San Francisco Ramen

By Garlic-chan•37 Places

Marufuku Ramen

Ramen • $$ • (415) 872-9786 • WEBSITE

1581 Webster St #235, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA

Japantown. The one everyone names first, and the wait proves it. Get on the Yelp list before you think youre hungry, order the Tonkotsu DX, and accept your fate. It earns the hype.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya Ramen Bar

Ramen • (415) 757-0552 • WEBSITE

1737 Buchanan St

Japantown. Marufukus philosophical opposite a few blocks over. A lighter dashi based broth that converts people who swear they dont like ramen, plus a creamy vegan bowl that holds its own. The flagship of four locations around town.

Garlic-chan

Warakubune Sushi Restaurant

Sushi • (415) 252-8383 • WEBSITE

307 Church St

Japantown. When the lines at Marufuku and Hinodeya turn ungodly, this is the move. The black garlic tonkotsu and the tsukemen are quietly excellent, the variety is real, and nobody is filming their bowl.

Garlic-chan

Ramen Yamadaya

Ramen • (415) 359-9983 • WEBSITE

1728 Buchanan St

Japantown. Closed Tuesdays. A serious 20 hour tonkotsu and a karaage worth the trip on its own. Reliable rather than transcendent, which is exactly what you want some nights.

Garlic-chan

Suzu

Ramen • (415) 346-5083 • WEBSITE

1825 Post St

Japantown, in the Japan Center. Closed Tuesdays. The affordable workhorse of the mall: generous, packed at lunch, and happy to swap your ramen for udon or soba. Suzu miso and Tokyo ramen are the picks.

Garlic-chan

Kui Shin Bo

Japanese • (415) 922-9575 • WEBSITE

22 Peace Plz

Japantown. More of a sushi and everything spot than a ramen ya, but the ramen section is real and the menu runs for days. Good for the table that cant agree on anything.

Garlic-chan

Kushi Tsuru

Japanese • (415) 922-9902 • WEBSITE

1737 Post St

Japantown, in the Japan Center West mall. Gloriously old school pan Japanese, the kind of room with wood paneling and a laminated menu that plays all the hits. Ramen is one of them; come for the vibe as much as the bowl.

Garlic-chan

Nande-Ya

Japanese • (628) 444-3580 • WEBSITE

1737 Post St

Japantown, in the Japan Center West mall. A tidy ramen udon soba counter, the sort of place you find by accident and return to on purpose.

Garlic-chan

Mensho Tokyo

Ramen • (415) 800-8345 • WEBSITE

672 Geary St

Tenderloin. A chicken paitan temple with a Michelin nod, 28 seats, a line before the doors open, and a one hour limit. Get the tori paitan with duck chashu and decide for yourself.

Garlic-chan

Taniku

Ramen • (415) 658-7555 • WEBSITE

1035 Geary St

Tenderloin. Opens at 4:30 p.m. An izakaya first, so go for the skewers and stay for the niku ramen, a sukiyaki style beef bowl that sneaks up on you. A cozy date spot that doesnt feel like a project.

Garlic-chan

TonTon Restaurant

Ramen • (415) 874-9664

422 Geary St, San Francisco, CA 94102, USA

Union Square. Open late. Tucked into the old Katana ya space, this is the tiny, no frills answer when its 11 p.m. and you have feelings. The house ramen is under fourteen bucks and does the job.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya

Ramen • (415) 740-1484 • WEBSITE

219 O’Farrell St

Union Square. The same light dashi broth and standout vegan bowl, parked where the shoppers and the theater crowd need it.

Garlic-chan

Rural Ramen Bar

Ramen • (415) 274-9942 • WEBSITE

1059 Powell St

Nob Hill. A low key neighborhood counter right where the cable car clangs past, the kind of bowl you grab without making an event of it.

Garlic-chan

Jikasei MENSHO

Ramen • (415) 910-9419 • WEBSITE

1355 Market St

Mid Market. Weekday lunch only. The Mensho groups stripped down sibling: counter service, plastic bowls, a fantastic lamb ramen, and none of the flagships ceremony. Get there on a weekday before four.

