Oidon

This is a hole in the wall place in the middle of downtown San Mateo, secluded on the second floor of a supermarket. I ordered the spicy tuna roll and the Stamina ramen (garlic flavored broth with stir-​fried seafood). I enjoyed the sushi roll, but the ramen… yuck. By seafood they mean a few pieces of tiny squid and one mini shrimp. And the strips of carrot and squares of lettuce look like a salad was mixed in there. It was too salty for me to finish it. BUT I did see several other customers order the bento box and I heard them say it was good. Maybe I will return to try it.

This place looks nice, but the quality is the worst ever. The Wasabi was old, Udon was small, The menu described special sauce in Udon, but there wasn’t any special sauce in it. They told me the soba was OUT AFTER 20 MINS SINCE I ORDERED. The food took about 40 mins, and it was awful. Sushi was alright, but I would not pay the price for that quality. Worst, worst, worst.

Was a favorite of my wife and I for lunch.
We were last there a month ago. The wait staff were two new people. The waiter was unsure how to take our order. We waited a considerable amount of time for our food to be served. We were charged for food ordered but not delivered to our table.
Not recommended, but hopefully will improve.

Service good. Ramen noodles were meh. Served super warm which is fine but I think they do that to mask the taste. Broth had a salty taste but not much else. Serving were very large. With all the great Japanese food options in San mateo not sure why I would go back here.

It’s only open for a short time and the outside is very unassuming, but the food is very authentic and delicious. Can’t go wrong with the bento boxes or the curry.

The best Japanese food made, served and enjoyed under skylight on second floor! :)

Came here on a Saturday for lunch. Ordered a bento with pork cutlet and a champon ramen. The ramen was too salty. The pork cutlet was undercook. Not authentic. There are way better option out there.

Came here for lunch on a Sunday. Ordered a zaru udon and sat at the counter. They give you free edamame.
The service was fine, and the udon was fine as well.
Next time I’d like to try the champon since that seems like their signature dish.
There aren’t any noodle places in San Mateo that aren’t all about ramen, so maybe this place could be it. I always wished there could be a great udon/​soba place!

Been coming here for years, even when it was two tables with manga magazines at the back of the supermarket before the fire: food is always good and fresh, prices reasonable for lunch. Did dinner once and it was a «different, pricey» restaurant at night (don’t know if that’s still the case). Eat here at least once a month especially if I’m by myself and can sit at the bar. Like the bento box choices. Tonkatsu is awesome

Charming little noodle shop
Tucked away upstairs above the japanese supermarket, this place is hard to find, but surprisingly charming. The place has very odd opening hours, so you have to catch it when it’s open. During lunch hours, the place is surprisingly Packed! Pretty sure the folks who visit are regulars since this place is so damn hard to find.
The ramen quality is ok. Huge portions, but nothing special in terms of quality. A lot of meat and ingredients though, which is nice. They also give you edamame for free at the beginning which is nice. The sushi looks kind of weird «round instead of rectangular», but it’s very tasty and fresh, so definitely worth ordering
The wait staff there is also very very friendly.
Definitely look out for this place and visit if you have a chance

おいどん is always good no matter when I come. Their katsu curry is some of the best I have had. Their service is the best as well. They are very observant and quick to get the stuff that is wanted. I highly recommend おいどん to everybody. Everyone can find something that they can enjoy.

I love love their Chanpon ramen! I always ask for it to be split in to two bowls because the portions are huge.

Yakisoba was much better there than takeout. Portions were bigger and flavor was nice. Takeout was small and drenched with sauce.
5 stars for dine in Yakisoba and 1 star for takeout.

