Hokkaido Ramen Santouka

Omg fucking amazing, I feasted so much. Sweet mem, v dank ign r8 ⁸⁄₈. My dad is owner of rito, he will sponsor dw m8s ez win, top kek!

Visited this place last Tuesday for lunch. Left wanting more! I can’t remember the names of the items I ordered, which is fine because I picked at random and everything was good. Very friendly service and value!

I’ve been here a few times and have been pleased with the quick, efficient service and absolutely delicious ramen. I had the Shoyu with a soft-​boiled egg. The egg was cooked perfectly, the noodles were just firm enough, and the broth was very rich and delicious (and salty! — make sure you take a few sips of water as you go!).
The pace of this restaurant is quick, so don’t go in expecting to take your sweet time at the table. Also note there is plenty of shared seating — you may be at the bar or at a larger communal table. Definitely more of an eat and pay place, but well worth it for some quick ramen!

Ok first off, if I was just rating the food, this would easily be a 4 star review. Maybe even a 4.63 star review!
I got the spicy miso ramen, with double the meat. Number 8 on the menu. Broth, awesome. Noodles, awesome. Mushrooms… err kinda weird. Pork… meh. I’m sorry. For myself, not you. Ok, a little bit for you.
In Victoria I used to go to Foo Ramen, and the pork belly there will make you want to yell from a mountaintop. At Santouka it was sliced pretty thin, seemed a little overcooked, and it didn’t have that thick layer of fat and crispy skin. Where’s my crispy skin at Santouka?! WHERE?!
Food aside, the atmosphere was super loud and hectic. It was more like a vacation to Asia then a trip to a restaurant. I am 100% down with that vibe, but only when the food is cheap. Once you add stuff onto your Ramen like an egg or extra meat, you are looking at at least $ 13. Not expensive, but definitely not cheap considering the chaotic environment you have to eat in.
All in all, the food was tasty and at some point I will probably be back. It’s just not high on my list.

Travelled to Japan in December, had wonderful ramen there that I wish I could go back again and again. This place however is a bit disappointing since I had high expectations (every time I walk by, there is a line out the door). I am a fan of different kinds of seaweed, in their ramen, they use black fungus instead of seaweed. The soup is good but not better compared to all the other ramen places nearby. Service was a bit slow on the Sunday night I went. It’s funny to see people always like to go to places that have big lines.

Hokkaido Ramen was really good before their new renovation. After the renovation, I think the taste was not as good as before. the chashu was not tender as before. and the soup is really salty too. price is a little bit high.

My friends all had colds, so we decided to get something warm and therapeutic– ramen! This place is small and cramped! We ordered the shio ramen, spicy ramen, and a cup of green tea. The food came out super fast and we couldn’t wait to eat it. The broth for the shio ramen was whitish and very flavorful. I really liked the spicy ramen, although it was a bit salty. It tasted even better when I added some of that red seasoning they had on the table.
Even though the bowls didn’t look very big, the ramen was very filling. The green tea here had those rice bag thingys inside, which I’ve tried before, so it was good and authentic. As we made our way out, there were a lot of people waiting in line! This place reminded me of the ramen inside Mitsuwa in San Diego. I wonder if it’s the same company…

This is Hokkaido Ramen, so it’s on the salty side of Japanese style ramen.
The broth is heavy on miso and soy sauce use, but a beer to wash it all down works wonders.
The winter special comes with Tuna avocado rice, but honestly with a bowl of ramen already, it’s a bit rich on the caloric scale.
Rice was prepped mediocre which is a bit taboo for a Japanese restaurant by those of Japanese heritage.
So I’d say medium grade in taste.

I hope they serve soft centered boiled egg but still fine. Perfect comfort food for chilly day in Vancouver.
I ordered miso ramen and chashu-​don. My recommendation is to eat ramen first and pour the soup into don.

My favourite ramen in the city. Check out my blog for more photos and review.

«ラーメン or Ramen Heaven»
Hooaido Ramen Santouka is the best Ramen noodle spot in Western Canada and you might have guessed that by the long line-​ups to get in. Ramen Miso is a relatively new comer to the ramen world and it might be my favorite type. For $ 10.99, you can get a large Ramen Miso Soup which is heaven in a bowl.
Extremely flavorful, filling and therapeutic, this noodle delight is prepared in front of you in the open kitchen. And like most noodle houses in Japan, expect to be seated very close to compete strangers who are making loud slurping sounds as they eat their Ramen. In Japan, it is not considered impolite to «slurp» your soup as that is the only way you can eat it while it is very hot.
The service is great and the line moves quickly. The restaurant’s main purpose is to get patrons fed and out of there, so don’t expect to linger for a while and socialize, since it’s not that kind of place. But for perfect Ramen noodle soups you will be hard pressed to find anything better tasting.
The Gyozas are also excellent!

Got here on a rainy Sunday night for the first time and probably waited around 10 minutes in line, which from what I hear pretty good for this place. I pretty much already knew that I had to try the pork jowl from reading other reviews and decided to take the servers recommendations of the Shio ramen. The boyfriend got a regular sized spicy ramen so we got the pork jowl as an appetizer plate.
The pork jowl was delicious. Super tender and fatty, it was 1000x better than the dry chashu that came with our ramen.
My ramen was pretty average. Nothing too special. My boyfriends ramen was definitely not enough for him, portion-​wise. In fact, we ordered and shared a medium pizza afterwards because it had been only just enough for myself. He definitely should have ordered a large bowl.
I was really disappointed with the Chashu. Hard and thick pieces were served in our bowls, and because we had ordered the double serving of it, it became more and more dry and harder to eat as we progressed in our meals.
Service was decent, but you really have minimal communication with the servers here. You’re also seated bar-​style next to one another, but there are actual tables in the back as well.
Overall, it was okay. Not too bad, I’d come back if I was in the area but nothing wowed me too much.
Disclaimer: We actually came back from Japan only a month ago before trying this place so our expectations may be slightly skewed from amazing ramen in Tokyo!

