Marugame Udon

It’s not about the atmosphere and you grab your food and go sit - but the Udon!!!!!! OMG - dove in and loved it and forgot to take pictures of the food!!!! I just couldn’t wait!

My goodness this place is good. I live close to a few places like this in LA and Marugame surpasses my neighborhood. Service is friendly and efficient. Arthur the manager keeps it all running smoothly.

Great place to make a quick stop for fresh delicious Udon noodles with tasty broth. This is one of my favorite noodle restaurants and the price is very reasonable.

Celia helped us out knowing our options and providing us with an excellence experience! The other workers were great too from the udon guy, the duo working the initial orders, and the rest of the workers with cleaning and cooking. It’s a great way to get food, I love the cafeteria style, efficient. I’ll be coming back for more, especially for my favorite, the Nikutama! 🗣️‼️💕

I tried Marugame Udon in Japan last year and i loved the consept and their Udon. I was worried that the US branch was going to dissapoint but i am happy to see they did a great job. The udon is one of the best i tried and their tendon (fried food) are crispy and savory! This place has become one of my favorite restaurant and a must visit place if you live in San Diego.

This place is awesome. Rich broth. Tender meat. Incredible staff. Allan the store manager always goes above and beyond for the customers. 5/17 the gentleman working the dining area helped out a little girl carrying her tray and guided the family to the table. My only wish would be for a more robust condiment bar. Keep up the good work team !

If you love udon this is the place to go! Setup like a well oiled machine. Long lines go by very fast and this location has plenty of seating inside and out. Food is amazing any option you pick will be good depending on your mood. You want soupy, saucy, creamy, or no sauce! There’s an option on the menu for you. My go to is the Nikutama with a piece of big chicken katsu. Extra green onions!

Best udon spot in San Diego, if not all of socal. Fresh made noodles every second. Creamy delicious broth. Perfect tempura. Highly recommend!

Fantastic udon! The fresh noodles are wonderful, and the broths are amazing! Very busy, so be prepared to wait in line. But it goes fast. Great place!

This is our favorite udon noodle in all of San Diego. I love the flavor and the quality. Worth the drive from us because we live 25 min away. We always come back at least once a week.

Incredible food and amazing service! We had to wait just a little bit for the noodles to be made and were fine having fresh noodles. To compensate for our time they paid for our meal! It was extremely kind! Definitely coming back! 😊

The Udon was delicious! The tempura awesome! The curry was more or less ok, not much of a taste. The chicken Katsu was ok, but a little bit too greasy. But the noodle and the kabocha/sweet potato were amazing! Even though had a big line it was quite quick! Totally worth it!

Awesome homemade Udon noodles! We always get the most popular with the Creamy Tongatsu, large with extra egg. There’s a tempura topping bar that is excellent- add-ons! Will always come here to UtC for these noodles!

I walked past this place so many times before but unfortunately I’ve already gone to fill my stomach somewhere else. I finally made it, twice, and I’ve got to say I love this place. It’s just sooooo GOOOD!! You can watch them prepare your food and it’s satisfying then you get to devour it is even more satisfying. The thick udon noodles and beef brisket is very savory then you take a bite of the tempura that just melts in your mouth. Yum!! Not your usual type of Japanese ramen. You’re going to have to wait in line tho, they obviously get super busy.

We had such a wonderful experience at Marugame Udon! The food is absolutely delicious, and what impressed me most is how the kitchen is right in front of you, so you can see how clean and well-organized everything is. I especially want to thank Alejandro Corrales for his patience in introducing the different noodle options and recommending the traditional beef udon. It was perfect! My family and I enjoyed every bite and we’ll definitely be coming back next week. Highly recommended!

All the foods are good here. I have not tried anything I did not like. Service here is very efficient. Even when there is a line it is definitely worth the wait. They had all the appropriate sauces for all dishes they had and it was very clean. Staff are so helpful and pleasant. Definitely a go to in San Diego if you haven’t been!

Flavorful Tomatama curry udon and crispy shrimp. The line might look long but it moves pretty fast. My food totaled $23 (drink, shrimp, udon).

