Fukada

One of my favorite places to eat in Irvine that my friends know that I often have cravings to just come back to this place for their yummy foods! The rumors that the wait is super long are absolutely true and often times, during the rush, can exceed more than half an hour. I have visited this place during various times during the day and noticed once, that even before the place was open for business, there was a line already forming outside on a Sunday morning. People are either patient and wait for their turn or else get impatient and choose to leave. More often than not, the people in line in front of me are usually still there waiting for their turns.
Due to the amount of people that often are waiting for their turns to eat at the restaurant, the amount of tables inside is probably not sufficient enough to handle the crowd, which accounts for the huge wait times, but they have not chosen to expand the dining space or move locations because they have been in this plaza location for quite a long time. There are individual tables to the far wall on the left/​right side of the restaurant, and in the middle, communal long tables with picnic bench seating right down the middle of the restaurant until it reaches the sushi bar seating area.
Each time I come here, I love eating their gyozas, their lunch/​dinner combo of Sansai Tanuki Udon noodle soup and chicken katsu curry. The portions are generous and I am always full for a decently priced meal. I love their twist on the gyoza which includes mostly vegetables and a little meat with soy sauce to dip or not. Their udon noodles are superb and I have yet to find another udon restaurant that has the same consistency of these udon noodles and the soup is not too salty but just perfect that I end up often continuing to keep drinking the soup even after all my udon is gone.
Service is always quick, prompt and efficient since there are plenty of others to serve afterwards. The trick is to try to make it before the 2pm cut-​off time for the sign-​in sheet up in the front of the restaurant when they close the restaurant down to prepare for the evening meal rush when they re-​open around 5pm. I’ve actually seen people come in the restaurant to sign-​in after 2pm (while there are still guests that made it on to the list before 2pm are still waiting outside) get sent away because they were too late to make it on before they closed the list.
For those that cannot wait, you can visit their other To Go location near UCI called Fukada To Go.

First of all, I did not know chopped up tuna can be so freaking delicious. I was skeptical at first when my roommate told me about this place because really how good can it be?
Arrived here around 1PM on a Sunday and there was already a 45 min wait. Even though the waiting sucks, it was 100% worth it!
We got the Udon and Tuna Don combo and I regret getting the combo. Let me explain why. The udon was okay, I wish I would spent the money from the combo on extra tuna (I asked it would be of been an extra $ 4). It was that freaking good, every bite was just this overwhelming of creamy tuna goodness. Plus they give such a generous amount of rice, the extra tuna would of balanced it out.
Overall the whole experience was beyond satisfying and I will definitely be back for more!

Fukada is a wonderful, beautiful establishment. The wait for dinner on a Friday at 5:30pm for 2 was about 15 mins. I would advise for you to get there early though because there was a huge crowd after us.
We got seated and the nicest Japanese lady took our order. I got the dinner combo with the udon (with flakes) and spicy tuna don with brown rice. We also order the seafood salad with seared tuna… THAT WAS AMAZING. I loveeeee that salad. It’s enough for 2 people I think. We also got the tempura… I probably won’t be ordering that in the future because you can taste the batter heavily and it was $ 8… My mom can make that for me for free haha. Oh I miss this meal and am salivating writing this review. Definitely a gem in Irvine amongst the other gems LOL

Fukada is the BEST place to go for a casual lunch or dinner in Irvine. The wait can get long so either call in to do take-​out or come here before or after peak times!
Tempura udon– BOMB. I’m not a huge udon fan but Fukada has won me over with their tasty soup and delicious hand-​made noodles. Shrimp tempura is always on point and the batter is very light and crisp. Ask for tempura sauce!
Spicy tuna don– so good! The tuna mixture is creamy and it tastes AMAZINGGGG. This is more of a lunch favorite for me but if if I’m feeling hungry, I’ll order both this and the udon!
Squid salad ($ 5) — 4 huge ass pieces of squid in VERY lightly coated batter and it’s the best bang for your buck imo. Comes with this fantastic sesame dressing!
You really can’t go wrong with anything here, and there’s a reason why they’ve been around for so long. My mom who’s the pickiest eater especially when it comes to Asian food favors this place among all others too. It’s definitely the best.

