🤤🤤 …

Nicole Barajas

God this place is fantastic! Especially the sea urchin udon. My favorite udon spot in la

Robert Esguerra

I first ate here a few years ago, and thought their udon was good. Today, I returned with my family, and OH MY! The best udon I've ever had, no question. All four of us had different dishes, two of us had hot, two cold. Each one was delicious in their own way. Uni Sea Urchin Cream, Mentai Squid Butter, Cold Udon with Soft Boiled Egg, and Mad Tiger udon dishes ... All were excellent. The udon noodles were al dente. Broths in the hot dishes were yummy. I also had a pork rice bowl, and that was very tasty too. Attentive service. No eating inside, two tables of four outside, as of 8/29/2020. Certainly will return to MM in the future!

Joanna Lim

Excellent udon. Tried the hot mushroom soup and the cold vegetable soup. Both well-balanced and delicious.

Edwin Martinez

Mushroom udon was delicious. Shout outs to all the servers who never let my water cup run out.

Sam Rice

Some of the BEST Udon noodles and sauce I've EVER had. Amazing food, well worth the wait. They also offer a mixed tempura appetizer, which came with a GIANT shrimp, and several good tempura vegetables. There was a line the entire time it was open, even before the place opened there was a huge line going down the street. We had a party of 6 and we waited about 35min for our large group at 3pm, which wasn't terrible. They have a quick turnaround.

Jennifer Phan

Food there was so delicious!! I loved the udon gratin. It was so good that we had to come back again before our vacation ended. The noodles are made fresh and you can see them making it right there in front of you. Make sure you go in and get your name on the list if there is a line--the line may be out the door but you need your name on the list to get seated. It's definitely worth the wait.

Aldrin Bigay

Haven’t reviewed in a while but wow! I got the uni udon and it was the right portion along with an ikura side bowl for their lunch special. It was so creamy and warm it was like having fettuccine Alfredo. I’d def return for their duck udon!

Jon Chernicky

Waiting outside on a cold LA day I couldn’t wait to get some good Udon. The smell of this shop from just outside the store brought back memories of being in Japan. I got the Uni Udon with assorted tempura. The udon was savory and rich which was complimented by the crispy light assorted vegetable tempura.

Keiko Davisson

Their udon is soooo good! I came here after doing the Hollywood Sign hike so I was very hungry and it was actually kind of cold for Southern California. The wait on a Saturday evening for a group of 7 was pretty long (about an hour and a half) but it was worth it. I got the beef and fluffy Jidori egg udon and it was delicious! Even the broth was very good. I'd definitely come again.

K H

Hand cut udon noodles, wonderful taste. Can't wait to return

Marion Soriano

Price: For the Sea Urchin Cream Udon it was $17.95 and for the Mushroom Cream Udon it was $13.75. The prices, in my opinion, are very reasonable for what you get in terms of quality and quantity. The rice bowls on the other hand are honestly a steal! So delicious! Service: Great! We were kind of intimidated by the long list of names that were yet to be called out before us roughly 20-25 groups ahead. But a lot of them were no shows so it only took about 15 minutes before we signed up and sat down!! Quick to order and get our food as well! Food: Only recently have I started to like regular udon. But after trying out Marugame Monzo's creamy sea urchin udon, I can officially say I AM HOOKED! Everything about their Creamy Uni Udon was perfect. I love the taste and consistency of the broth/sauce, the texture of the Udon, and the saltiness of the Ikura and Uni pieces really complimented the overall dish! 10/10 would recommend this dish for Uni lovers. My SO got their creamy mushroom udon, which he said was also top tier! Marugame Monzo gives a combo for a donburi (Rice bowl) to go with your Udon for an extra $3/$4 depending which rice bowl you choose! I really love Ikura so I got the Ikura Rice Bowl for $4. It was simple and delicious! The negitoro udon had more ingredients, such as japanese mayo and eel sauce! Also very yummy!

Zenmaster701 L

Great udon spot. The classic udons are simply good and the specialty udons like the carbonara udon are delicious! Don't forget about the rice bowls. They good too especially the pork belly rice bowl.

Hayk Bezirganyan

Food is great! Service is not so. Simple things like hot green tea are not served at all. Not a kid friendly spot either. The tables are also way too small but overall cozy.

Edward Robinson

Delicious! We got take out and it was still delicious! They pack the noodles separately and both dishes were still extremely hot after a 15min drive home. I was recommended to this place by a family friend and I am so glad that he did. This place worth the shot.

Heather Green

My friend ordered the Carbonara, although I liked my seafood one better, his dish also tasted really good. I would recommend this for someone who really likes a creamy a bit more roasted meaty taste. The bacon tasted well with the sauce and udon noodles. The portions are light however, it was enough for the both of us since we had eaten a few hrs before. The food came out quickly and the servers were very attentive and kind. I would definitely come back to try the other items on the menu!

Vincent Tran

This place is overall really good and the service was great. Ordered the mentai seafood and uni udon. The mental was good and flavorful but the uni wasn't. It was kind of bland/lacking salt and there was little uni flavor but I'll probably try other dishes here.

Melissa Ng

We arrived around 5:30 pm and waited for about 20 mins. The inside smelled so comforting. The sea urchin cream udon is just amazing. We also got one of the specials with beef and fluffy eggs and it was also amazing. I will definitely come back to try other items on the menu.

Adri

One of the best veggie udon I have ever had. Broth was flavorful, creamy. The soup was simple but tasty. Place was cozy. Service was fast and very friendly! The edamame was perfect appetizer. Soup big enough to share and leave some room for dessert.

Mathias J.

Very good vegan Ramen and other vegan options 😊 …

Jen Wong

Handmade udon has a great taste, texture and firmness. Lovely broth and good quality ingredients. Would definitely go again the next time I'm in LA. Food comes quickly and service is good

Jocelyn Lee

Out of all the branches they have, this is the best location for Marugame Monzo. The texture of the noodles are outstanding and the broth is simply warming. Been coming here since 2012 and will continue to come back whenever I'm back in Little Tokyo!

Katherine Aldrich

We found this place on accident when the udon restaurant we usually go to was already closed! We lucked out! They were closing soon but still crowded. We ordered the Udon gratin. It sounded like an odd combo, udon soup with onions and chicken but topped with cheese and then baked. It was incredibly delicious! I am so glad we found this place on a whim and then ordered the gratin. Definitely worth the money!

Darryl Delrosario

This is the best place for udon hands down! The quality of the food is unmatched. The udon noodles are hand made and flavor of their broths is well balanced. There are several different styles of flavors you can choose from, ranging from the simplest more traditional udon to a richer more creamy style. They also offer rice bowls that will are just done well. Although their udon is what they are known for, make no mistake, these rice bowls are just as delicious! If you or someone you are with are not feeling like soup this should be your next option. They may seem very simple but simple done well can be packed with flavor! As for the pricing, it is extremely reasonable for the quality you get. Udon can range from $9 to $14 and the rice bowls are $5 to $10. Any additional add-ons you would like will cost extra but it is often not necessary unless you feel like a change of pace. Parking can be found across the street in a "Pay Per-Hour" parking structure or you can find street metered parking which can be free depending on the time. The staff is friendly and the location is small and cozy, so expect a fairly decent wait time during dinner hours if you are part of a big group. Definitely worth your money!

Lily Lamon

Popular "hole in the wall" Udon specialty. Look for address or Monzo on store front or you'll walk right by. Soup broth is hearty and delicious no matter which udon bowl you get. Udon noodle is the perfect texture. Unique bowl and spoon is picture-worthy. Excellent service, friendly and attentive.

Katie “KaPow!”

This place is amazing. Their udon is to die for. When you arrive, put your name on the wait list just inside the door. The restaurant is small, so you wait outside to be seated- on a Wednesday or Thursday night it usually takes 10 minutes to be seated. Don't know what to order? The udon carbonara is one of their specialties, super creamy and delicious. My favorite is the udon gratin, which is a mix between mac & cheese and udon noodles. Or try a classic udon soup. Definitely get their noodles; they're what Monzo is known for and are some of the best in the LA area.

sarah bonds

Hand pulled in house Udon. Delicious. Limited options for vegetarians but the options available are spectacular. I could have eaten and entire tempura pumpkin. Super friendly service. If you time your visit right, nag a seat at the bar... you can be hypnotized buy the pulling and cutting of noodles at the window. Great experience.

Andrew Brewer

Really delicious, hand-made Udon. They have an interesting combination of traditional and specialty dishes. Portion sizes are just right. There is often a bit of a wait but the service is fast and it's worth hanging out a bit.