We LOVED Marugame in Hawaii and when we found out there was one in San Diego we were ecstatic! The noodles are a perfect texture and the broths in both of our bowls were amazing. Good portion for the prices and they offer a ton of different tempura items. The shrimp and sweet potato tempura were my favorites. Perfectly breaded. The only thing I was disappointed by was that they do not offer Spam musubi at this location like in Hawaii. I was looking forward to it. All in all would highly recommend if you are a noodle person.

Came here on a Sunday night and there was a line out the door that seemed like there were 30 people in front of our party, but it went by pretty fast (~20 minutes from stepping in line to sitting down with my bowl). The staff is nice and super efficient with their service. The squid tempura was average, but the noodles were perfect and all the broths we tried were absolutely delicious! There's also a bar where you can add more spice and sauce if you need to. Great experience overall!

I got the beef nikutami and gyoza and was very happy with my meal. It was my first time here and the food was delicious. The broth was a curry base but not spicy at all, just had the perfect rich flavor and a little thicker than a normal dashi. The beef with onions was sweet and tender. The gyoza were just okay I wish they had more flavor and that they made their own sauces instead of the pack of gyoza sauce.

We came on Saturday, after 3pm so the line wasn’t long at all. The line moves fast and very helpful if looking for available table. Love to come back

I have been wanting to come here for so long and I'm glad I finally got to before I moved! Came in starving really needing some soup so we stopped here after seeing a movie and it was pretty good udon. When we walked it there was anime on the walls and bags of rice everywhere which made the place feel really authentic and they said "Ohayou gozaimasu" when you walk in. The servers took our order right away and were more than patient with us while we figured out what we wanted. We ordered the #1 Nikutama, the #6 Tonkotsu and the #22 Gyudon. The Nikutama had a perfect broth, perfectly cooked udon and a beautiful egg on top that made for a perfect bowl of udon. The Tonkotsu was also very good with tender cooked chasau pork. It also had a soy marinated egg which was a nice touch. And the Nikutama was also tender, perfectly cooked and well seasoned steak over rice and sauce on top. The flavor of everything mixed into the rice so nice making everything well balanced. All three dishes had tempora flakes on top which was not described on the menu, nor was it in the pictures on the menu. They got soggy after 5 minutes so the dishes definitely didnt need them. We also got the tempora squid and shrimp. They had a selection of tempura cooked appetizers which was nice too, both were cooked perfectly. Overall, Marugame Udon is a really authentic Japanese Udon restaurant and worth the visit!

Amazing experience from start to finish. The food was delicious, the service outstanding, and the prices very fair. Everyone was friendly, especially Miguel, the manager—he was incredibly kind, helpful, and welcoming. I’ll definitely be coming back. Highly recommended!

Oh my udon/gyudones!!!! Now I know why there’s always a long line during lunch time whenever we’re at UTC. First one on line since we planned it that way to have our early lunch right after opening and not to deal with long wait/line. Ordered: Tonkotsu - pork broth which is rich and creamy the way we like it. Ton of umami flavor! Thick and chewy udon noodles, two slices of tender chasu pork, with tasty miso ground pork plus perfectly ajitama egg makes this dish deliciously great! 5/5 Gyudon - this is the closest to Japan’s Matsuya or Yoshinoya’s gyudon flavor. Tender thin sweet beef sliced with black pepper sauce. Also ordered soft boiled egg that added more flavor and texture. 5/5 Side dishes: Shrimp/ sweet potato tempura - lightly coated tempura batter cook crispy and golden brown with tempura sauce available by the utensil counter. Staff were all welcoming. Enjoyed watching prepping our udon noddles and the rest of our order. Highly recommended! Will absolutely coming back!

P. Tran

This place is awesome. Rich broth. Tender meat. Incredible staff. Allan the store manager always goes above and beyond for the customers. 5/17 the gentleman working the dining area helped out a little girl carrying her tray and guided the family to the table. My only wish would be for a more robust condiment bar. Keep up the good work team !

Ryan K.

I tried Marugame Udon in Japan last year and i loved the consept and their Udon. I was worried that the US branch was going to dissapoint but i am happy to see they did a great job. The udon is one of the best i tried and their tendon (fried food) are crispy and savory! This place has become one of my favorite restaurant and a must visit place if you live in San Diego.

