Totoro Ramen

We randomly chose to come here to meet with a friend and really enjoyed the experience. We order through a tablet, and the drinks and food came quickly. The servers were nice, and filled out waters promptly when we were close to finishing our glass. I ordered the Tonkatsu Ramen and it was good. Broth was rich and flavorful. Definitely, a great place to get ramen on a cold day. Though, I do wish we get a little more food for the price.

We have been here a few times and got delivery once. The ramen has great flavor and the noodles are good too. Even the kale noodles in the broth less ramen are great. It has become the kids' favorite and parking is a cinch. The Safeway next to it as a bit of a bonus too; very convenient.

Jeff Ho

Totoro Ramen is very good for San Mateo standards. It is a good attempt from a non-Japanese ownership. I can tell because I've been going to Japan since the 1990's. We had their chicken karaage $10, black garlic ramen $18 and a tonkotsu ramen $18. The chicken karaage was good because of the light batter, crunchiness and with the two aioli sauces, which made it more delicious. We would order this again in a heartbeat. Although they did give us the oldest wedge of lemon ever with no juice inside. The broth for the ramen were rich and creamy with a lot of depth. The broth flavor was very good for the black garlic ramen and not so much for the tonkotsu ramen. The tonkotsu broth seemed weaker and not well balanced. It was the opposite for the black garlic ramen where two cloves of garlic were on top and tasted divine. As for the noodles themselves, this fell short. It was missing that kansui consistency that I love. Service is as expected for a fast pace ramen restaurant. In terms of ambiance, this might not be the best place to have a conversation. It was loud at dinner time. Not the fault of the restaurant, but the tables are right next to one another. These annoying tech older bros were talking very loud about defunct technologies as if they were still relevant.

Albert

Loved our experience here! The food was fantastic and the service was top-notch. * Food: The ramen is delicious and packed with flavor. We got the veggie and curry ramen and would recommend both. Great to see clear vegetarian and vegan options available. * Ordering & Service: You order from a tablet at your table, which is convenient and lets you customize your bowl extensively. The staff is very friendly and our food came out fast. A nice perk is the free hot tea and water you can add to your order. * Price: It's pretty standard for prices these days. You're paying for high-quality ingredients and a great meal. Definitely recommend giving them a try!

Wei-Ai Tai

Cute little ramen restaurant, tucked away in the Woodlake Shopping Plaza in San Mateo. The Agedashi tofu was delicious and perfectly cooked. The ramen soup broth was tasty and full of flavors, with a well-proportioned amount of noodles and pork slices. Fast and friendly service. Large free parking lot.

Darren Kuo

Solid bowl of ramen. I got the new curry ramen. Noodle: chewy and right thickness. Broth: rich and bright taste Meat: good crunchy pork cutlets, lightly salted goes well with the broth. Temperature: just right and eat immediately. Spicy level 2: fits my preferences Misc: plenty of variety. egg, bamboo shoots, earwood mushroom, corn. Console to order. Save a lot of time.

Brian Bulkowski

Solid option in an area overflowing with great ramen. More convenient for many people than the downtown places, and a nice ordering system. Interesting broth choices like curry, also uson noodles. Won't change your life but will give you a satisfying meal for a reasonable price

David Nguyen (Duck)

Great ramen and large portions. Service is fast and friendly. You order via tablets on the tables. Ramen noodles was soft and curry broth had the right spices. The dining room can get hot on sunny days.

Gabby Lara

I was craving ramen for a bit. Google brought me here and I’m so glad it did. I dined in and was greeted very friendly. I ordered the miso ramen ($14ish). It was a pretty heavy portion and with so much flavor. I loved it. The ramen itself wasn’t too runny or thick…perfect consistency. The pork belly was done so well, it easily came off my chopsticks. I would come back and try another dish just to try another dish. Great service! **NOTE: make sure you write down the EXACT total of your ENTIRE check. They added just total as a tip and doubled my entire total.**

Mei Fu Lee

I found this place on yelp and decided to come here. It's located in an outdoor shopping center, so there was plenty of parking. Inside is pretty small, but service is really fast. We were seated in about 15 minutes. We ordered everything through the iPad, including water. We ordered the chicken katsu, tonkotsu ramen, chasu don, edamame, and miso ramen. The edamame and chicken katsu came quickly. The chicken katsu was amazing. It was breaded and fried lightly. It wasn't oily and was a great appetizer. The chasu don tasted great; the sauce went really well with the rice. The ramen came last and tasted great. The noodles were cooked perfectly. We would definitely come back again.

Derek Wong (Dadonwong)

Good choices for the ramen, broth and side options. Place was clean and decorated nicely and staff was very friendly amd helpful. Would recommend.

Christina Jain

New favorite ramen place in the peninsula! I love the easy-to-use tablets at the tables for ordering. Chashu pork in the ramen was notably delicious: juicy, fat slices with a pork to fat ratio similar to pork belly. Favorites were miso ramen, ika geso (fried squid legs), and chicken katsu. The miso ramen has a surprisingly rich and tasty broth that tastes almost like tonkatsu broth. So glad we found this spot!!!

Richard Huang

We randomly chose to come here to meet with a friend and really enjoyed the experience. We order through a tablet, and the drinks and food came quickly. The servers were nice, and filled out waters promptly when we were close to finishing our glass. I ordered the Tonkatsu Ramen and it was good. Broth was rich and flavorful. Definitely, a great place to get ramen on a cold day. Though, I do wish we get a little more food for the price.