Logan Ibarra

Everything was fantastic. We arrived around 1pm on a Saturday and only waited for 10-15 min and the service was prompt. Our group tried both the specially udon, more traditional udon and cold udon. It was all amazing. They are the best udon noodles we have had. Such great texture! Worth a try.

Monyrith King

I didn't have high expectations for the place, but where there is a line, there's a reason. The freshly made udon had the perfect bounce and the food was delicious. The pork belly appetizer is a MUST have. It is doused in a creamy rich broth that really does taste like butter (it probably is mostly butter). The Uni Udon was good but I wish it had more of that sea brine uni taste. Still, I would definitely come back again.

Victor J Garza

I had heard of this place making their own udon noodles. This was reason enough to at least try it out. I've been here a few times since and it has been consistently delicious. I've had several of their menu items and they have all been great. If you see a crazy line outside, to get too scared, since most of the wait is for Daikokuya next door. There may be a wait though, but its worth it if you aren't furiously hungry.

Cassandra Sotomayor

Very awesome experience: visually and taste. This has been a bookmarked place for me and I finally got to try it. My wait expectation was pretty uncertain as I have read reviews that there can be a two hour wait. Luckily when we went for lunch on Sunday, the line was crazy only to realize that it was for Daikokuya. Don't get trick. Place your name on the waitlist inside shop and wait to be called. For party of 2, we only waiting for 35 minutes. We got seated at the bar and luckily right in front of the Udon maker. It was amazing watching him make a slab of dough to the chewy Udon that we had. It was entertaining and amazing. You can observe how food being made, and you can witness the cleanliness of how the staffs and chefs work. The transparency of the kitchen was assuring and soothing to watch. Food was delicious and savory. I had gotten the miso carbonara and the richness of the sauce complimented the Udon's freshness. The chewy texture is perfect for the Udon and it's how I like it. I don't like mushy noodles and it was exactly opposite of that. Price was very reasonable for the quality noodle and flavor. The staff are polite and professional. One of the great qualities of Japanese Culture shining through. I would definitely come back here again for the Udon. I just need to find friends that are crazy and willing to wait with me.

Brian Contreras

Small little udon shop but it's quality can't be disputed. Wait times can be around 40 minutes but there might be times when the wait time can be cut down for various reasons. Staff was attentive and ready to answer any questions. Udon noodles had a good thick and chewy texture. The cream was not too powerful and had a good seafood taste for my seafood udon. Portions size was good, certainly bigger than some pictures might show. Added bonus: you can see the noodles being made in front of you. Quite a good show in my opinion.

Ramzi S

Amazing...very good ...they just need one more extra help to get orders out faster.

David Papoular

Delicious udon prepared from scratch right before your eyes! They have a large variety of toppings which range from traditional to creative. The clientele was largely Japanese on the day I visited. The servings are Huge, there is more than enough to share!

Christopher Lai

YUM. Love their signature udons. The last time I had Marugame Monzo, I ordered the tomato seafood which was bomb. My friend ordered the regular cold udon since it was a little hot outside and we found it very refreshing. They have so many different options to choose from and everything is unique. They cut their own udon in house too. I think it's best to come with 2-3 other people so you can all order different udons and share. They also have tempura here although I find it to be pretty mediocre. The batter on my tempura fell apart when I bit into it. I don't really mind though, because I come for the udon and not the tempura. FYI - I ordered chicken tempura. Maybe the shrimp is better hah My most recent visit was Wednesday at noon. Still a short wait at that time but nothing crazy. There's usually a crowd of people in line on the weekends so plan accordingly! This place can't really accommodate large parties so keep that in mind too.

andrea k

These are probably the best udon noodles I've ever had. The texture of the noodles is excellent--they make them in house and you can see the noodle-man behind the glass, rolling and kneading away at the dough. I love the sides/toppings that you can add on, especially the temura soft boiled egg--yum! I have been here a couple times, and so far have found the more traditional soups/broths more to my taste than the more creative ones. For example: the one with uni butter sauce sounded delicious, but there was more cream sauce than we expected(closer to a broth) and the uni perhaps not of excellent quality that day. There's also typically a pretty long wait for a table.

Laura Pickett

Best udon I've had in the states. Just the right bite to the noodles. The shrimp tempura was the perfect addition.

Zachary McPherson

Amazing. Everytime I go to Japan town I have to go here. The udon gratin is my favorite.

Alysa Nguyen

Marugame is right next to ramen place that is quite popular, yet it is still just as crowded. The good thing about Marugame is that it serves udon, which real is my jam. I really enjoyed everything that we ate, except for the carbonara udon because it was too rich, and best save for the thinner spaghetti noodle. If you stick with the traditional udon, you will leave happy. The price is great, the service is friendly, and the food won’t disappoint. My favorite dish is the hot dragon udon. It was so good, and I especially like that the udon is pulled fresh right before your eyes. The duck udon was good too!

Louisa Toy

The udon here is SO GOOD! I don't think I can put it into words, but wow I was blown away. The texture is just absolutely perfectly chewy and soft, and the soup they make it in was a perfect compliment! I was able to try the uni special as well as the mentai squid butter udon. If you like uni, then this is for you. The broth is so rich and just packed with uni flavor and a decent amount of uni in there to complete the bowl. This was absolutely delicious! The mentai squid butter udon was also very good and very rich, and the flavors were a bit stronger than the uni (in a good way). I loved them both and am not sure what I would ever do if I went by myself, or went with someone who will not share with me! Yikes! Yes there is a wait because they don't have too many tables, not to say it is small by any means, but it is worth the wait. We were lucky to have gotten bar seats where we can watch the chefs make the udons! I just could not stop staring! (creepy.... I know) I need to come back.

J E

This place is AMAZING!!! It is literally the best udon I've had in Los Angeles!! I poped in after a day at The Brood museum which it is really close to. Street Parking can be a little bit tricky but you can just pay and go into one of the lots close by. I personally love the sour plum udon its super sour and delicious but if that's not your thing they literally have a ton of different options. You can get a double portion on any of their udon for a small up charge (I think only $2 more) and it is totally worth it! Their tuna is a delicious appetizer as well. One big thing to be aware of, there is often a wait list you have to sign up on to get in. Be sure you give yourself ample time.

Rosa Vazquez

Amazing ramen, hearty soups, and even the rice is amazing! The staff is usually very friendly, although I have honestly had better experiences with the male staff, than with the female staff, but that's just personal experience! Overall, the food is amazing, the area is a bit small, but still great to bring a date or a group of friends.

Kevin Do

Sometimes crowded because it has a small restaurant space, but it is so delicious! The food is super amazing and I would eat it 24/7 if i could. It is really cool that you can see them make the udon noodles fresh.

tiffany do

A MUST HAVE IF YOURE VISITING LA!! Forget those other fancy places in La, just go here!!! This restaurant is for sure in my top 5 of places to eat. The udon noodles are fresh and handmade, you can literally see the guy making udon noodles in the window! Go during lunch, they offer a lunch combo which is definitely bang for your buck. If there’s no photo to accompany this review, it’s because I devour my food the moment it comes and I forget to pause to take a photo :( My go-to: kinoko cream mushroom w/ pork belly bowl

John Pham

Marugame Monzo has the best udon in town. Fresh chewy noodles with an interesting variety of broths (uni, beef, curry, miso carbonara??). Udon for me growing up was like ramen, I never knew it could taste so much better fresh outside a pre-packaged bag until I tried this place. At first I thought this place was expensive because I ordered the uni udon - which is probably their most expensive bowl. However, when I went back to try their other bowls, it was surprisingly cheap. If you happen to be in line for the 2 hour wait ramen spot next door, do yourself a favor and try this place instead.

Martin Millena

Tried both the Miso Carbonara Udon and the Mentai Squid Butter Udon. Rich, creamy, and worth the drive through LA traffic and wait for a table (roughly half an hour, maybe less). The tempura and side egg were likewise delicious. Service was excellent. Side note, they don't do takeout orders. This is super disappointing... but if you're already having a meal there and want another order to go (which I ended up taking with me on my flight home later that night), you can order your to go dish along with the rest of your meal and you can ask for a to-go container. I really wish they'd just do takeout orders since the noodles ended up soaking up a lot of the sauce (which could be rectified by having separate containers for the sauce and the noodles -- you can try your luck by asking for the sauce and noodles to be served separately so that you can try to pack them in separate containers). Then again, it was worth seeing the reaction from security agents in LAX (who seemed impressed by the smell alone and promised he would go try it sometime) and CBSA (who laughed in disbelief that I'd carry an order of Miso Carbonara Udon all the way home from Little Tokyo in LA, and waved me through).