The three of us had a very enjoyable lunch today.
It’s a small place that is on the second floor of a steep staircase. The young lady hostessing and the young male waiter were very friendly with great personalities.
We had two bento boxes (one chicken and one salmon) and a seafood ramen. Everything ran about $ 30 –pretty darned reasonable.
My ramen was gigantic! a huge bowl filled with a rich tasty broth, a mountain of noodles, a mountain of vegetables and a small amount of seafod, I saw some surimi, some squid, a few mussels, and not a lot else. Nothing substantial like shrimp or scallops. But it was filling and delicious.
We didn’t order any beers, but saw they only cost $ 3.50 — that’s anther reason to like this place.

With a place somewhat hidden, I recommend their ramen. Although, I tried their «Omelette Rice» dish and well it’s an okay dish to split with a friend or two. I like goin’ here b/​c of the music and niceness of workers there!

This place is a little chaotic. The first time I went there I ordered the Tonkotsu ramen. The meat to ramen ratio was very well done and the soup was sufficiency flavorful.
The 2^nd time i was there I ordered the champion and I can understand non-​meat eaters loving it.
The 3^rd time I was there, I ordered the Tonkotsu ramen again and it was still good but the meat the noodle ratio was off. There just wasn’t enough meat and the soup had a little less flavor.
Overall, I like this place and am planning to go again in the future.

Great noodle house for lunch. Everyone always gets the Champon ($ 9) – ramen in a salty pork broth with cabbage, seafood. It’s great, but there are other great options too…
I’m currently digging the Seafood Nabe Yaki ($ 9). It’s almost as good as the Nabe Yaki I fell in love with 10 years ago at Hotei, San Francisco. Oidon makes it with a lovely, light broth and always puts in a nice chunck of salmon, some muscles, etc. It’s a nice, lighter alternative to Champon.
My guy recently tried the spicy ramen. Basically, it’s Champon with quite an after burn.
I totally appreciate that Oidon is open 7 days a week for lunch, until 2:30 PM. It’s part of the reason I started coming in here the first place – Izukya Mai (which also Champon) is only open for lunch 4 days per week.
I’ve also never had to wait for a table or spot at the bar at Oidon. They also serve edamame, complimentary to every table. Keep up the good work guys!

Order the Champon Ramen.
1. Huge bowl
2. Salt flavor — I usually don’t get salt because I think it’s too salty, but this was actually good
3. bunch of cabbage and bean sprouts
4. FREE boiled egg (when I asked for it) and FREE edamame!
5. Only open for lunch
Just an OK ramen place in my book. And this is #13 Ramen Bay Area restaurants in my list.

This place isn’t bad, but it doesn’t compare to ramen from ramen dojo/​santa ramen. if you’re not a fan of thin, soggy ramen, don’t order the ramen. (i ordered the tonkatsu ramen)
the broth was nicely flavored, BUT there was SO much bean sprouts! i literally created a separate dish for myself when i picked them out and placed them on a different plate. and i’m not a big fan of ginger, so i received an unpleasant surprise when i saw that they added ginger in my ramen without my consent. the pork was a little tough… the more i write this, the more i feel that i didn’t like my meal all the much.
However, the service was amazing, which makes up for my not-​so-​exciting ramen.

Great place for a quick lunch. Haven’t visited this place in many years. I think it has changed ownerships at least twice, and in the past it was open for dinner (no more). Originally owned by the Suruki supermarket.
I do like this little somewhat hidden place. My rating is 3 stars for A-​okay, because there are many nearby Japanese restaurants that are better. It’s located in the 2^nd floor, take the stairs to the left of the entrance.
It’s a cute little space,
with only a few tables
and a few counter seats. Bathrooms are in the back.
Service was very friendly, u get complimentary edamame soon after ordering.
The cold weather called for a hearty bowl of champon ($ 9),
plus an age (fried) shumai appetizer ($ 4.50).
This seafood noodle soup was not as robust with ingredients as the versions at Izakaya Mai or Ringerhut, but it did have very good flavor. I recognized the little shumai as being the frozen kind I’ve bought many times at asian markets, for half that price. Still, the hot food hit the spot. So I was very satisfied with my meal.
Hours:
Mon-​Sat 11am-2:30pm