Garlic-chan

Ippudo

Ramen • (415) 348-1202 • WEBSITE

18 Yerba Buena Ln

Yerba Buena. The dependable chain bowl, and the only California Ippudo with a full bar. Get the Shiromaru Classic and a side of pork buns; consistency has its place.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya

Ramen • (415) 200-6466 • WEBSITE

680 Clay St

Financial District. The dashi gospel, downtown edition, for the days youre stuck below California Street and want something better than a sad desk salad.

Garlic-chan

Ramen Hiroshi

Ramen • (415) 997-0997 • WEBSITE

322 Kearny St

Financial District. A newer downtown arrival pairing tonkotsu with a respectable run of izakaya skewers. Proof that the Financial District still feeds people after the desks empty out.

Garlic-chan

Toppu Ramen And Dim Sum House

Dim Sum • (415) 923-8055 • WEBSITE

941 Kearny St

Chinatown. A genuine curveball: a dim sum and sushi house on the Chinatown edge where the spicy miso ramen, loaded with tender pork, is somehow one of the best things going.

Garlic-chan

Nojo Ramen Tavern

Ramen • (415) 896-4587 • WEBSITE

231 Franklin St

Hayes Valley. Nojo went all in on chicken. The creamy paitan comes with a whole leg draped over the top, and it is exactly as decadent as that sounds. Walk in and surrender to it.

Garlic-chan

Taishoken

Ramen • (415) 400-5336 • WEBSITE

665 Valencia St

Mission. The Tokyo tsukemen original, brought to Valencia. You dip cold, chewy housemade noodles into a thick broth, then thin the dregs with dashi at the end. Serious noodles for serious people.

Garlic-chan

Ramenwell

Ramen • $ • (415) 589-7680 • WEBSITE

3378 18th St, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

Mission. In the old Ken Ken space, a 20 hour pork bowl and a Souper Spicy Garlic that earns the name, plus unusually strong gluten free and vegan options. Save room for the taro soft serve.

Garlic-chan

Chome

Japanese • (415) 655-9623

3601 26th St

Mission. Closed Mondays. A women and Asian owned izakaya with skewers and a raw bar, but ramen is right there on the regular menu, and the kitchen treats it as seriously as everything else.

Garlic-chan

Coco's Ramen

Ramen • (415) 648-7722 • WEBSITE

3319 Mission St

Bernal Heights. Eight broths and a customize everything streak, sushi too, all in a cozy red walled room. The kind of place you can bring anyone and let them build the bowl they want.

Garlic-chan

Nute's

Restaurant • $$ • (415) 260-0192 • WEBSITE

903 Cortland Ave, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

Bernal Heights. Closed Sundays and Mondays. A tiny, LGBTQ owned Japanese Thai spot up the Cortland hill where the spicy miso and the tonkatsu ramen with crispy pork belly are the draw. Worth planning the closed days around.

Garlic-chan

Izakaya Sozai

Japanese • $$ • (415) 371-9721 • WEBSITE

1500 Irving St, San Francisco, CA 94122, USA

Inner Sunset. Dinner only. A yakitori first izakaya, but the tonkotsu becomes the main event the second the fog rolls in. Get a few skewers and a bowl and settle in.

Garlic-chan

Ushi Taro

Ramen • (415) 702-6014 • WEBSITE

1382 9th Ave

Inner Sunset. Closed Mondays. The rebel: an all beef bone broth, fragrant with truffle and olive, with oxtail and marrow on offer for the maximalists. A real departure from the pork heavy field.

Garlic-chan

Saiwaii Ramen

Ramen • (415) 665-7888 • WEBSITE

2240 Irving St

Outer Sunset. Closed 2:45 to 5 p.m. daily. A family run gem out in the avenues doing spicy garlic tonkotsu and a Spicy Mala that will clear your sinuses. Affordable, cozy, and the antidote to a foggy Outer Sunset night.