Amy Wang

Loved the negitoro appetizer and the carbonara udon. Waited about an hour on a Monday night at 7p.

Sophia Chang

I am in love with this place. The mesmerizing and adroitness way they make the udon, the texture of the udon, creamy and generous portions of uni, the tempura - it's all fantastic to me. Normally, I do not care for or like fusion-type dishes, and at first, I was skeptical at how a creamy white sauce would work with Japanese noodles. Somehow, it does, and it is extremely delicious. Even though it's a pretty small restaurant, the wait is often much shorter than the over-hyped Daikokuya next door. Service is average with the servers staying busy.

J S

The noodles were very fresh and the right amount of chewiness. The sea urchin with the noodles is a great combination. One negative was the shrimp tempura was a little more oily than I wanted. It made my lips and hand oily which was too much. One positive was when I squeezed the tempura with the napkin, it looks like the restaurant uses clean oil to fry with. Some places use dirty oil that looks dark yellow and smells bad.

Clara

At Monzo you get some damn amazing food!!! I really am into all things noodle soup, but this was something special! I got the chicken tempura udon and got mixed tempura on the side and everything was so incredibly on point, that I don't even know what to say. You could taste every detail and nothing was just 'filling you up'. Amazing food experience! Take the iced green tea - ist not sweetened and it's the perfect accompaniment for the food they serve! Expect a wait - not extra long but they pretty much have a wait whenever they are open! BUT worth it!

Carolyn Padilla

Although the portions have gotten smaller and smaller every time, I really enjoy dinners here w family and friends. Very casual spot but cozy and prices are great. I actually crave their side of buttery rice and pickled red cabbage!! So delicious... idk what they put in it but both addicting.

熙篠琵

🍜yummy😋I love Uni cream Udon😌 …

Nani Tjuradi

Yummy! I had sea urchin udon with salmon caviars. You will love it if you like creamy pastas. My daughter had curry udon which she loves. This is a very crowded place and they don't take any reservations. We waited almost an hour

Annie Lin

This place earns five stars in my book. Soooo goooood! The wait was very long on a Saturday night - we arrived at 7PM and didn't get in until around 8:20PM..but we did get to sit at the bay and look at the chef make freshmade udon for us to NOMS! We ordered the uni cream udon (by far the most popular dish, as it seems every other table in the restaurant had an order) and the duck udon. The uni cream udon is very thick, yet so delicious! The duck udon had the best soup ever. I was feeling a bit under the weather and eating that may have just brought my mood back up... I'll be back :) I don't mind the wait for this place at all!

Glenn Basgaard

The curry hot udon is amazing!

Same Day Sender

I am a huge fan of this restaurant. The staff was always friendly and hard working. This is a very popular location for tourists and locals, it's one of the best restaurants in Los Angeles. Monzo beats all of the surrounding restaurants, I'm sorry. I absolutely love their Hot Sansai Udon. It's wonderful. Those Japanese mountain vegetables with the freshly made noodles go so perfectly together. The vegetables are so succulent in flavor. Monzo will always be one of my favorite restaurants in the US.

Karen Wong

The udon was amazing and the broth complemented it well and wasn’t overpowering at all.

Kimberly Tan

Worth the one hour wait. Their uni cream udon was amazing!

Hamala Makala

Came here with some friends after walking around Little Tokyo, my first suggestion would try to get here early because the line gets long very quick. An interesting feature here is that you can watch the noodles being made right in front of you in an open kitchen. We ordered the duck udon, mushroom cream udon, gratin udon, and negitoro rice bowl (tuna). I would recommend all three, especially the rice bowl, but if you were to order the gratin udon I would recommend sharing another udon or ramen that has a clean broth with someone else. After about three or four bites into the gratin udon the cheesiness and greasiness starts to set in and you will need something to cut straight through it in order to keep eating.

April Chiu

Nice flavor and service. If you like udon, you should try this!

Maryann T

Best udon restaurant in Los Angeles, 10/10 would recommend. You have to eat here to understand the hype. It has a ridiculously long wait-time during peak hours, but if you can manage to get a table with a wait-time under 30min, go go go.

Jack Guo

Best place for udon noodle. They have handmade noodles w/ different types of base. Servants are friendly, but I would not recommend you order drink here... Because if you really like teas, you should go to the supermarket nearby grab the same they have here XD. Overall, 9.5/10.

Tiffany T

All of the udon dishes here are very good. I love the sea urchin cream one a lot as it is very rich. The tempura soft boiled egg is really yummy and unique compared to many other shops.

fernando corona

Waiting line was more of a formality, I was called 5 minutes after writing my name even though there were 4 names written above mine. Food is amazing, not too big so you won't end up stuffed. Not expensive. Had the Japanese Mapo Tofu Udon, supposed to be spicy but it's only a little. (Notice that the Udon can be creamy or normal, so take that in mind when selecting yours)

Brandon Keenan

Awesome experience and food. The beef carpaccio was excellent as the peppercorns added a different twist I haven’t seen before. Also the udon was unreal. The wait is a bit of a bummer as we didn’t eat for about an hour and a half but it was worth the wait.

Chrissy Cupcake

The fresh udon noodles are amazing. Got the chicken tempora as well, and it was nice and light and crisp. Loved that we could sit at the bar and watch our food be made. And drink refill service is on point here!

Lily Tran

I must say that this is one of my favorite places in DTLA for udon. The udon is fresh and made to order right in front of you! I can leave here feeling full, but not in a deadly food coma. My favorite things to order here are the uni cream udon and the beef tataki. I was worried that the uni cream udon would be really heavy, but it is not that bad. Another thing that I love about it is that they are pretty generous with how much uni they put in there. I have also tried the pork belly udon and the scallop carpaccio, but I thought they were just okay. There is always a line when I come so prepare to wait awhile. If you're lucky, you can snag a parking spot on the street, but if not, there are parking lots across the street and around the area, Coming back (probably soon!) to try their mentai squid udon!

Melanie Huynh

I came here last Saturday afternoon and was seated after 30 minutes. Since the restaurant is located in Little Tokyo, we just walked around the shops in the plaza across the street. When we got back, we were seated about 5 minutes later. The waitress sat us an a table next to a pillar. The tables are very close together and there's only a small gap for you to slip through to get to seat against the wall. We shared the Sea Urchin Cream Udon and the Udon Gratin. We ordered two cream based udons, which was mistake because the creaminess got a little overwhelming. Nevertheless, the Sea Urchin Cream Udon was sooooooo delicious. With the prefect ratio of uni and cream. The fresh udon noodles are the best I've ever had. The Udon Gratin was good. It reminded me of the udon version of mac and cheese. This restaurant offers the best udon I have ever had. I recommend this place to anyone who loves uni and udon.

Tonya Lei

If you have the patience and time to wait, it's worth it! Please don't leave the area because if they call you and you're not there, you lose your place in line. Don't yell at the employees because you left and you lost your seat. It's rude. This place makes fresh udon noodles. Their broth is perfectly savory but not too salty. There's even a vegetarian udon with vegetarian broth on the menu for those who want it. I tried about 7 different types of broths and noodles and loved them all. There's something for every udon mood. When I want something different and creamy, my favorite is the seafood mentai. When I want something more "traditional" I like the hot beef udon. When it's hot, I like the cold bukkake udon. Their dinner menu has a braised pork belly appetizer and that's one of my favorite pork belly dishes.

Hanae K

1st visit - Lunch time, 30 min before they closed (2:30) - Didn't get to see the guy make the noodle :( - Grdered carbonara and squid butter signature entre: both were savory and delicious. Glad we shared 2 different entres and not get sick of eating only one. I also ordered a side off deep fried soft boil egg cuz I never had it. It was ok. My favorite dish was the carbonara sauce (cheeeessse). 2nd - Made a reservation for my family (thank god, it got really crowded) - Finally got to see a guy make their famous handmade udon at the bar behind the window! it's really cool to see how they were made :) - My parents said this is the best udon they have ever had. The noodle isn't mushy and the soup is splendid. - Ordered: curry udon, tempura don, meat udon, kake udon and carbonara. SERVICE A+++ they were very attentive and sweet :) they were cool about letting us change our reservation last minute. TIP - the signature entre is amazing but the sauce will distract u from the quality of the noodle - the traditional udon, you can focus on the noodle and the soup/broth - make a reservation because this place gets crowded - they close at 2:30pm then opens again at 5pm - i think the lunch price is the same as dinner, so best to go during dinner time

William Norton

This place was amazing! By far the best udon we've ever had. The braised pork belly was great, too. The service is excellent, and the place has a really vibrant, funky atmosphere.

