Julie's Gems: Top Ramen Restaurants on the Peninsula

Ramen is a popular noodle soup that originated in China and has since become a popular dish in Japan, Korea, and America. Most people associate it with Japan, so it's typically served in Japanese restaurants instead of in Chinese dining spots. Either way, many people love to visit ramen restaurants in their area, so let's get into the best ones on the peninsula!

Ramen Dojo in San Mateo

Ramen Dojo is a small yet fantastic ramen restaurant in San Mateo, California. You can customize ramen bowls, choosing a base bowl from five options: banbanji ramen, pork ramen, garlic pork ramen, miso ramen, and creamy corn ramen. You can add extra noodles and choose a spice level for the ramen — a great way to discover new flavors! Ramen Dojo does not disappoint with the variety of options they have. 

Santa Ramen in San Mateo

Another small ramen restaurant to visit is Santa Ramen in San Mateo. It does have a few different ramen bowls than Ramen Dojo, which is owned by Santa Ramen, and you can customize those, too. The ramen bowls include Santa ramen, pork cheek ramen, stewed pork ramen, softshell crab ramen, and vegetarian ramen. They also have a variety of appetizers such as fried oysters, scallops croquette, shrimp wonton, and mont blanc cake! If you're not a fan of ramen, you can order one of their made-to-order bento boxes. 

Orenchi Ramen in Redwood City

Located in Redwood City, Orenchi Ramen offers delicious ramen bowls to satiate your hunger. Their menu includes four different ramen bowls: Orenchi ramen, shio ramen, shoyu ramen, and vegan ramen. Every single one of them is as delicious as they sound! Order a bento box or rice bowl if you aren't feeling like soup that day. No matter your preferences, there's something at Orenchi Ramen for you.

Taishoken Ramen in San Mateo

Operating in San Mateo since the 1950s, Taishoken Ramen has authentic Japanese cuisine. They offer seven different ramen bowls, each as delicious as the next, including niku spicy ramen, spicy ramen, pork ramen, ajitama spicy ramen, yuzu shio ramen, ajitama ramen, and tokusei ramen. This restaurant also offers dipping noodles — cold noodles to dip in soup. Try potato salad, edamame, takoyaki, chasu don, or rice on the side! You can't go wrong when you eat at Taishoken Ramen.