Garlic-chan

Noodle In A Haystack

Ramen • WEBSITE

4601 Geary Blvd

Inner Richmond. Reservations via Tock. The splurge, and the only spot on this map you book weeks out. Ten counter seats, noodles flown in from Japan, and a ramen anchored tasting menu in the Michelin Guide. A special occasion, not a Tuesday.

Garlic-chan

Kaiju Eats Ramen & Izakaya

Japanese • (415) 742-4309 • WEBSITE

3409 Geary Blvd

Inner Richmond. For a Tuesday, then. Playful flavored bowls, a coconut shoyu, and a gyoza they have the nerve to call a gyozilla. Small room, big sense of humor.

Garlic-chan

Ramen Kameko

Ramen

910 Clement

Inner Richmond. The family run newcomer on Clement, doing a morning simmered tonkotsu with hand sliced chashu. Order at the kiosk and watch the line form behind you.

Garlic-chan

Jijime

Korean • (415) 221-5353 • WEBSITE

5524 Geary Blvd

Outer Richmond. More of a Korean fusion izakaya than a ramen ya, but the tonkotsu style broth holds its own next to the Korean plates. Bring people who want a little of everything.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya Ramen Bar

Ramen • (415) 949-9800 • WEBSITE

3340 Steiner St

Marina. The dashi bowl, Marina edition, for when youre up near Chestnut and the fog has its own ideas about your evening.

Garlic-chan

Torraku Ramen

Ramen • (415) 936-3641 • WEBSITE

1449 Lombard St

Cow Hollow. Closed Mondays. A former food truck that landed on Lombard, doing a tonkotsu super paitan and a seafood bowl, with solid gluten free and vegan options. Honest food, fair prices, no fuss.

Garlic-chan

Kui Shin Bo

Japanese • (415) 655-9496 • WEBSITE

1424 Lombard St

Cow Hollow. The same sushi and everything spot from Japantown, ramen section intact, now closer to the Marina crowd.

Garlic-chan

Kizuki Ramen & Izakaya（Stonestown Galleria）

Restaurant • (877) 312-4748 • WEBSITE

3251 20th Ave #172, San Francisco, CA 94132, USA

Stonestown, in Stonestown Galleria. Walk up only. A customizable Hakata tonkotsu, gluten free yam noodles, and a room big enough for the whole group. The reliable answer when youre stuck out by the mall.

Garlic-chan

Ramen House

Noodle • (415) 988-7929 • WEBSITE

2623 San Bruno Ave

Portola. The unfussy neighborhood bowl with daytime hours, exactly what that stretch of the Portola needed.

Garlic-chan

Denya Ramen

Ramen • (415) 660-7623

1639 Polk St, San Francisco, CA 94109, USA

Nob Hill. Closed Tuesdays. A casual newcomer doing Hakata style bowls with a build your own streak: pick pork or chicken broth, then push it toward shio, black garlic, or sesame. A comfortable room for a date or a small group.

Garlic-chan

+new list

San Francisco Ramen

By Garlic-chan•37 Places

Marufuku Ramen

Ramen • $$ • (415) 872-9786 • WEBSITE

1581 Webster St #235, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA

Japantown. The one everyone names first, and the wait proves it. Get on the Yelp list before you think youre hungry, order the Tonkotsu DX, and accept your fate. It earns the hype.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya Ramen Bar

Ramen • (415) 757-0552 • WEBSITE

1737 Buchanan St

Garlic-chan

Warakubune Sushi Restaurant

Sushi • (415) 252-8383 • WEBSITE

307 Church St

Garlic-chan

Ramen Yamadaya

Ramen • (415) 359-9983 • WEBSITE

1728 Buchanan St

Japantown. Closed Tuesdays. A serious 20 hour tonkotsu and a karaage worth the trip on its own. Reliable rather than transcendent, which is exactly what you want some nights.