On my most recent trip to Fukada, I underestimated what appeared to be a super long wait and went to get a snack at the nearby Burger King. Mistake. As soon as we got back, they called my name. Haha. There is always a wait whenever I come, but don’t be discouraged! The first time I visited, we waited for an hour but it’s totally worth it.
The lunch and dinner specials are such a steal! I have only visited for dinner, but the lunch prices are $ 2 – 3 cheaper. I usually get the hot udon with the spicy tuna don or unagi don. This time around, I tried the seafood salad and unagi don. The seafood salad has an ample amount of seared tuna and albacore mixed with lots of greens. It was a bit heavy on the dressing and that made everything too salty. Next time, I’m going to ask for the dressing on the side. The unagi don and spicy tuna don are both delicious. You can get it with brown or white rice. I like the organic brown rice– no extra cost! The udon is simple, light, and refreshing.
Service is friendly and everyone is friendly despite the constant rush of customers. If you’re ever around the area, come try this place out! You won’t be disappointed.

Unilocal failed us this time. This place had 4 stars and you would expect at least one good dish but sadly we couldn’t. We ordered so much food, it was either too bland, no flavor or burnt. Nothing special about their food here. Posted a pic of everything we ate. We also ordered their 20 min chicken wings that took more than an hour, so we cancelled it.
And to make things worse I got food poisoning. Was throwing up all night.

The MOST efficient restaurant I have ever dined in during lunch hours!
Perfect for people with that one hour (or even less!) time crunch, but be sure to come right when it comes at 11:30AM. We arrived at 11:27 and there were already 8 parties ahead of us on the list. Once 11:30 hit, the hostess got everyone in quickly & efficiently, we ordered our food, ate, paid, and was out of there by 11:57AM. AMAZING! Especially with a full restaurant.
Ordered the lunch special with: cold sansai soba noodles and spicy tuna don (~$ 11) definitely not a light lunch, but hits the spot during hot weather and enough food to take home for leftover dinner. I absolutely love the brown rice here — perfectly cooked. Also, the katsu don that my boyfriend got was DELICIOUS. Whatever sauce is in there with the egg and chicken is well balanced on top of the perfect rice.
Will come back and I definitely recommend for lunch if you get there right before 11:30AM on a week day. THE spot for anyone looking for delicious Japanese food during their lunch breaks.

Grabbed dinner here with a friend and it did not disappoint!
I went with their dinner combo and got their Hot Udon with Half Tanuki (tempura flakes) and Half Sansai (veggies) + the Spicy Tuna Don Bowl. For $ 12 this is a REALLY good deal because the portions for both are normal sized! Both dishes were really tasty. The broth wasn’t too salty for the udon and the noodles were soft and chewy. I also like the texture the tempura flakes bring to the dish. As everyone reviewed, the Spicy Tuna Don was really good– not too much mayo and tasted really fresh. The ratio to the rice was perfect as well.
Since I live in LA I doubt I’ll be back, but this is definitely a good authentic Japanese spot. They also have a great location near Irvine Spectrum and it looks like a Whole Foods is opening up soon, too.

After a visit to the tide pools at Shaw’s cove, my husband and I were hungry for some Japanese soul food.
We ordered a sea vegetable salad to share. The salad is good portion, with sesame vinaigrette dressing. Light and refreshing $ 7.50.
Spicy chicken $ 8, came boneless and skinless, mildly spicy chili sauce coated on chicken pieces… The menu said fried, but the chicken does not taste fried.
My husband ordered Nabeyaki udon, Stone pot chicken broth Udon, with a light sprinkling of spinach, couple of slices of shiitake mushrooms, one piece of tofu, several chucks of dark meat chicken, and poached egg $ 12.50. He said it was good.
I ordered the Lunch special combo Hot Sansai udon $ 10.95 with Ten Don.
Ten Don is two pieces of tempura shrimps and 4 assorted pieces of tempura veggies (we got lotus, yam, zucchini, and potato) with bowl of brown rice… Way more food than I can eat! My husband ate most of the Tempura pieces, And he said they were bit oily but good.
Service was prompt and friendly.
(This entry was written by my husband)