Marion Quien

Portions seem small but the creamy broth is so rich that it fills you right up

Paulina Lei

Have been here a few times and have to say that it is quite worth it to come here. There is always some sort of line. I've come at an off time before and still had to wait for a while before being seated down :( But, if you have time and want to come try some different udon, I would definitely recommend coming here. They have a lot of different udon choices and would definitely recommend trying one of their special ones. Their classic udon is also great as well. But would definitely recommend either sharing or coming here more than once so you can try all they have to offer. Also, they have a place where you can watch them make udon, so that's really cool! Parking can be found in a garage across the street or you can street park.

Jea Kim

The mentai squid butter udon was one of the best udon I've ever had. The combination of seafood and creamy sauce reminded of pasta, but it was hands-down better than pasta, and their steamed squid was really tender and had no fishy smell at all. Beef tataki was also great and I really enjoyed the combination of their savory sauce and tomatoes. Despite the 40 mins wait (around 8pm), this place was worth visiting.

Lisa Tsai

I got the Kakuni udon and thank goodness I added the tempura vegetables because there were none (vegetables that is) other than scallions. For what it was worth I really enjoyed the udon. I haven't had udon thats blown my mind yet and the experience itself was good as I did not wait long at all to be seated. The air conditioning could've been turned on a bit more...but I would definitely come back in a jiffy. I would try more dishes here I liked their noodles better than tsurutontans that I tried in NYC

Glenn A

We came here on a Friday night just shortly after it opened at 5pm. The place was already full. Luckily, there was one table available as we walked in. As we placed our order, I was hoping to see one of the Chefs make the hand made Udon they are known for but unfortunately it didn't happen. Hopefully, on the next visit. Our food arrived a few minutes later. I ordered the Kakuni Udon which comes with Pork Belly. The udon and broth was delicious but I wished I had more udon. It seems that they charge for everything here, even ginger which you usually get for free at sushi restaurants. I will definitely come back and try their Uni Udon!

roboxking

The kakuni udon is my personal favorite, very good broth with tender pork belly. Some of the specialty udon though are to be desired. I try not to hold wait times against a restaurant, especially delicious restaurants, but the wait time can be ungodly here. Though I would say it's very worth the wait. If I could go 4.5, I would.

Gamer Chix

Nice little place for some very tasty udon noodles, made in house, served hot or cold. Had a late lunch midweek and there was no wait ( arrived at 2p and they close for lunch at 230). Quick service and decent prices. I hope to visit again before I leave LA and this time be more daring with me selection.

N C.

I got the Curry udon with double portion. Worth it. I love the taste of their curry and their udon's firmness was just perfect for my taste. There was a long wait when we went for lunch. You can get double portion for just $2 more.

Jennilee

-Lunch Review- I really wanted to fall in love with this place, but sadly I walked out disappointed. I came for lunch, which turns out to have the same pricing as dinner with the exception of discounted rice bowls. The bowls are discounted to $3 (Beef, Kakiage, Pork Belly Don) and $4 (Shrimp Tempura Don). My order: Miso Carbonara Udon - $12.50 Too Rich, I felt like I was going to have a heart attack after a couple of bites! I've read over and over the other reviews about this dish being too rich, but I was being stubborn. I am a fan of Carbonara, but this dish made me feel like I was getting injected with butter into my veins! Yikes!!! I would NOT recommend this dish for your sole entree, but as one to share with a party of 4. Chicken Tempura Udon - $8.95 It's just a regular Udon noodle soup with Chicken Tempura on the side. Hmm? I wasn't wowed, the bowl was as simple as it gets. Plus, there were only two pieces of chicken for this entree. The Udon noodle itself was superb, so I am willing to come back to try their other entrees. As for the ones that I have tried, PASS! For those who has no idea what an Udon dish is, here's the general description: Udon is usually served hot as noodle soup in its simplest form in a mildly flavored broth....think soy sauce! They also have cold ones available, which is great on a hot summer day. Monzo's Udon noodles are made at location guaranteeing the freshest noodles available and I agree with everyone on this point. As I was leaving, I saw a lot of orders for Beef Udon that actually looked pretty good. The chef makes it with the regular Udon noodle soup with the addition of the marinated beef inside. I foresee this being my next order! So who wants to try some more noodles???

静観優香

It's really good! I recommend you to go early time because there is long line every time

Edward Barbezat

Awesome Udon! Simple menu with great udon options. My seat was at the bar, where I had a clear view of the kitchen where they hand-pull the noodles.Service was quick and efficient. The only downside is that the place is so popular that there is almost always a wait,

Liyi F

We came around 4:30 pm on a Saturday during Anime Expo weekend expecting a huge crowd. The wait actually wasn't too bad. There were several groups of people waiting outside, but some of them were spillovers from Daikokuya. Looking at the waitlist inside, there were 8-10 groups ahead of us. If they call your name three times and your party isn't there, they will move on. This happened to a few of the groups they called so we actually got seated relatively quickly. We sat, ordered, and received our food within 40 minutes of adding our names to the waitlist which was pretty impressive. I tried the miso carbonara udon ($13.75) and mixed tempura ($7.25). Their dinner menu has beef tataki but we came a bit too early for that. Would love to try it next time, though. Miso carbonara udon: If you tend to find good alfredo sauce (not the sad imitations that are more water than cream or cheese) too rich and creamy, this will probably be too rich and creamy for you, but for me it was heaven. It was delicious and flavorful without being salty or too thick. The noodles were just the right texture-- so good you can't complain. I've been thinking about this dish pretty often since my visit and can't wait to eat it again...

Konrad Platzer

Very good noodle dishes. Very well seasoned and tasty…

Esther Kim

I finally came back here when I was not dieting! Reading my previous review, I see that both times I have come here I ended up parking on 3rd. I guess that street does usually end up having more openings that the blocks closer to this restaurant... I must have come during an off hour because there was not much of a wait. Which was really good since my friend JC and I were quite hungry. We both ordered the same thing: -- SEA URCHIN CREAM UDON: Creamy Uni Cream Sauce Udon, topped with ikura (salmon egg) This is the udon I have been waiting to try ever since my last visit! Wow, there is a reason why this is so popular... it is really good! Because it is so creamy, I was worried that the entire dish would end up being too much and be slightly nauseating, but that was not the case. It was very delicious. -- SOFT-BOILED EGG TEMPURA Doesn't this sound amazing? We had to try this. The egg was so perfectly cooked! But... it needed salt. In hindsight, I should have eaten the egg with the salty salmon roe that comes with the uni udon! I would say I will do that next time, but I don't really see the need to order this again. I'm glad I tried it once, but for $1.50 I think it should stay a one-time thing. I really loved the uni udon and would definitely be down to coming back here just for that. Upping my review for 4 stars! It could even be a 4.5 star review if half stars were possible, but for now we'll leave it at 4.

Roy Kim

Ya nobody likes to wait in line outside the restaurant but sometimes it's only way. Me n my bro waited about 30 min and were seated at the counter. Between 2 of us we ordered 4 noodle dishes and 1 rice. We ate like there is no tomorrow. Someone even took pictures of us with our food. But I remembered the days when I was able to walk right in and get seated. But Monzo Rocks.

N Tong

I come here often for weekday lunch. They open at 11:30 and getting there around 11:15 will get you a good spot in the line waiting outside.(usually) service is excellent and the food has been consistently amazing! I highly recommend trying the gratin udon (the cheesy udon that comes in a pan in my photos)

Chi Yu

I eagerly awaited Monzo’s reopening following the lockdown. I craved my regular curry pork udon while my son sorely missed the duck nanban. It’s with much disappointment to report after 3 separate takeouts that I will no longer be ordering out from Monzo. Either the food loses it’s magical culinary delight after a 20 minute drive home or they’ve replaced the cooks with hacks. The curry udon has gotten worse with each of my 3 orders as has the duck nanban and cold beef udon. I’m curious to hear if others have dined in and noticed a difference in quality. Maybe I’ll dine in and report back.

Conner Stoebe

its good!

Wesley Cheng Erickson

I have been lucky enough to be seated in front of the udon making bar two or three times now. You can watch them make fresh udon noodles right in front of you, which is such a treat! Some of my favorite udons include the signature creamy mentai (squid) with seafood and mentai butter. The classic broths are always a good choice. I have yet to try the cold options. The negitoro bowl is also perfect if you are craving a rice dish. The only thing I wouldn't order is the beef tataki - which I do not recommend as I am not a fan of chewy meat. Other than that, everything is great!

