Cuisine Scene: Japanese
While sushi is ubiquitous in Southern California, Japanese restaurants around Long Beach also serve up rich and comforting ramen, saucy noodles, nourishing rice bowls, and crave-worthy katsu (breaded and fried chicken or pork cutlets). Explore Japanese cuisine beyond sushi at these Long Beach eateries.
JINYA RAMEN BAR
JINYA Ramen Bar (6480 E Pacific Coast Hwy Ste 130), located in the 2ND & PCH shopping center, offers a menu that includes several variations of ramen, small plates like tempura brussels sprouts and steamed buns, salad, mini tacos, and rice bowls. The restaurant’s stylishly moody interior makes it a great date night spot. Sit at the bar and enjoy your ramen with craft beer on tap, or enjoy a seat at the large table on the front patio with a fire pit centerpiece.
DONBURI CAFÉ
Find Donburi Café (245 Pine Ave Ste 120) in Downtown’s Pine Square, a small courtyard just off the main drag. Donburi is the Japanese word for rice bowl, a dish usually composed of steamed rice with meat, vegetables, and sauce. Rice bowl options include a katsu or deep-fried chicken bowl with rich curry sauce, or you can choose a bowl of thick and chewy udon noodles, and sides like vegan spring rolls and shrimp tempura.
TE-BURU
In addition to a sizable sushi menu, featuring rolls, hand rolls, sashimi, and baked or tempura rolls, Te-buru (3850 Atlantic Ave) in the Bixby Knolls neighborhood also offers rice bowls, udon noodles, and katsu dishes. Appetizers include oysters, soft shell crab tempura, and sushi nachos. The menu also lists several carpaccio dishes, including scallop and bluefin toro. Try the Tokyo Hambugu (Japanese hamburger steak), which comes topped with a fried egg and carmelized onions.
HIRONORI CRAFT RAMEN
HiroNori Craft Ramen (610 E Carson St) in Bixby Knolls has a spare dining area with a few small tables and a view of the chefs at work in the open kitchen. HiroNori boils its tonkotsu broth for 24 hours and they use soy sauce that is barrel aged for two years. The menu includes tonkotsu and shoyu ramen, plus a vegan option and cold dipping noodles, as well as rice bowls and sides like cucumber crab salad. Top off your order with a yuzu sake piña colada and proclaim the traditional Japanese toast, “Kanpai!”
JOUNETSU RAMEN
Jounetsu Ramen (1035 E 4th St) is reminiscent of restaurants in Tokyo that can seat only a few diners at a time. It’s housed in a narrow storefront with just a few tables indoors and a few more on the front patio along the sidewalk. Choose from tonkatsu, miso, shoyu, or vegetable broth–simmered for 18 hours for richness and depth of flavor–and pork belly, chicken, tofu, or veggies for your ramen bowl. Jounetsu also offers rice bowls, appetizers like takoyaki and gyoza, sushi rolls, and a selection of Japanese beer and sake.