Mi O

We came on Saturday, after 3pm so the line wasn’t long at all. The line moves fast and very helpful if looking for available table. Love to come back

Christopher U

Oh my udon/gyudones!!!! Now I know why there’s always a long line during lunch time whenever we’re at UTC. First one on line since we planned it that way to have our early lunch right after opening and not to deal with long wait/line. Ordered: Tonkotsu - pork broth which is rich and creamy the way we like it. Ton of umami flavor! Thick and chewy udon noodles, two slices of tender chasu pork, with tasty miso ground pork plus perfectly ajitama egg makes this dish deliciously great! 5/5 Gyudon - this is the closest to Japan’s Matsuya or Yoshinoya’s gyudon flavor. Tender thin sweet beef sliced with black pepper sauce. Also ordered soft boiled egg that added more flavor and texture. 5/5 Side dishes: Shrimp/ sweet potato tempura - lightly coated tempura batter cook crispy and golden brown with tempura sauce available by the utensil counter. Staff were all welcoming. Enjoyed watching prepping our udon noddles and the rest of our order. Highly recommended! Will absolutely coming back!

heclau Dian

I walked past this place so many times before but unfortunately I’ve already gone to fill my stomach somewhere else. I finally made it, twice, and I’ve got to say I love this place. It’s just sooooo GOOOD!! You can watch them prepare your food and it’s satisfying then you get to devour it is even more satisfying. The thick udon noodles and beef brisket is very savory then you take a bite of the tempura that just melts in your mouth. Yum!! Not your usual type of Japanese ramen. You’re going to have to wait in line tho, they obviously get super busy.

Shanbo Li

We had such a wonderful experience at Marugame Udon! The food is absolutely delicious, and what impressed me most is how the kitchen is right in front of you, so you can see how clean and well-organized everything is. I especially want to thank Alejandro Corrales for his patience in introducing the different noodle options and recommending the traditional beef udon. It was perfect! My family and I enjoyed every bite and we’ll definitely be coming back next week. Highly recommended!

Bryan Gaa

All the foods are good here. I have not tried anything I did not like. Service here is very efficient. Even when there is a line it is definitely worth the wait. They had all the appropriate sauces for all dishes they had and it was very clean. Staff are so helpful and pleasant. Definitely a go to in San Diego if you haven’t been!

kaitlin jorgenson

I got the beef nikutami and gyoza and was very happy with my meal. It was my first time here and the food was delicious. The broth was a curry base but not spicy at all, just had the perfect rich flavor and a little thicker than a normal dashi. The beef with onions was sweet and tender. The gyoza were just okay I wish they had more flavor and that they made their own sauces instead of the pack of gyoza sauce.

Aika Kolya

Flavorful Tomatama curry udon and crispy shrimp. The line might look long but it moves pretty fast. My food totaled $23 (drink, shrimp, udon).

Daniela Alvarado

I have been wanting to come here for so long and I'm glad I finally got to before I moved! Came in starving really needing some soup so we stopped here after seeing a movie and it was pretty good udon. When we walked it there was anime on the walls and bags of rice everywhere which made the place feel really authentic and they said "Ohayou gozaimasu" when you walk in. The servers took our order right away and were more than patient with us while we figured out what we wanted. We ordered the #1 Nikutama, the #6 Tonkotsu and the #22 Gyudon. The Nikutama had a perfect broth, perfectly cooked udon and a beautiful egg on top that made for a perfect bowl of udon. The Tonkotsu was also very good with tender cooked chasau pork. It also had a soy marinated egg which was a nice touch. And the Nikutama was also tender, perfectly cooked and well seasoned steak over rice and sauce on top. The flavor of everything mixed into the rice so nice making everything well balanced. All three dishes had tempora flakes on top which was not described on the menu, nor was it in the pictures on the menu. They got soggy after 5 minutes so the dishes definitely didnt need them. We also got the tempora squid and shrimp. They had a selection of tempura cooked appetizers which was nice too, both were cooked perfectly. Overall, Marugame Udon is a really authentic Japanese Udon restaurant and worth the visit!