Rina F

They make their own udon noodles which is awesome. They have traditional Japanese udon noodles and some special ones that you won’t find in regular Japanese restaurant. Tried the chanpon udon which was good! It’s pretty big in portion too. There is always a long line, but worth a wait. Make sure you write your name on the list!

Carmen L

This has got to be the best Udon noodle place in whole LA! It's freshly made and the sauces/broth they pair it with goes super delicious together! From tomato broth to creamy uni or regular soy sauce soup. I came for lunch and love they had a combination rice and Udon. The rice was surprisingly as good!! The line isn't as long as Daikokuya which is next door. TBD I had rather come here!!!!!!

Jean L

My friend suggested this place after we had attended a Hello Kitty workshop at the museum on a rainy Sunday afternoon. She was telling me that this place is known for their uni udon and people's Yelp reviews also mentioned the same. Uni udon it is! The first couple sips of the creamy broth were tasty, then the broth started to "harden." My favorite part about this dish would be the texture of the udon. You can really feel the al-dente-ness of the noodles. However, for almost $16, I expected more uni, instead of the 4 booger-sized pieces of uni. After all that's said and done, I'd probably come back again and try one of their regular udon soup, but no thanks to their uni udon.

Matahi Monnot

Small business but can fit a lot of people. There is no dedicated parking lot or structure so you will have to street parking. There is a long line so make sure to arrive early and wait in the right line. Of course Udon are fresh and good, the broth can be "weak" depending on your order.

Michelle H.

The texture of their udon noodles are amazing. The chicken tempura was fresh and the curry soup was delicious. Highly recommend

Annette L

Let me start off by telling you - WAIT THERE. They are unforgiving if you miss your name call (even if I was actually right there, the host just butchered my name - yes im salty and received bad service). Anyway, waited about 20 minutes so not too bad. The curry udon was WONDERFUL. Pretty salty, but it was definitely flavorful. The udon noodles are the perfect texture & live up to the rep. My boyfriend got the uni carbonera. I honestly think it's such a hype - it's super creamy, which overpowers the uni flavor since uni is already creamy. And they also give you significantly less udon with your pasta. If you're not a fan of creamy textures (me), I don't recommend it. If that's your cup of tea though, I would say at least try it.

Jack Chu

Awesome unique udon place and I recommend this place over the famous ramen place next door as it's much easier to get ramen everywhere but you don't see special udon like this place often. There is always a line so get there early. Most of their udon items are like fusion style. They taste as good as they look! I like their uni cream udon a lot. It tastes great and also looks awesome.

Andrea B

A little gem of a place. I took the signature udon with salmon eggs, it was creamy and really tasty. The queue of Japanese people waiting outside + no reservation policy usually means quality and this was indeed the case. Yummy!

Christina Wong

Excellent hand made udon!! Sit at the bar to watch the noodles being made.

John Lucien Grillo

Genuine handmade using noodles. This place was packed with people, for an understandable reason. Nabbing a table was fairly easy for a Saturday lunch, but plan for a wait regardless. I recommend adding a small bowl of rice as a side dish for your udon main course - the kakiage rice was amazing. Enjoy!

Pauline Cao

Yes, this place is hyped up but, it really does live up to it! You just have to know what to order. I hated the Sea Urchin Cream Udon the first time I had it here. I don't know if it was just my dish or I was just off that day. Good thing I wanted to give Marugame Monzo another try. I loved it the second time around! I came here a few days ago again with a friend. What We Ordered: - Mentai Squid Butter Udon - Miso Carbonara Udon - Curry Udon The Mentai Squid Butter was meh....I would never order it again. It just wasn't flavorful. The Miso Carbonara was good but not amazing. It definitely did not taste good the next day either. It was super oily. I do not recommend taking any of these dishes home. My friend loved her Curry Udon! I tried it and liked it as well! My favorite will still be the Sea Urchin Cream Udon though. I will be back! Parking sucks! You have to find street parking or pay at parking lots or structures.

James Shipman

Strange my last review was removed about them not having noodles ready. Anywho tried this place again they had noodles ready this time and they were delicious.

Ronny Ilaya

More unique compared to the traditional udon bowls you get from Japan. While still serving traditional udon bowls, they have their own takes as well such as Miso Carbonara Udon, and Sea Urchin Cream Udon to name a few. food: authentic, creative, and tasty drinks: alcoholic and non alcoholic available environment: bustling, it's a popular place. When it's busy, expect to wait a few minutes.

Ann Shin

The uni pasta... Yes!!! But can be too rich... My other favorite is just the beef udon. Late dinner times can be crowded but if you go at 5... Rarely a line or if there is... Not too long. I like sitting right in front of the noodle makers... You can see how it is done.

Parker Green

THE place to get udon in Little Tokyo. This adorable little restaurant is tightly tucked between other businesses, and always has a long line of people waiting outside. Once you try the food, however, you understand why so many people would be willing to wait to get into the tiny restaurant. It is definitely the best udon I've ever had. I come here almost every time I'm in Little Tokyo, it's simply amazing. You can watch them prepare fresh udon noodles by hand through a window as well!

Daniel Chen

Came here for lunch on an unplanned visit to Little Tokyo during our LA trip on New Year's day. Great little spot with pretty good udon noodles, right next to an arguably more popular Daikokuya. While waiting in line, I could see people going to Daikokuya with their luggage...I guess it's just that popular but I digress. Anyway I opted for the Sea Urchin Udon since it's literally 80% of the photos on yelp for this place while the girlfriend got the Champon. Both on their "Signature Items" section. While my item was creamy, rich, and buttery with uni and it went well with the delicious udon noodles, I couldn't help but think this udon was pretty close to an Italian alfredo or something. First time having a dish like this though and I thought it tasted good. The champon however had a very flavorful seafood broth with tons of toppings and veggies in it. I would argue the Udon here would probably be better with more traditional broths instead of the creamy sauces. Overall I really liked the udon here and would probably try a more basic Udon in the future with some of their other side dishes like rice bowls or appetizers.

Jeannette Paragas

Love their freshly made noodles! Super delish! Line worth the wait. Don't go with big groups, went with my daughter. We were hungry and it was fantastic...

Kathryn Osborne

If you are a fan of uni, then you must come here and try the uni udon. Even if you aren't a fan of uni, you really should give it a try. The udon is made fresh here and the broth is perfect! You can definitely taste the uni, but it's not overpowering.The wait here looks long, but honestly it moves pretty quickly. The service here is great as well. I will definitely be back for more uni udon and maybe will try the other udons .

jayon2gether

Very thrilled to found here! We enjoyed our udon and their service was gooood. Outside seating was great option.

Vickie Chan

The udon noodles here are made perfectly. It has the perfect balance between chewiness and softness, which is pretty difficult to master. They have the traditional soup and the more modern fusion ones. I tried the Wakame Seaweed Udon and the Sea Urchin Cream Udon. Both were amazingly delicious! I even got a tempura soft boiled egg, which was made perfectly! The size of the order were pretty big. I would share the udon and order other appetizers, especially if you order a creamy udon. Just remember that those thick round udon noodles are made from flour, so it gets pretty filling.

Suzie Hong

I tried Monzo because of their highly talked about Uni Udon and walked away feeling a little disappointed. While the sauce was good, it was lacking in the Uni flavor department. I was hoping for more Uni pieces as well, but for a bowl so large there were very few. As someone who frequently got live sea urchin in San Diego, I guess I had high expectations. Overall though, the service was great and I am sure their variety of other udon flavors would be good.

David Lee

This place is amazing. I love the ambiance of the place and you can see the head chef making the noodles from scratch right in front of you. The udon noodles here are by far the best I've ever tried. I highly recommend the uni cream, curry, and beef udon.

Chuck Tam

The udon offerings at Monzo are just about the best you can get in LA. It is made fresh to order and there is a fairly wide variety of flavors from traditional beef with broth, curry, and creamier seafood options. Be prepared to wait for a seat on weekends and some weeknights; the space does not seat very many people, but there are a lot of shops and bars in the surrounding area you can go to to visit before your party is called.

Diana Wei

Uni udon is the most famous dish. They make their own udon in the back. Chicken tempura was bomb! Taste like fried fish. I want to try the octopus tempura next time. A non-dairy udon dish is spicy red udon hot soup. Very mild spicy. Soup was good. Taste like instant ramen packet spices but without the crappy msg hangover after feeling. No parking. Street meter or public parking lot. Sunday 730pm for 3 is a 45min wait. We went to far bar (same block, 5 stores down) to grab a drink and wait. Be a cautious listener when server calls out group names because it's crowded and sometimes loud outside.

