Pao Jao Dumpling & Ramen

Discovered the international food court about a month ago. Went downstairs to see what types of food they had and was very pleased to see so many options!
When I saw that there was a ramen/​dumpling place, I was definitely excited to try it out. Came here today around 1:45 with a friend and we both ordered a tonkatsu ramen with an egg.
Each bowl comes with the basic toppings: char siu (pork belly), bean sprouts, spinach, scallions, and nori (seaweed).
Since it has been cold out, my friend and I thought that the ramen would be nice to warm us up. We were both disappointed when we tried the soup. It was lukewarm! :(despite being lukewarm, i actually did enjoy the flavor. the ramen came in a pretty big bowl but was filled up to only halfway with all the noodles and toppings. Noodles were overcooked as I thought they were really soft. The egg was however, was cooked perfectly! With each spoonful, I got tender bites of soft, velvety-​smooth white, bathed in a sauce of glorious, flavorful yolk. No wonder why it costed an extra dollar to add on this egg.
I would just get the egg by itself but I shall be back to try the king dumpling next time!
+1 star: friendly service
+ 1 star: relatively inexpensive price
+ 1 star: good tasting egg

Average ramen done by amateurs. Not bad, not the greatest. Broth is good, the noodles are nice and chewy, the pork was flavorful, but the ingredients were haphazardly thrown into the bowl, not making an appetizing sight. Also, where’s the soft-​boiled egg and menma? I think $ 9.50 with no egg and/​or other ingredients is overpriced. Get there before 12pm and get a 10% discount.

The best ramen I have ever had. Now, don’t get too excited because I haven’t had A TON of ramen. I have probably tried like under 10 different ramen places in my day. This ramen is just perfect. But more importantly, pork belly.
I have been living a goddamn lie.
I never tried pork belly thinking I wouldn’t life it. The «basic toppings» at Pao Jao (which, as it turns out, are not basic at all) are scallion greens, mung bean sprouts, baby spinach, a square of nori, some red strandy things which I have no idea what they are, and a delicious, naughty little piece of pork belly. I am considering asking how much it would be to have an extra piece one day if I am feeling extra spry.
They have other stuff on their menu too but I couldn’t tell you about any of it.
Tonkatsu ramen, no toppings, just tonkatsu ramen.
The end.

11:53 on a warm fall day and no line. It wasn’t great although it was eatable. It’s fair to say that I likely won’t be able to come back.
The broth, which as you know is really the heart of Raman, was more like a boring base rather than the finished product. I guess some people like it this way although I prefer something a little more complex. Not that I’m a completed but really you need to give me a little something extra. The noodles are good but nothing special.
I came before the lunch rush so there is a little discount so if you can come early the do.
The search for good Raman continues.

A gem hidden in the International Food Dungeon. Surprisingly good tonkotsu broth for the location. Fun jao dumplings, which are a bit rare in the FiDi. Way better than that Chinese fast food which used to be in this stall.
Tonkotsu Ramen: Way better than I’d expect from food court ramen. The broth had that awesome cloudy white color. It was so very savory/​fatty. It’s not Ippudo NY, but it is better than a lot of other broths passed off as tonkotsu in San Francisco. The noodles were standard. The pork belly piece was good, but a tad a small. Wasn’t quite feeling the raw spinach. It’s healthy, but not that exciting. If they upped their ingredient game, they could have a winning bowl of ramen!
Shrimp Pork Jao: A nice departure from the typical pan fried gyoza served at ramen joints. A whole lot of filling rolled in a really thin dumpling wrapper, but with open ends. Kinda like a cigar shaped dumpling. There was so much flavor going on, I really didn’t need to dip it in any sauce.

Surprised by the 1 – 2 star reviews. Perhaps they have made some changes?
I stopped by today and tried the Tonkatsu ramen. I thought they were generous with the toppings.
The broth was piping hot and delicious. I got an egg topping and was cooked perfectly. with the yolk still runny.
Compared to Ramen bar you get so much more for what you pay for. It is also way better tasting than Aijisen Ramen.