Yessenia Ramirez

Amazing experience from start to finish. The food was delicious, the service outstanding, and the prices very fair. Everyone was friendly, especially Miguel, the manager—he was incredibly kind, helpful, and welcoming. I’ll definitely be coming back. Highly recommended!

Kara Van Tassel

We LOVED Marugame in Hawaii and when we found out there was one in San Diego we were ecstatic! The noodles are a perfect texture and the broths in both of our bowls were amazing. Good portion for the prices and they offer a ton of different tempura items. The shrimp and sweet potato tempura were my favorites. Perfectly breaded. The only thing I was disappointed by was that they do not offer Spam musubi at this location like in Hawaii. I was looking forward to it. All in all would highly recommend if you are a noodle person.

Thuc Nhan Tran

Came here on a Sunday night and there was a line out the door that seemed like there were 30 people in front of our party, but it went by pretty fast (~20 minutes from stepping in line to sitting down with my bowl). The staff is nice and super efficient with their service. The squid tempura was average, but the noodles were perfect and all the broths we tried were absolutely delicious! There's also a bar where you can add more spice and sauce if you need to. Great experience overall!

Great restaurant that I come back to time and time again because of the flavor and value. If you're craving udon or tempura, this place is your best choice. Even with a long line, you get in pretty quickly and get your food just as fast. My go-to order is a large BK with a shrimp tempura and potato croquette. The flavors here are strong yet gentle, just the way they should be. The textures are correct too. I've never had a bad meal/experience here. This place will definitely will stay a part of my restaurant rotation.

Delicious udon!! They also serve fried shrimp, egg, sausage, and squid!

First time at this location as I’ve only been to Costa Mesa spot. It’s consistent with the exception of very SMALL fried chicken pieces. Wow! About 1/2 the size than OC location. Using smaller portions for same price is a bad recipe for no repeat business. Udon was good as usual. Not pictured is zucchini tempura. Service was ok, nothing special.

I stopped by for a late dinner and was immediately met with a long line outside. This place is very popular so I was excited to try it for the first time. While waiting in line you can see the cooks making the udon noodles. You can tell everything is freshly made and the staff are friendly. We were a party of four and we managed to find seating inside despite the crowd. I got the ‘Tan Tan’ noddles which were a little greasy and heavy for me but still had plenty of flavor. Next time I will try a lighter broth.

This Udon chain restaurant was very popular at UTC. Fortunately, we found a table during lunch time. They served fast and friendly. There were always staffs cleaning the dining room. Udons and tempuras were freshly made and it was interesting to watch how they made them in the line. The dish size was a little small for me. We tried spicy tantan noodle and beef curry udon. Udons and tempuras tasted fresh and chewy, but Tantan noodle booth tasted weird. Beef curry one was authentic but they might add too much sugar in it.

I love udon and I’m happy that i gave this place a try. It’s a bit confusing about how to place an order when i walked in lol. We ordered #1 nikutama and #5 creamy broth. The flavor was good for both. The noodle texture was chewy which was good. The only issue is that there’s very little soup. I like my noodle soup with soup! I hope they’ll add more soup next time when i visit.

Japanese Udon! Found this Japanese udon restaurant at UTC mall. The noodles and broth were delicious. We had the Kitsune and Creamy broth udon. Both Their main broth is a fish stock which was great. They had staff help you find seating inside the restaurant. Can’t wait to return to try more menu options.

Visited Marugame Udon at Westfield UTC the tempura was super crispy and fresh, and the udon itself was flavorful and satisfying. The only downside was that it was a bit too salty for my taste, and the place was really loud when I visited, so it was hard to have a conversation. Still, the food quality was great overall and definitely worth a try if you’re in the area! 🍜

The noodles were bouncy and had good texture. The line was long but went quickly. The tempura stuff was my favorite part. Overall good value and food. But the meat was kind of too fatty. I get the hype for fresh made udon noodles though, definitely better than the packaged type.

California Calamansi

Japanese Udon! Found this Japanese udon restaurant at UTC mall. The noodles and broth were delicious. We had the Kitsune and Creamy broth udon. Both Their main broth is a fish stock which was great. They had staff help you find seating inside the restaurant. Can’t wait to return to try more menu options.