Very tasty soup base (I tried rio)
I got the $ 20 combo. Comes with Japanese cream soda, grilled salmon rice with fish roe and your choice of regular ramen. It was actually a fairly big portion although it looked small very pictures.
Definitely will go back and try their other ramen. It’s authentic, but doesn’t have a wow factor.
The lineup is usually very long during meal hours, but around 4 – 5 it’s pretty quiet.

I’ve avoided coming into Santouka forever because every time I pass by the line is just so long. I love ramen so I usually just cross the street to Marutama (one of my favs) or I go to the upstairs ramen place inside Robson Public Market.
I came in last night because it was close to closing and the place was pretty empty. I got the pork chashu bowl and my boyfriend got some kind of ramen…
The bowl is pretty good. Not super delicious but it was $ 4.55 so no complaints here. The ramen was ok. The broth was ok. The noodles were ok. I am personally not sure where the hype is coming from.
I didn’t think Santouka was bad I just didn’t think it was worth the hype. That long line tho… I would only come again if I wanted a rice bowl (super cheap) or if the place was totally empty (not worth the line I think).

On a rather chilly rainy evening, I tried to catch up with a friend over Ramen so naturally started walking towards Denman on Robson and saw that there was a rather short line up here so decided to give it a try.
The décor is very bland and tables are meant to be shared. My friend and I sat at the bar and had a good view of the kitchen. Our server was friendly and our Ramen’s arrived in less than 5 minutes, much faster than my appetizer.
I have had Ramen at the Tokyo airport before so maybe my bar is set to high but this place just failed to impress. I ordered the Miso Pork Ramen and a side of Gyoza as an appetizer. The ramen was a bit watery and tasted just ok so I wasn’t really blown away.

I’m so glad my fiancé and I came here to get our ramen fix while visiting Vancouver for a few days.
The staff are quick and efficient (albeit not very friendly). But the food makes up for the service.
I ordered the Tokusen Toroniku Ramen with pork jowl and the broth was delicious rich and full of umami. The pork jowl, tender and succulent. Unfortunatley the bowl doesn’t come with an egg so I ordered one in addition.
Food came out quick and steaming hot. The noodles were perfectly chewy and al dente.
My boyfriend enjoyed his bowl as well. He had the same as me but with regular bbq pork.
I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a good ramen fix in Vancouver!

The wait can be crazy but once you have that piping hot bowl of ramen in front of you, all is forgiven. We have Santouka in LA too so that’s not new. It’s a proven winner for me. I love their intense broth, but I don’t like the fully cooked egg. Since my friends and I had just run a half-​marathon, we were starving. Plus we all showered before heading out. Probably not the best idea to come here with the wait. But we tried our best to keep our hanger in check because we were craving some seriously yummy carbs.
I decided on the IKURA GOHAN COMBO, which comes with your choice of a regular size ramen and a bowl of rice topped with ikura (salmon roe). A very life-​affirming meal indeed.

Truly tasty ramen. This is one of my two favourite ramen places in Vancouver. For this visit, I chose the Tokusen Toroniku (pork jowl) ramen, with a boiled egg on the side.
The pork’s fat content was superbly balanced, and was definitely the tastiest meat I’ve eaten here. Noodles were nice and a tiny bit al dente, which maintained some texture in the piping hot bowl. The broth was creamy and well-​seasoned, without being overly salty, which allowed me to drain the lot without gasping for water. Finally, the egg (served on the side so as not to overcook) was perfectly soft-​boiled and provided some delicious yoke to combine with my ramen!
There was a bit of a queue outside, but it’s worth the wait, and the service was very attentive and prompt.

The long line almost made me walk away, but I heard so many great things about Hokkaido that I couldn’t walk away as hard as I tried.
Food: I had a bowl of the tonkatsu kara miso ramen, it was truly amazing. The pork was the best tasting pork I have ever had in my 23 years of life. It literally melted apart on my tongue, it came apart so easily and I know it was high quality pork. The broth was spicy, just like it like my broth, however it was a bit too salty for my tastebuds. Overall, the dish was exceptional and the serving was generous.
Service: Don’t expect much because this place is always jam packed, however our waitress was friendly and promptly responded to all of our requests.
Ambiance: The place is a steam room, seriously, you will sweat bullets when you’re inside. Just drink a ton of cold water and stay hydrated while enjoying your warm bowl of delicious ramen.
Overall: The second best bowl of ramen I’ve had in my life and definitely the best meal I had while in Vancouver, if you can deal with the long/​fast moving line and the steam room inside, you will definitely enjoy your meal and find Hokkaido to be worth it! I’d recommend this place to ramen lovers everywhere.

This place is similar to a fast food place with a different atmosphere. I came here for lunch on a weekday and I had to wait 5 mins for my seat. They wanted me to order fast and after order food came like 5 mins later. I ate it and finish it and the bill just plotted in front of me. I guess I have to leave right away after finishing. So if you don’t mind the rush then its ok.
The place is very busy but the line does go quick. Food its a bit salty. I don’t think its that healthy. Maybe Hokkaido people do like salty food or maybe it is authentic. I don’t know…
Will I come back here. Maybe. Depending.