710 N Market

The noodles are five-star, and the broth is better than average. Most of the rocks are made with fish, The way vegetarian option is available. It was not clear from the menu, but most of the vegetables that are added to any broth are deep fried in tempura.

Phoebe Chang

Love their seaweed udon!! Didn't expect them to fry the egg till half cooked but it was good. Price is reasonable too! The service is really nice, will definitely revisit.

Jacqueline Nguyen

I always bring people visiting out of town to Marugame Monzo. The food is great, affordable and the service is quick. Any of the Specials are popular and will leave you satisfied. I personally opt for their shiso plum cold udon with a soft boiled egg. Double portions are only $2 more.

Leo Hsu

Very good udon. Probably the best udon I’ve had, but I haven’t had very much udon. If you’re in the neighborhood and daikokuya has a ridiculous line, Marugame would definitely hit the spot. Give it a try. You won’t be disappoint.

Danny Nguyen

OH MY, I definitely recommend the sea urchin cream udon! The noodles are amazing, perfectly textured. I've had udon before, but not as good as this. I've had sea urchin before, and it always tastes like avocado texture to me, but the sea urchin in this udon dish was perfect! The base is so creamy and delicious. I'm sure its a million calories, but calories don't count on weekends right? I am definitely coming back to try the other udons they offer! The wait is about 20 mins, which is not as bad. My friend also got the gratin and squid butter. But those two don't beat the sea urchin. The sea urchin is 15.95 and worth every penny!

Jannie Han

Udon over ramen any day. I can watch the chef make it behind the glass for what seems like ever. You can definitely taste that it's handmade. The broths are delicious. Not one person I've introduced to Maragame has less than loved it! Frequent patron. You can even hang out at Far Bar a couple of storefronts down if the wait is long. Just make sure to check back.

Stephanie Han

Well it certainly lived up to my expectations, which were kind of high, considering the hype. A friend and I met up for an early dinner (6pm) and there was absolutely no wait. We sat at the bar by the big noodle-making display window and got to see some of the work in action, which was fun, but apparently a majority of the work gets done during the day. I had to order the uni cream udon, of course, and Hannah got her fave, the Mentai squid butter udon. From reading the other reviews I knew to expect the sauce to be on the runnier side, and it was exactly so. It's definitely different from the uni cream pasta you might get at Maruhide Uni Club or Cafe Hiro, so don't go in expecting that; this is its own animal, and as such, very satisfying. The noodles were indeed perfect, and I loved every bite. I also tried their scallop carpaccio, which was good but not super-stellar in my book. Also got to try a bit of Hannah's Mentai squid butter udon and while interesting, not really my cup of tea--I'll stick to the uni cream. It's also a little spendy, but definitely worth the visit. I will be trying the more traditional dish next time.

Jimmy SINCERELY Duran

Wife & I loved this place. Always drive by but intentionally stopped in tonight to try it out. Winner.

Lucy Xue

Long wait in line to get in, but totally worth it. Some of the best noodles I have ever had by far (I recommend the carbonara but the beef is great too). Would totally wait in line again for more!

Kenny Chin

Smooth balanced sweetish udon to chew for rice bowls to crave for appetizers to fight for all for a pittance if what you would fork over outside of Little Tokyo gotta respect the goodness heartfelt pride in a business dedicated to food art appreciation everyday that is so rare in today's quick buck culture.

Eric Chen

Small portion sizes but the miso carbonara was a unique twist that works! Would not recommend the cold udon here though, unless there was a thin noodle option I missed.

Michael Saffron

I thought Marugame Monzo was fine. I wasn't sure what I wanted to order, so the server recommended the Sea Urchin Udon because it was their "specialty." I'm a big fan of Sea Urchin, but I wasn't impressed by this dish. It tasted like Udon Alfredo with some sea urchin. I'm willing to go again and try one of their more traditional udons, but I wouldn't recommend their Sea Urchin Udon.

Cliff Tan

Marugame was a great place. Awesome udon. I definitely would recommend the non-creamy udon. Not that the creamy ones were bad but if you are expecting an udon experience you will get a pasta experience instead with a creamy udon. That's just my opinion. Although it was good just was not udon I was used to or wanted to have.

Tasty Chronicles

Marugame Monzo is one of many popular Japanese restaurants in Little Tokyo. If you love Udon Noodle Soup and cold Udon Noodle dishes, this dining destination is for you. I love the Kake Udon, which is a basic Udon Noodle soup with bits of tempura flakes in the broth. It's a hearty yet simple soup for $6.95. You can also add sides dishes to to add to the soup like pork, seaweed, or mushrooms can be added for an extra cost. The bowl of Kake Udon is a big big serving. The fresh handmade Udon Noodles in this soup was delicious! Awesome broth! They give you a good portion of Udon Noodles to eat, which tastes so much better since it's fresh. There is lots to love when you order the Ikura Oroshi Udon; a cold Udon Noodle dish with seaweed and grated Daikon radish that is served without broth ($12.95). This is dish like many other cold Udon Noodle dishes are the ones that you order when the weather makes it too hot to eat soup. My Server was kind enough to show me how to eat this dish, which is to pour the sauce over the Udon Noodles, mix, and eat. Again this dish is served with a big portion of the handmade Udon Noodles. It, too, was a delight to eat. Marugame Monzo is just across the street from the Japanese Village Plaza and one block walk from the Little Tokyo Metro Station. It is coincidentally next door to the infamous ramen restaruant, Daikokuya. Credit cards are accepted and there is plenty of parking structures and metered parking close by. I suggest sitting at the bar area to watch them make the Udon Noodles.

Steve Wan

Great noodle house, a must try while in LA. You can watch the fresh noodles being cut before your eyes. Busy little restaurant but they turn the tables quickly. Real affordable!!

Yousef Ghalaini

such a cool Udon Spot - great action while you eat as they cut noodles throughout service. Different broth options as well as some good snacks. We had the Octopus balls, beef udon and spicy udon.

JR C

Something about a restaurant with a bit open-ish kitchen to show you all their dirty secrets. Nothing dirty here, also not quite open since all the chefs worked from within a giant hamster cage. Ohh...I love hamsters...memoriess... Smack next to Daikokuya which is a 5 star ramen place in my book, Marugame Monzo actually packs many of their dishes with flavor as well. After 2 visits here, I've come to appreciate what a nice buttery dish does, and what a traditional bowl of udon does for you. It's all fresh, the udon being rolled and cut from within that hamster cage is the great beauty of this place. -=-Cabonara Udon-=- Super flavor, super cheese. Maybe a bit too distracting from the freshness of the udon. For every bite of this, I took the sauce apart in my head mentally trying to see where I've had this before and how I can make it at home. It was all familiar in my head. Cabonara Udon falls under the specialty menu which is kinda like the not-so-plain udon. If you like cheesey, go for it. Otherwise, share this plate so you can sample another. -=-Squid Butter Udon-=- This was one that was more unique and probably nothing I can replicate. The amount of butter in this dish is staggering and the squid component of this sauce (pink balls in there?) was where I drew the uniqueness. The pink color will also throw you off, because at first bite you will be screaming "butter!" -=-Kake Udon-=- Specialness and uniqueness aside...this is what you should be getting. Add whatever you want on top like egg or crunchy tempura. I felt with the Kake Udon, I was able to taste and feel the udon in its natural habitat (seems that what they specialize in here, no?). Someone asked me what I felt the difference was between fresh udon and store-bought udon, and what I come up with was that with fresh udon, there's a bit of hardness in the middle of every noodle that when you bite into it, it will gush into flavor. There's a chewiness here that cannot be replicated with store-bought udon. Yep, that's me the texture snob...now you can't unremember it!

Michael Weissman

Okay, I'm going to give it 5 stars and hope the last time I came here was a fluke. Their fresh noodles and steaming hot dashi broth are really quite good. My last visit suffered from poor service and a really overly seaweed heavy wakame udon. Stick to the standard udon or the creamy dishes. I like their bowls and spoons.

peter pro

wow, a little jem of a place. I love the carbornara cream soup with bacon. Fresh udon noodles made right before your eyes. Always busy for a reason. Some of the best udon noodle soups i've had. While i didn't like the brothy soups much, the cream soups are super!! going to try the sea food cream tomato soup next.

Bryan H

If you love udon, you'll love Monzo. See into the kitchen where you can watch them making their great hand made noodles. They have all the classic traditional styles plus some crazy new ones with creamy sauces, cold udon, curry udon, and whatever else you can imagine.

Gary Wong

Service: No complaints. We did not wait long, even on a busy day. Food: If you're a fan of uni, get the uni udon. Although the carbonara udon was good, I felt the bacon was quite overpowering (as is usually the case when you cook with bacon). Decor: There is a window where you can watch the udon being prepared. Dark wooden tables, floors, seats, and walls. Atmosphere: The dining room was a little on the dim side--or maybe the gratuitous use of dark wood threw me off.