Why is there always a wait =[.
This place features really awesome noodles + don combination bowls for lunch/​dinner.
I love their sashimi salad, as it is something I get often when I come here. I pair that up with their spicy tuna don and it’s never a disappointment.
The food is great, but the service is almost appalling. My friends and I finished our dinner pretty fast and since one of my friend had been visiting from Kentucky we wanted to sit and chat for a few minutes.
A bill was brought out to us while we were finishing up our dinner (without it being asked). Which is fine, pretty standard for a busy restaurant. I’m cool with that.
Then I pull out my money and put it on the tray but both my friends do not budge yet (meaning they aren’t ready to pay). So I retract my money back.
A waitress comes by and glances at it. 2 minutes later, same said waitress does the same thing. And again. And again. Until she picks up the empty check tray to «examine» whether there was money/​card on it, and then pushes it towards us. Appalling! Absolutely appalling!
I originally wanted to rate this place as a 5 star, and then decided I would give it a 3 star for the sheer rudeness of that waitress. Then as I was writing this review I thought it over and decided that it was an isolated incident of the night and I was regretful that I didn’t ask the waitress for her name.
Hope I never come back for dinner service when she’s working!

A line is a good sign. Depending on the time and day there’s a short wait, you sign your name on a list and it usually moves pretty quickly as the service is fast.
This review is for their lunch combo. The spicy tuna don + sansai mountain udon is my go-​to. The tanuki tempura udon is also very good. I prefer the udon noodles over the soba. But both are fresh and soft. You can also get a combination of the mountain sansai style + the tanuki. This is nice because you get the mountain root vegetables with some of the tempura flakes for texture. The unagi don is just ok in my opinion. For some reason my last unagi don didn’t taste as fresh and was a little on the slimy side. The katsu don with egg is my boyfriend’s go-​to! We also always order a couple pieces of their asparagus tempura on the side.
They are generous with their portions so you really can’t beat the price! I wouldn’t suggest this place for an intimate date night with the fast traffic it receives. But again, the food is delicious. I suggest peaking at the laminated menu when you’re waiting to familiarize yourself before sitting down at the table. Service is quick. Plenty of parking in the lot.

Fukada is soooooooooo good! I’m typically never in the Irvine area but when I am, it’s usually because I’m over at Fukada for lunch (or at Irvine Spectrum to do some serious shopping haha). A friend told me to go here whenever I’m in the area and I trust her food choices so I decided to go. What a good decision.
For my third visit, I noticed that the prices were increased by like $ 1 or so (and they just increased it too!). Oh well. Usually when I’m here, I get the same lunch combo, which is the Hot Sansai udon with Spicy Tuna don (brown rice). Such rich, healthy, organic yumminess in one complete lunch The udon is very balanced and by the end, I’m already slurping the soup to finish it all. So far, so good and I keep coming back for more to fulfill my udon cravings! During lunch hour, it does get busy to do expect to wait if this were the case. Definitely a great healthy, lunch spot!

Having heard about the long waits on busy nights here, we got here before the place opened peering in the window like weirdos, but we were not the only people outside doing this. LOL.
Having checked out the menu online already and looking at others’ pictures, I was having a hard time trying to decide what to order. I started by ordering an iced green tea. Cool and refreshing on a warm summer night.
I decided to order two dishes since I could not make up my mind. I ordered the Seafood Salad which was chock full of seared tuna and salmon and had a nice ponzu dressing on it.
I also decided to go with the Spicy Tuna Don.
This did not disappoint. Melts in your mouth, not really that spicy. Mixed in some extra wasabi with the tuna and rice all together for more spicy goodness. We also ordered crunchy roll, age (fried) gyoza and tempura at the table which were both very good. The age gyoza was very tasty.
Service was friendly and efficient. The restaurant has as many tables and places to sit and eat that they could cram in this small space, so if you are not a fan of being close to your fellow eaters, this may not be the place for you. Parking lot is large in this strip mall.
Look forward to coming back in the future. As I am not a fan of long waits, I will definitely be back early for lunch or dinner to try out some more of their great menu.