As Dean mentioned, staff and broth are okay. But really it is a ¹⁄₃ serving. Had to go buy a snack immediately after lunch

Got their tonkatsu with pork belly (spicy) and their «king dumpling». The broth was great, and had a good kick. The pork belly was tasty but, one big piece, which made it harder to portion out through the meal. The noodles were the most disappointing part, as they weren’t much better than what I expect in cup ramen. This really brings the whole meal down, though, since it’s the bulk of the dish.
The king dumpling, on the other hand, was pretty tasty. I’d recommend grabbing one if you’re there and they’re not busy.
Also, the staff was very nice when I realized we’d be eating in Underground instead of take away.

Got the tonkotsu ramen. Large bowl but not a whole lot of toppings with the tiniest piece of pork. Ramen was a little chewy for my taste and it looked like it came straight out of a package that you get from the grocery store. The broth, which I consider to be the most important part of good ramen, was just bland. Like, I wish I had some soy sauce around to pour in there and give it more flavor. Did not try their baos and dumplings but not so sure that I would after this mediocre ramen experience.

If I could give it none I would! It’s like dumpling and buns with chives stuffed with filler… Basically like a hipster vegan throw up…

Saw this place before it opened few weeks ago and I had been eager to try it.
Menu is much more limited than most other Japanese restaurants in the area, but it seems like they specialize in Ramen and Dumplings.
I got the tonkatsu ramen with an egg. It was tasty, but very little meat in it (typical of most places to be stingy with the toppings though, so it’s not uncommon).
The broth was rich and not very oily, the noodles were thinner than most but still thicker than, say, instant ramen. The egg was soft boiled and I prefer hardboiled, the menu wasn’t exactly clear on what kind of «boiled egg» I would be getting when I added it on.
They didn’t bother to dress it up much, just the noodles, the broth, the toppings, and a chunk of seaweed. At first I thought it wasn’t that much, but after I got finished I realized it was just enough to fill me up.
Overall, it was pretty good and if you are in the mood for ramen and in the financial district, it’s a good place to try, and certainly closer than other places like Ajisen which is all the way down on Powell street.

Trying out this new Ramen place inside the international food court. Was really excited cuz who doesn’t like ramen but my excitement turned into sour grapes cuz I felt cheated when the food came. For $ 9.50 your food came in this large bowl but filed only half way with tiny portion of noodle, one small slice of stew pork, a few slivers of chives, some red stringy things, and a pinch of bean sprouts. I was still starving after slurping everything down on 2 seconds, literally.
Not worth it.
Giving two stars: 1 for the friendly person taking my money and 1 for the broth which was actually pretty flavorful.
Now I have to find something else to fill up my disappointed tummy.

Came here for lunch on Friday. This was the only place that had no line. I ordered the tonkatsu ramen which came with one veryyyyy tiny piece of pork, some beansprouts and a bit of green scallion. For the price of 10 dollars, I definitely expected a bit more given the phở place across from it gave very large portions for even cheaper. The ramen itself was also nothing to write home about as the soup was pretty bland and tasted like it was filled with MSG. I would not come back here.

The shrimp and pork roll is not worth $ 1.75. It is just 1 roll! It’s tiny!
However, I thought the ramen was good and the lines were short. It seems like international food court is swapping out the vendors and this took place of what used to be a Chinese place (foogle I think?)
It’s a great addition to the food court but rent must be high here so they are skimping on some stuff. What I got was the tonkatsu ramen $ 9.50 and added $ 1 for spicy and $ 1 for the egg. The egg is worth it. I also liked the spiciness. Next time I would skip the shrimp pork roll and add Kimchee. They give you one pork piece, and I wasn’t a big fan.
The noodles were a bit on the soft side for me, and honestly because it was $ 14.41, for my ramen and shrimp roll, I may just go to ajisen next time. If I go to the food court, I may stick to Vietnamese. (The Japanese place closed :()

The thick dumplings look like chinese baos and their thin dumplings look like peking style wraps instead of actual dumplings. Maybe I may splurge later but today is a Ramen kinda day.
Ordered the miso ramen plus egg
–The broth was rich and flavorful
–The noodles were chewy but nothing amazing
–The chives and bean sprouts were nice but wish there was a little more
–Three small pieces of pork was a little sad sitting at the bottom of my togo container but it was enough for me
–The stewed egg was perfect, gooey inside and yummy
I like this spot better than ramen underground (which is above ground while this place is underground = mind blown) because I can avoid all the people blocking kearny waiting to sit down. I work for a living so I dont have the luxury of taking two hour lunch breaks. The line is not too bad, it moves fast and the ramen is good enough for me to want to come back.