Michael W

I was really excited to find another solid ramen option nearby. I find it really hard to find a place with a rich (not too salty) broth and excellent chashu pork, and Totoro really nails that combo which is the most important thing for me. I’m not too picky on the noodles but they didn’t stand out positively or negatively for me. Ordering on the iPad was easy as was calling over a server or the check. We had to wait about 10-15 minutes at 6:30 on a Friday, but it got busier once we were seated. We also definitely appreciated that it was in a plaza with its own parking lot, which is a bit of a rarity if you want ramen in San Mateo/Burlingame.

Alvaro Hoyos

We have been here a few times and got delivery once. The ramen has great flavor and the noodles are good too. Even the kale noodles in the broth less ramen are great. It has become the kids' favorite and parking is a cinch. The Safeway next to it as a bit of a bonus too; very convenient.

Andrew Wang

Amazing food at an amazing price point. The service at this new restaurant was completely above and beyond. To start, the tablet service to order food was very seamless; when prompted, the waiter would immediately be there to address any concern, to which there were none. Once the order was made on the tablet, the food arrived with haste. The ramen was especially stunning, although I do like my eggs a little on the runnier side. The broth was so smooth, not to salty and had all the distinct flavor profiles of a house broth. The pork was very tender to my surprise, and the noodles had that insatiable bite that had me coming at it again and again, until the bowl was empty. The rice bowl was very good as well, the price point of it is the main attraction there. One small concern with the usage of the tablet system is how it impedes on the dining experience, especially because the space is already so small in terms of square footage, having the tablet mounted over the table impedes upon the dining experience, especially when it is a on a table for a party of two. But in hindsight, the arm of the tablet can easily be adjusted so I don’t think it is a concern at all. I think this restaurant really takes an interesting twist on instead of using technology to make eating alone easier, it chooses to make the social aspect of eating easier, as you no longer have waiters breathing down your neck, but when they are required for a quick refill of tea, they are right there (without much ado). This place got off on the right foot and it contributes a much needed unique flair to the newly renovated Woodlake Shopping Centre. I highly encourage anyone, whether you're on a budget, or frequent the likes of Espetus to try this place, you will not regret it! 5/5

Everything we ordered was very flavorful! Tonkotsu ramen, udon, chicken katsu and takoyaki.This place is waaaay better than some other hyped trendy places I’ve been.

Get there early. This places fills up. We tried tokatusu ramen, curry ramen, black pepper ramen, spicy karage and regular karage. All delicious. Careful of getting it spicy. It has a lot of kick. Spicy karage is more sweet than spicy, but very delicious sauce. 5/5 earned.

Ricardo Mamiya

Everything we ordered was very flavorful! Tonkotsu ramen, udon, chicken katsu and takoyaki.This place is waaaay better than some other hyped trendy places I’ve been.

Tasty ramen. Restaurant is at a street mall near Safeway and other merchants so parking lot can be busy at times. No reservations accepted for small groups. There’s only 2 pieces of chunky meat but not a lot of toppings, still it was tasty and the noodles itself is good. We also have the mochi ice cream and we like it. Service was quick and staff were accommodating.

Second time visit to this ramen shop. I like the black garlic pork ramen. This time, we also ordered chicken karaage. The karaage is just ok. The black garlick pork ramen is my favorite. The noodle is cooked nicely, and the broth is rich. The meat is tender. The edamame is also yummy.

But the portion on the order with lots of tasty soup but th noodle portion was too small.

Each table has its tablet to order from so not much service is needed. The black garlic ramen broth was rich and creamy without being too salty. The soft boiled egg was prepped right and not cold like many other restaurants. The noodle wasn't the best and lack texture but overall the ramen was good. Parking is plenty

Dharma M

Second time visit to this ramen shop. I like the black garlic pork ramen. This time, we also ordered chicken karaage. The karaage is just ok. The black garlick pork ramen is my favorite. The noodle is cooked nicely, and the broth is rich. The meat is tender. The edamame is also yummy.

Matthew Sum

But the portion on the order with lots of tasty soup but th noodle portion was too small.

Jason Y

Each table has its tablet to order from so not much service is needed. The black garlic ramen broth was rich and creamy without being too salty. The soft boiled egg was prepped right and not cold like many other restaurants. The noodle wasn't the best and lack texture but overall the ramen was good. Parking is plenty

first time here we order our food via ipad （you can also order water or tea ） fried chicken is good we like the spicy mayo sauce（i ask for extra but didnt get it） the geso is a little bit dry for noodle we try the garlic ramen i like the spicy one my hus also try the spicy pork don which is also too dry～ maybe we will come back service… he just serve the food and water and didnt ask anything else didnt check on us

I am not a big fan of ramen. This new restaurant poped up. I thought I can give it a chance. The place is not very big. When we went in, the manager greeted us with smile. He showed us how to use its tablet to order. Selections are not a lot. I ordered light salt version which tasted better. The pork was thin and dry. Volume was not big. Guys will get hungry if you only order ramen. Service was fast and it is easy to order.

dorwin T

first time here we order our food via ipad （you can also order water or tea ） fried chicken is good we like the spicy mayo sauce（i ask for extra but didnt get it） the geso is a little bit dry for noodle we try the garlic ramen i like the spicy one my hus also try the spicy pork don which is also too dry～ maybe we will come back service… he just serve the food and water and didnt ask anything else didnt check on us

Brittney Pan

I am not a big fan of ramen. This new restaurant poped up. I thought I can give it a chance. The place is not very big. When we went in, the manager greeted us with smile. He showed us how to use its tablet to order. Selections are not a lot. I ordered light salt version which tasted better. The pork was thin and dry. Volume was not big. Guys will get hungry if you only order ramen. Service was fast and it is easy to order.