Frank Park

Really delicious but the portions are pretty small...

Paula Lee

I tried three udons (beef udon, mentaiko cream udon, cold mad tiger udon) with my boyfriend and i liked all three. My favourite one is cold mad tiger udon but mentaiko cream udon is good too. I didn't expect it to be soupy but it was still good. The values are ok. The staff were nice.

Hoangvu Nguyen

Fusion food, udon with creamy base broth. Most of their udon is good, service is excellent. I would recommend to try it out to see if it worth returning for me it a once time thing since it kinda pricy for a small portion.

John Wie

Here is a great udon spot to stop on by if you're in the area. I tried the sea urchin cream udon which was a little too heavy for me but still delicious. My friend's mentai squid udon was much better and lighter as well. The noodles are also made in front of you if you get to sit in the udon bar area. Expect to pay around $9-$20 for your meal depending on the type of udon you get. Beer/sake were also plentiful. Parking is troublesome - look for lots on parallel streets rather than trying to find street parking. There also isn't any RSVPs here so you need to try and get here early or expect a bit of a wait, even on the weekdays (we waited for 45 minutes on a Wednesday for instance).

B C

Favorite udon spot in LA proper (#1 is Oumi Sasaya in Torrance). I usually get the duck nanban udon, but their specialty udons with curry or creamy cheese sauce seem good too. Definitely order some tempura items on the side too if you're hungry!

Megumi

I ate mushrooms ankake udon. Soup and mashroom are tasty! The taste is real Japanese. I hope noodle will be changed a bit because it's too dense.

Vincent Mok

I know people pretty much only ever sing praises of the uni (sea urchin) udon, but I don't like it that much because the uni is pretty much cooked at that point, and it gets a weird texture. And I feel that the flavor is masked by everything else in the bowl. It just seems like a waste of perfectly good uni, though my friends are forever trying to get me to change my mind. Meanwhile, I ALWAYS get the mentai squid butter udon and add tempura shrimp and a soft-boiled egg. The sides are done perfectly each time -- the egg is soft and cooked just right while the shrimp is soft and breaded just right. And then the mentai squid butter udon! I grew up eating squid somewhat regularly, and I had NEVER EVER eaten tender squid until I got here. The fact that my squid isn't just a rubber chew toy and that the whole dish's flavor is rich, hearty, and warming, this is the one I get each time.

Tamara Farhat

Can you please open a branch in SF? We need you here! Friends took us to Marugame Monzo and promised us a great meal, and it truly was. My hubby had the sea urchin udon and I had the buttery squid. Even though I am not a fan of sea urchin I really liked it here because it wasn't overwhelming. The buttery squid udon was also absilutely delicious. The plate is really big and beautifully plated. The atmosphere of the place is very nice. Cozy yet modernish. The staff is very helpful and friendly. There's gonna be a wait so keep that in mind. We only had to wait around 7 minutes before we were seated. Marugame Monzo it a must visit every time I am in L.A. restaurant.

Kara Chan

Fresh udon. You can watch them making udon in front of you. I order a cold udon and toro rice with the lunch special. The toro rice was very delicious. I regrated my cold udon, I should order something hot. The hot udon looked better and smelled better. My friend ordered the cheese udon. It was a lot better than mine.

Crystal Cun

I ended up here because I underestimated how long it'd take to get into Daikokuya (next door) and Sushi Gen (a few blocks away). However, Monzo has perfectly respectable udon noodles, and if you sit at the counter, you can see them pressing and cutting the noodles. The uni udon was a little too heavy on cream vs uni, but still tasty, and service was lightning fast.

Long Nguyen

The creamy sea urchin udon was amazing. The udon had great bite and was similar to a pasta consistency. It tasted kind of like an Italian fusion dish.

Jen B.

my cousins and i came here around 8pm, and we were seated right away, but we're right by the door so we didnt get a chance to see how the chefs make their noodles. :( i finally got to try the sea urchin cream udon that everybody's raving about, and they're right, ITS SO GOOOOOD! i felt like i was in heaven in a few seconds! my mouth was watering the whole time as i kept on slurping them. the taste also reminds me of alfredo, i was a bit disappointed that there were small pieces of sea urchin, that was the best part! but when its almost gone, i was starting to get full, bec. its so creamy and rich! i felt like a can of calpico is not enough, they should offer some free drink refills at least. i also ordered their beef bowl rice, it was ok, its not bad either, its bec. their beef are so skinny and its not enough for their rice bowl!! i prefer yoshinoya, but i'd give it a 3 out of 5, cuz im not used to the taste, but probably if i eat this more often, i'd probably rate it more too, but i was hungry when we came here so i finished it all up. then after that, we ordered a few appetizers such as Negitoro, they say thats one of the popular ones, the tuna tasted like potato but if you put that on the seaweed, with cucumber and sprouts (minus the wasabi) you dip it in the sauce, it was so good! then we ordered another chicken skins, its kinda like chicharon, that one was also good specially when you eat it from the bottom where it has vinegar sauce inside of it. then their fried chicken, tasted a little bit like something's missing.. i think if they added some soy sauce, it would've tasted good, but thats just me.. the service is also good too, the waiter/tress are very friendly. overall, im glad we choose to go here over Daikokuya, its also cuz we dont carry cash atm, but my experience here was the bomb! i dont mind going back here again.

Gilbert Fujii

If you're looking for great quality udon with a rich taste, this is the place. I recommend the Vongole Udon, Uni Cream Udon, and Miso Carbonara Udon. The down side of this place is the wait. This place is always crowded and the wait can go up to an hour. But it is worth the wait!

mia lucy

Great noodles. They make them on the premises, and if you are lucky, I had this place bookmarked for a long time but long lines deter from dining here. Until Friday afternoon, I was in the area and decided to check this place out. Surprised to see no one wasn't here yet and was told by an employee that they don't open til 4pm. It was only a few minutes away so I decided to stand in line. Soon after, more and more people cued in line.

Don Chua

Always Love their udon. Gf loves the uni udon. I got the carbonara which was great for the first few bites but got really heavy and very very oily afterwards

darryle schneider

Marugame Monzo is one of my favorite places to eat fantastic udon! The noodles are freshly made and the broths are plenty flavorful! This is definitely a great place to eat a hearty meal!

Matthew Lai

This place is SO GOOD. I always come to Monzo when I'm in LA with friends. So far everything I've had from the menu is delicious! Definitely a great place to eat, and is nearby to a lot of shops that are within walking distance.

Anson Au

Wowzer this place is always packed and I definitely understand why. I got the mentai udom, pork belly rice bowl, and assorted tempura, all super bomb. My GF got the veggie udon but she didn't fancy it too much

Trung Vi

Definitely a great place to try. Tired the cream udon and it was tasty amd creamy. Would definitely come again. This place is small so a large group would wait a while depending on time of the day. Came here at night and it was pack and the wait was like 30min since came here with group of six

Vincent Roberts

The noodles where amazingly soft and just the right amount of chewiness. And the broth was great, with a full favor and not too over the top. Overall really great.

Donna Kumamoto

Fresh udon was delicious like no other!

Michael Alvarez

The food is amazing and delicious! Fresh Udon from scatch always hits the spot and warms the soul. I definitely recommend this place

Brian Choi

Line was long, but it was worth the wait. I got sit right outside the kitchen to see how they made the noodle, so it was also entertaining. The udon is just impeccable.

Laura Camilia

Traditional Japanese udon noodles are made fresh in front of you. The Uni Udon is wonderfully salty and creamy, but a little too rich if you eat a whole bowl to yourself. The Mentai Squid Butter Udon comes in a wonderful broth with a generous helping of squid butter. The bowls are wonderful as well! The pork belly bowl is simple, consisting of rice, pork belly and a perfectly salty sauce. If you're looking for something more hearty, the Negitoro bowl has minced fatty tuna, sweet soy sauce, mayo and seaweed over sticky rice. During lunch, these can be added to you udon for a small price.

Michelle Nguyen

Small quaint place for traditional Udon noodles. Have cold and hot Udon noodles options. Prices are reasonable, but expect a wait time as this place is popular.

Darren May

Worth the wait! , Put your name down and go explore the bars in the area for Happy Hour. Wait is usually an hour to hour and a half. Fresh Udon made on premises, a must is the See Urchin Udon.