Time: 1:03pm/70°F partly sunny
Purpose: The other day I stop by Buzz Express saw the line at Pao Jao was pretty long. Mark it down for following week.
Set-​up: Food stall located in the IFC. Couple of menu panels overhead along with self serve utensil station, galvanized bucket of beverages, steam table style steamers. Seating are share in food court commons.
Staff: Pretty well trained or could be owners themselves. The taller girl spoke perfect english, at one point slang was use with coworkers. There were couple of back of house workers acted out ESL when I ask to see what noodles for ramen look like. Fine then, you don’t show, I won’t buy. To no avail, I left it at that. Wanted to use cash, but the girl said no change for $ 20. This is lunch time and you’re out of bills? I ask will I get charge a fee for CC use? Remind you, this is not my problem. I’ll update if my bank statement shows a charge.
Cleanliness: Grade A, stall seems pretty clean, no mess that would cause a grade drop. The partiton glass was fog up with steam condensation, but it can be wipe down. Health score of 100 posted in plain view.
Eats/​Drinks: King dumpling $ 3 and shrimp-​pork $ 1.75. Playing it safe order something in between. Not costing too much as I don’t know about the business or what they’re specializing in. The king dumpling was a steam bun for christ sake. I was thinking regular dumpling, but a little bigger for that price. Stupid me again. I should have follow them while they got my so call dumpling. If I had spotted a bun, I would’ve skip it for something else. Nothing special enriched white flour steam bun filled with vermicelli noodle, egg, ground pork, and other minced veggies. The shrimp pork looks more tasty, but that was sad too. Wrapping was the lowest grade available to make it with. Wasn’t sticky or even close to it. Feels waxy, but yet dry. Looks like bean curd wrapping on it, later confirm it wasn’t more like a won-​ton wrapper. Once bitten, I saw some reddish pepper like meat. It was tasty, but not worth $ 1.75 a piece. Not sure why I was given color dye ginger for. Wasn’t like I had sushi.
Main Features: Dumplings and ramen.
Products/​Services: Pao, jao, bun, special, assorted bottle beverages, ramen-​donkotsu, shoyu, miso. Toppings $ 1−2ea depending on item. Takes plastic. Dine-​in or to-​go.
Punch Lines: Limited items, sells out quick, pricey, zippy service, nothing out of the ordinary, friendly, light bites, hip crowd, small portion, interesting takes, share seating, close early.
Tradeoffs: Charges as much as Underground Ramen, but with one piece of pork belly.
Final Thoughts: I’m not sure if its Chinese or Japanese eats here. However, I can say, its not that authentic no matter how you look at it. My thoughts on this, it wants to take bite at the lunch crowd scene with a little of each being offer. Kinda to say trap you downstair so you won’t make it to Chinatown. Funny thing here is, I thought the last time I would pay $ 3 for a steam bun was at Imperial Tea Court. Guess not, I bought another today. Kinda my fault for not looking what they were grabbing from steam trays. Oh well, you live and learn.

I saw this place before it opened and had very high hopes for their food. Dumplings and ramen, how can you go wrong with that combo? Yum! Walked by the entrance of the underground food court today looking for a place to eat and saw their sign out front. I got so excited they finally opened! It looks like it’s run by very friendly Koreans. Onto the food!
They have ramen bowls all for $ 9.50 each — tonkotsu, miso, and shoyu flavored broths. All their ramen bowls come with a small bunch of bean sprouts, chives, one slice of kakuni (flavored pork belly), and a piece of seaweed. They have additional add ons, such as boiled eggs, kimchee, and green onions for $ 1 each. If you want extra protein, they offer 2 slices of kakuni or chicken for $ 2 more. Extra option to make your broth spicy for another $ 1.
I ended up ordered their tonkotsu ramen with a boiled egg, a shrimp and pork «jao», and a king dumpling. Broth is deep, flavorful, I would give it 4 stars. I read a previous review and the Unilocaler mentioned that he had al dente noodles which is always a good thing. Unfortunately, my bowl of ramen did not have al dente noodles. They weren’t mush, but they weren’t the chewy consistency that would urge me to give it 5 stars. Another 3 stars for their noodles today. Pork belly was decent, nothing to brag about. Egg was perfectly yolky and marinated well. Dumplings to be honest, were just alright. They’re nothing special for a dumpling and ramen shop. Their «jao» dumplings are smaller and taste pretty interesting. They taste like a typical chinese dumpling, but there’s japchae noodles in it; I would give this a 4 star. Their king dumpling is pretty mediocre, The flavors just don’t stand out to me for a dumpling shop; probably give this a 3 star. When I first saw this place I was thinking they would serve dishes of dumplings, as in a plate of 6 or 7 pieces for a certain price. I didn’t expect them to sell individual dumplings. Hmmm maybe it’s something they can look into doing in the future.
Overall, I would come back for their ramen. Price wise, I would say they are right in between Ramen Underground and Sushi Bay. I probably may not come back often for just their dumplings. If I could, I would give them 3.5 stars, but it hasn’t convinced me enough to give them 4 stars.
Only ramen restaurant so far in the fidi that accepts card, yay :)