Garlic-chan

Suzu

Ramen • (415) 346-5083 • WEBSITE

1825 Post St

Garlic-chan

Kui Shin Bo

Japanese • (415) 922-9575 • WEBSITE

22 Peace Plz

Japantown. More of a sushi and everything spot than a ramen ya, but the ramen section is real and the menu runs for days. Good for the table that cant agree on anything.

Garlic-chan

Kushi Tsuru

Japanese • (415) 922-9902 • WEBSITE

1737 Post St

Garlic-chan

Nande-Ya

Japanese • (628) 444-3580 • WEBSITE

1737 Post St

Japantown, in the Japan Center West mall. A tidy ramen udon soba counter, the sort of place you find by accident and return to on purpose.

Garlic-chan

Mensho Tokyo

Ramen • (415) 800-8345 • WEBSITE

672 Geary St

Tenderloin. A chicken paitan temple with a Michelin nod, 28 seats, a line before the doors open, and a one hour limit. Get the tori paitan with duck chashu and decide for yourself.

Garlic-chan

Taniku

Ramen • (415) 658-7555 • WEBSITE

1035 Geary St

Tenderloin. Opens at 4:30 p.m. An izakaya first, so go for the skewers and stay for the niku ramen, a sukiyaki style beef bowl that sneaks up on you. A cozy date spot that doesnt feel like a project.

Garlic-chan

TonTon Restaurant

Ramen • (415) 874-9664

422 Geary St, San Francisco, CA 94102, USA

Union Square. Open late. Tucked into the old Katana ya space, this is the tiny, no frills answer when its 11 p.m. and you have feelings. The house ramen is under fourteen bucks and does the job.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya

Ramen • (415) 740-1484 • WEBSITE

219 O’Farrell St

Union Square. The same light dashi broth and standout vegan bowl, parked where the shoppers and the theater crowd need it.

Garlic-chan

Rural Ramen Bar

Ramen • (415) 274-9942 • WEBSITE

1059 Powell St

Nob Hill. A low key neighborhood counter right where the cable car clangs past, the kind of bowl you grab without making an event of it.

Garlic-chan

Jikasei MENSHO

Ramen • (415) 910-9419 • WEBSITE

1355 Market St

Garlic-chan

Ippudo

Ramen • (415) 348-1202 • WEBSITE

18 Yerba Buena Ln

Yerba Buena. The dependable chain bowl, and the only California Ippudo with a full bar. Get the Shiromaru Classic and a side of pork buns; consistency has its place.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya

Ramen • (415) 200-6466 • WEBSITE

680 Clay St

Financial District. The dashi gospel, downtown edition, for the days youre stuck below California Street and want something better than a sad desk salad.

Garlic-chan

Ramen Hiroshi

Ramen • (415) 997-0997 • WEBSITE

322 Kearny St

Financial District. A newer downtown arrival pairing tonkotsu with a respectable run of izakaya skewers. Proof that the Financial District still feeds people after the desks empty out.

Garlic-chan

Toppu Ramen And Dim Sum House

Dim Sum • (415) 923-8055 • WEBSITE

941 Kearny St

Chinatown. A genuine curveball: a dim sum and sushi house on the Chinatown edge where the spicy miso ramen, loaded with tender pork, is somehow one of the best things going.

Garlic-chan

Nojo Ramen Tavern

Ramen • (415) 896-4587 • WEBSITE

231 Franklin St

Hayes Valley. Nojo went all in on chicken. The creamy paitan comes with a whole leg draped over the top, and it is exactly as decadent as that sounds. Walk in and surrender to it.

Garlic-chan

Taishoken

Ramen • (415) 400-5336 • WEBSITE

665 Valencia St

Mission. The Tokyo tsukemen original, brought to Valencia. You dip cold, chewy housemade noodles into a thick broth, then thin the dregs with dashi at the end. Serious noodles for serious people.