Zhuojun Fu

Sea urchins udon is their classic one. If you want a creamy based soup, that is the one to go. But if you crave for some kicks in flavor, hot dragon could be your choice

Rafael Perez

A great experience and wonderful noodles. Great sides available for your udon and interesting options fusing Japanese and Italian. Very authentic staff, service and settings.

John-Michael Linares

This place was absolutely incredible. I ate the Carbonara Udon... A cream-based sauce with bacon in it. Also had a tempura soft-boiled egg. Everything was amazing, and totally worth the wait.

James Chou

Food is still good but the atmosphere has been transformed. No longer is this a place to enjoy a bowl of outstanding udon. The need to turn over the table as fast as possible is rather obvious now.

Kevin Nguyendo

This is by far my favorite Udon location. I highly recommend the cold noodles such as the mad tiger. The service was also great.

Elizabeth Goldlane

Good food. Service was not good. Lack of smile and you have to eat your food fast. They will hand you the bill as soon as one of you finish your food. We came there yesterday and they charged food that we did not order (an extra $17.95 plus tax). I just realized it when I looked at the bill at home. Quite dissapointed when it happened.. but nothing I can do so make sure you checked the bill before you pay.

benjamin

I love udon and this place makes it the best! It's even got a cool window showing them making the noodles. I highly suggest the cold noodle bukkake or the sea urchin udon.

Katie john

This place is awesome and super cute. We went for lunch and would have sat outside except it had just rained. The sandwiches and apps are delicious. The red sangria was amazing and dangerous!

Sun Kim

Udon made fresh by hand. If you're lucky with a bar seat you may it the noodles made in person. My four year old loved watching the process.

Anthony T

House made Udon, wonderful broths/soups

Alex H

Probably the best udon in Little Tokyo. The long lines can be a bit discouraging. The new experimental flavors can be little bit too far out but the basics are fantastic.

Alexander Clemons

Had the creamy uni udon and the beef udon. Both were absolutely delicious!

Loki Lee

Great service great food. This place fills up fast it's very popular.

k kim

salty and oily. I had indigestion that day after eating the food.

Preston Hsiao

Pretty good place to get udon. Had the shrimp tempura udon and agedashi tofu. Both quite good, but not spectacular.

liliana valencia

As always, amazing kake udon and their beef bowl which I would literally kill for. I just went a week ago and I’m ready to go back even in the California heat!

Wenonah Echelard

Udon was only “ok”

Christian Code

Fun place to get good fresh udon!

Eric Del Rio

Amazing food and service. Cannot go wrong with there beef udon or curry rice. So many great dishes its hard to choose. I come here regularly

Vegas Food

Monzo is good but little overpriced. I'd say you should get something basic and simple, not some "creative" udon. I prefer Tsurumaru udon because it's pretty much the same quality and it's cheaper.

Cobey Cobb

Great udon. Has outdoor seating. Really great service. Good veggie options.

Rad Pal (RadPal)

Great udon! Wonderful and polite staff. Lllllong wait.

Tear Drop

Good service, great udon!!

hyunsook kim

This place needs to be every where in the world. It was so good! I came a little bit late before the lunch break, but they let us in and service was still great and the food was still delicious. I will definitely come back again. 5 stars and beyond.

Mandar Deshmukh

Veggie/vegan options are limited but I still recommend this place as a vegetarian. It was great watching fresh udon noodles being made. Great atmosphere.

David Young

Great fresh udon, good soup base too. Also love the creamy sea urchin, recommand get extra udon with that.

mike stu

I miss some of the old menu items but still as good as ever! The hand made noodles are wonderful!

Jonathan Lee

Listen, I like ramen. It's great. But udon is my true Japanese noodle love. Ugh, Marugame is so good it almost makes me angry.

jeflin8992

Best udon in la hands down

Hue Ngo

I love their rice bowl and karage. I had tried the Uni (sea urchin) udon, and the soup base is different and tasty.

Edward Kim

Best fusion udon in Little Tokyo, must try restaurant!

Linda Kranz

Delicious handmade udon. My favorite dish is Mad Tiger udon. Perfectly balanced flavors

Rosana Ayala

Great atmosphere. Fast service. Short wait times during lunch on a weekday. Ordered the lunch special (udon + rice), it was amazing. Highly recommend!!

C L.Y.

Yum yum yum. I prefer the clear broth soups over the creamy udons. The fatty pork rice is also simple yet delicious.

Dannis Thompson

Following safety guidelines. Food was great had the broth this time instead of a cream sauce.

durrell randle

I can definitely say that my experience at Marugame Monzo was definitely a good one they are a really good quality udon noodle house with an interesting selection of food I will definitely say expect a good wait time because the place can definitely be packed almost at all times but I would say if you want udon noodle and you're in the area they have really good stuff I'm not in really in udon guy but the food was good

Anthony Larios

"The Carbonara is a must , presentation was bliss "

Elizabeth Han

The kakuni hot udon was delicious. The porcini udon was okay but I would not order it again. Service was good. Interior was okay.

Michelle Sham

I always come for their uni pasta- even if I have to wait an hour for it. Definitely try to hit them during non-peak times. If not be prepared for to wait. Great food, quick service.

Callista Fowler

The Uni Udon is amazing!

Joe Lam

Amazing udon and rice bowls paired with quick service. I had the carbonara udon and it was heavenly.

Melissa Gordy

The udon is to die for. My favorite is the uni cream udon. Go right before they open so you don't wait too long

Emily Lau

Sea urchin cream udon is their signature. Must try!

Chip Connor

Beef udon on Fleek... Wow. Super busy but so worth it. Great prices plus the live entertainment of seeing the chef's prepare everyone's food.

Sheryl Lyn Costa

Absolutely delicious. Had the Sea Urchin Cream Udon, definitely would come back.

Rachel Sinit

The Uni udon is amazing!

Ramil Jose (RJ)

Best freshly made Udon place in Japan town. Most of their dishes taste really good Love the duck nunban

Chris Claussen

Great food! Got uni udon and tasted delicious. Fast service too.

Gareth Manning

Totally authentic handmade udon. Tons of variety and great prices. Highly recommended!

Guangliang He

The food is delicious. In addition, you can view the whole noddle making process through a glass window. The only thing is waiting time can be long.

Yo Oshima

Monaco offers authentic handmade noodles made in store. Udon here is very tasty.

Irene Figueroa

Always have the freshest udon noodles. Definitely worth a try

Howard Wu

Enjoyed the soft-boiled egg (side tempura for udon) and fried fish appetizer (small fish cooked tempura-style, forgot the name).

Alex Choi

This is THE spot for udon in LA as far as I know. I get the beef udon with a shrimp tempura and soft boiled egg. 👌🏽 …

LA Operations

Been twice, gotten 2 different udon bowls. Have not been dissapointed. I will comeback for more!

lupin

Bit of a wait to be seated but food was brought out fast, tasted amazing, and wasn't expensive. Bonus for making noodles in front of us

Shaotong He

all the creamy sauce udon is worth to try especially the sea urchin one can be very thirsty after leaving the restaurant

Arielle Matthams

This place is a real treat . The ambiance is impressive inside and out. Excellent oriental restaurant, no wonder about it good reviews! Now this is one of my favorite places.

Robert Cravens

Amazingly good food for the price. As good as meals I have had at very high end Japanese restaurants. One of my goto places downtown.

Kevin Le

sra urchin udon is a must try

Boong Soo

You will never go wrong with this: Mad Tiger Udon

Elyse Endlich

Food was stupendous. A bit crowded, but for good reason. Absolutely superb dishes, and the staff were very friendly and attentive. Loved it!

Leon Chen

udon so good

Esther Hong

Love their handmade udon. My fave is the udon carbonara and pork belly.

Andrea Majert

Loved it! Really quick. Really great food. Friendly staff. Definitely recommend!

Steven Schulz

I got the beef jiggly egg something and my Gosh that was the best meal I have had all year. 10/5

Heejae Park

Amazing udon. Really flavorful broth and great service. Line moves really quickly

Uber Zizi

Tight space restaurant, nice service. They make their own Soba noodle. We enjoyed very much. Would return

Luke Suder

Absolutely outstanding. Best noodle place on first street. Wish they accepted phone orders for takeout!

Christopher Postula

Always amazing. Fresh good food very filling and very cheap. Service is always good and the place is clean. Just wish they'd close the front door when it's cold we were freezing

Benjamin Chang

Thick chewy long noodles. The noodles were really good. The portion sizes were a little small and the wait was really long.

Rafael Escoto

Just great food and really good service.

Helen Hoang

The udon noodles are soooo good. Best udon I've ever had.

Omar Silva

Amazing food. First time trying it. Had some miso carbonara udon it was great.

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