I came upon this one by accident as I saw the sign walking toward Kearny to grab some lunch. A new ramen lunch in the dungeon? If that doesn’t earn a ‘WTF?’, I’m not sure what would. I haven’t seen a single write-​up about this place on EaterSF, Hoodline or SFWeekly even though it looks to be related to a popular dumpling house down in L.A.‘s Koreatown. the ramen part is a head-​scratcher as I don’t think they’ve attempted it before, but I’m guessing the owners are jumping on the bandwagon that makes Ramen Underground so inexplicably popular as good as it is. So I girded my loins and ventured down those familiar sticky stairs on the Bush Street side of the International Food Court.
I was there late on Friday, around 1:30PM, and saw that they took over the former Chinese food space next to Taqueria Estrella. The counter looked rather barren with the menu a bit sparse as they were out of several toppings (photo:
). I’m guessing they’ve been in business for less than a week as I could tell the staff was still trying to find their rhythm. I noticed the use of the ‘D’ in Tonkotsu on the side menu which I think is the Korean derivative, but I ordered it for $ 9.50 with extra kakuni (pork belly) for $ 2 more. The bowl was pretty, but the portion was slight (photo:
). The broth looked right, but the consistency was thin and just didn’t resonate with the noodles. Those were correctly prepared al dente, but again, the amount seemed paltry for the price.
The kakuni was welcome, but with three thick slices, it made me wonder how many you get with a regular order. One slice? Seriously? Not to get too critical, but I also wish they did more of a quality check on the chives they used as a topping because a few were far too chewy to digest. I still think the ramen has potential though if they let the pork bone broth simmer longer (I mean hours longer) and get more generous with the pork belly. I also tried a $ 3 King Dumpling, presumably a specialty bun, very thick with ground pork, Shiitake mushroom, sweet potato noodle, tofu, chives and Welsh onion (photo:
). It was pretty good though I wish it was warmed up for my consumption. I’ll come back in a couple of weeks and see how they evolve as I would like to see them thrive amid the seriously lacking food stands down there.
FOOD — 3 stars… still need to find their mojo on the broth and portion sizes but there is a hint of promise here
AMBIANCE — 3 stars… OMG, it’s the dungeon but it gives the place a touch of class… the greasy space needs it
SERVICE — 2.5 stars… very tentative right now, more savvy needed
TOTAL — 3 stars… ramen in the dungeon… get the word out but give them some time

This a new ramen place that took over the Vietnamese place, I think. I normally go to the international food court to get bibimbap at BibimBar. I ordered the Miso ramen with kakuni and a boiled egg all for $ 13.XX. It took me a few minutes to realized that they forgot my boiled egg so I had to go back and ask for it. The broth was okay, not amazing. The kakuni (pork belly) was good though. The yolk inside the boiled was run semi runny and boiled, which I liked. I probably wouldn’t go back to eat the ramen. It’s pretty pricey for the quality and taste. I’ll stick to BibimBar, at least I know I get a lot of food for less than $ 10!

The place is brand new, they might still be making adjustments. I had a Miso ramen + 1 egg. Overall soup is good, not overly strong or salty but still flavorful. The noodles are nice and chewy (these are the thick ones). The miso soup comes with 1 slice of thick pork, nice and soft and good flavor but there is only 1 slice. Slightly disappointed that there is no green onion or egg, these would be another $ 1 add-​on. It is 9.50 + 1 for egg, tax included. Currently is cash only but should have debit/​credit access in the next few days.
Did not try their dumplings, so will have to try it another time.