Garlic-chan

Ramenwell

Ramen • $ • (415) 589-7680 • WEBSITE

3378 18th St, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

Mission. In the old Ken Ken space, a 20 hour pork bowl and a Souper Spicy Garlic that earns the name, plus unusually strong gluten free and vegan options. Save room for the taro soft serve.

Garlic-chan

Chome

Japanese • (415) 655-9623

3601 26th St

Mission. Closed Mondays. A women and Asian owned izakaya with skewers and a raw bar, but ramen is right there on the regular menu, and the kitchen treats it as seriously as everything else.

Garlic-chan

Coco's Ramen

Ramen • (415) 648-7722 • WEBSITE

3319 Mission St

Bernal Heights. Eight broths and a customize everything streak, sushi too, all in a cozy red walled room. The kind of place you can bring anyone and let them build the bowl they want.

Garlic-chan

Nute's

Restaurant • $$ • (415) 260-0192 • WEBSITE

903 Cortland Ave, San Francisco, CA 94110, USA

Garlic-chan

Izakaya Sozai

Japanese • $$ • (415) 371-9721 • WEBSITE

1500 Irving St, San Francisco, CA 94122, USA

Inner Sunset. Dinner only. A yakitori first izakaya, but the tonkotsu becomes the main event the second the fog rolls in. Get a few skewers and a bowl and settle in.

Garlic-chan

Ushi Taro

Ramen • (415) 702-6014 • WEBSITE

1382 9th Ave

Inner Sunset. Closed Mondays. The rebel: an all beef bone broth, fragrant with truffle and olive, with oxtail and marrow on offer for the maximalists. A real departure from the pork heavy field.

Garlic-chan

Saiwaii Ramen

Ramen • (415) 665-7888 • WEBSITE

2240 Irving St

Garlic-chan

Noodle In A Haystack

Ramen • WEBSITE

4601 Geary Blvd

Garlic-chan

Kaiju Eats Ramen & Izakaya

Japanese • (415) 742-4309 • WEBSITE

3409 Geary Blvd

Inner Richmond. For a Tuesday, then. Playful flavored bowls, a coconut shoyu, and a gyoza they have the nerve to call a gyozilla. Small room, big sense of humor.

Garlic-chan

Ramen Kameko

Ramen

910 Clement

Inner Richmond. The family run newcomer on Clement, doing a morning simmered tonkotsu with hand sliced chashu. Order at the kiosk and watch the line form behind you.

Garlic-chan

Jijime

Korean • (415) 221-5353 • WEBSITE

5524 Geary Blvd

Outer Richmond. More of a Korean fusion izakaya than a ramen ya, but the tonkotsu style broth holds its own next to the Korean plates. Bring people who want a little of everything.

Garlic-chan

Hinodeya Ramen Bar

Ramen • (415) 949-9800 • WEBSITE

3340 Steiner St

Marina. The dashi bowl, Marina edition, for when youre up near Chestnut and the fog has its own ideas about your evening.

Garlic-chan

Torraku Ramen

Ramen • (415) 936-3641 • WEBSITE

1449 Lombard St

Cow Hollow. Closed Mondays. A former food truck that landed on Lombard, doing a tonkotsu super paitan and a seafood bowl, with solid gluten free and vegan options. Honest food, fair prices, no fuss.

Garlic-chan

Kui Shin Bo

Japanese • (415) 655-9496 • WEBSITE

1424 Lombard St

Cow Hollow. The same sushi and everything spot from Japantown, ramen section intact, now closer to the Marina crowd.

Garlic-chan

Kizuki Ramen & Izakaya（Stonestown Galleria）

Restaurant • (877) 312-4748 • WEBSITE

3251 20th Ave #172, San Francisco, CA 94132, USA

Garlic-chan

Ramen House

Noodle • (415) 988-7929 • WEBSITE

2623 San Bruno Ave

Portola. The unfussy neighborhood bowl with daytime hours, exactly what that stretch of the Portola needed.

Garlic-chan

Denya Ramen

Ramen • (415) 660-7623

1639 Polk St, San Francisco, CA 94109, USA

Garlic-chan