AJ

Visited Marugame Udon at Westfield UTC the tempura was super crispy and fresh, and the udon itself was flavorful and satisfying. The only downside was that it was a bit too salty for my taste, and the place was really loud when I visited, so it was hard to have a conversation. Still, the food quality was great overall and definitely worth a try if you’re in the area! 🍜

AJ C

The noodles were bouncy and had good texture. The line was long but went quickly. The tempura stuff was my favorite part. Overall good value and food. But the meat was kind of too fatty. I get the hype for fresh made udon noodles though, definitely better than the packaged type.

We stopped by Marugame Udon at UTC for late lunch on the weekend. There was a small line outside the restaurant. The line moved relatively fast and we were able to get our food within 15 minutes. We got a table inside. There wasn’t an abundance of inside seating but there’s outside seating. We ordered curry nikutama and tonkotsu udon bowls and an order of the mixed tempura. We were disappointed that this restaurant overcooked the udon and not enough soup in the bowls. The soup base for the curry nikutamx was very sweet and the tonkotsu soup lacked favors and not the umami bomb we were expecting. This location is definitely not the same as the South Coast Plaza restaurant in terms of food quality. Perhaps this chain restaurant at UTC will do whatever is needed to improve in the near future or we will not come back for a return visit.

+6

I ordered the creamy broth udon, but it felt like I was eating noodles in broth without much else because the meat was very fatty, which I didn't enjoy. I don't plan to return, as the broth was overly salty. It is not worth the price.

The udon noodles are very good. I've had a lot better for a lot less money (and that's in the U.S. and not just Japan). I honestly didn't care for the broth. It was extremely sweet, probably due to the caramelized onions/shallots used. Considering the model is cafeteria style and self-service, the overall price point was also fairly high. So all in all, Marugame was neither the best nor the worst. I wouldn't go out of my way to eat there again.

Warning: If you put tempura in the broth It will get soggy! Heading that warning, the food is good but leaves some desired. The Tan Tan broth and udon is good but the ground soy has a monotonous taste and texture. I would like much more veggies too.

We stopped for a quick bowl of ramen because the wait at DinTaiFun was over 3 hours long. The line here can stretch but it moves fast. After ordering and paying, finding an empty table to seat was another obstacle because all tables were occupied. Foodwise, everything was good. Udon, tempura, and rich creamy broth.

Natalia Madrid

I ordered the creamy broth udon, but it felt like I was eating noodles in broth without much else because the meat was very fatty, which I didn't enjoy. I don't plan to return, as the broth was overly salty. It is not worth the price.

D J

We stopped for a quick bowl of ramen because the wait at DinTaiFun was over 3 hours long. The line here can stretch but it moves fast. After ordering and paying, finding an empty table to seat was another obstacle because all tables were occupied. Foodwise, everything was good. Udon, tempura, and rich creamy broth.

Kris Lichter

The udon noodles are very good. I've had a lot better for a lot less money (and that's in the U.S. and not just Japan). I honestly didn't care for the broth. It was extremely sweet, probably due to the caramelized onions/shallots used. Considering the model is cafeteria style and self-service, the overall price point was also fairly high. So all in all, Marugame was neither the best nor the worst. I wouldn't go out of my way to eat there again.

I love udon. Honestly though Marugame was a disappointment. The toppings came cold (pork and egg) and supposedly that’s how it’s served. The broth was barely warm and the noodles were overcooked. I asked for more broth if possible and it was a little bit warmer but the broth brought out wasn’t the same style. The girl helping was really nice at least but I gave up after that. We also got the croquettes and katsu which were super greasy and didn’t come with katsu sauce. We wanted to love here but unfortunately we didn’t even finish our food.

After shopping with my boyfriend, we went to eat udon here for lunch. I was looking forward to it because the reviews were so good, but tbh the instant udon sold at Ralphs is more delicious...

Kaylee

After shopping with my boyfriend, we went to eat udon here for lunch. I was looking forward to it because the reviews were so good, but tbh the instant udon sold at Ralphs is more delicious...