Mensho Tokyo is a popular ramen shop in Japan and this is their first location outside of Japan. Luckily, it’s located in San Francisco in the Tenderloin. When I was visiting for a week, a lot of my Instagram followers suggested I go to Mensho Tokyo SF. We were warned that there would be a long line up and should go right when they open, but we didn’t make it until around 7pm.
Since we didn’t have evening plans, we decided to just wait. If so many people were also waiting, it must be good right? It’s also Michelin recommended.
Interior
The space is small, so I can see why there isn’t that many seats, so I can see why there was such a long line up. We counted about 28 seats in here.
Menu
Enoki Mushroom Chips
Since we waited for so long, we wanted to make sure we ordered as much as we could to make it worth it. The enoki mushroom chips were more like enoki tempura. A good pairing if you have beer.
Oyster in Shoyu Dare Oil
There were a good amount of oysters submerged in the oil. It was good to snack on them as it was better than the canned smoked oysters.
Tori Paitan Ramen
This is their most popular ramen and it has a rich and creamy chicken broth, pork chashu, duck chashu, menma, kale, burdock, and katsuobushi sauce. We added an ajitama egg to it.
The duck was delicious and we think its been sous vide to get that nice colour and texture.
Tori Paitan Ramen (Double Chashu)
If you want some extra charshu, this option might be for you.
Spicy Tori Paitan Ramen
I went the spicy route and it was more of a medium spice level. It is made with a base of their rich and creamy chicken soup, pork chashu, menma, spicy jalapeno miso, cabbage, burdock, green onion and nuts. I also added the ajitama egg.
The egg was perfectly cooked so it looks like the golden sun inside. I found my bowl to be quite rich and salty. It was very difficult to drink all the broth without feeling for my waistline.
Final Thoughts
The ramen is good and unique for those who enjoy rich chicken broth. I personally found the broth to be way too rich for my personal preferences. Their chashu, duck and ajitama egg are done very well and love these.
I wouldn’t line up again for their ramen as there are other shops that appeal more to my tastes as well as being cheaper. With each bowl being close to $20 with auto gratuity, it was pricey.
Address:
672 Geary St, San Francisco
Website:
http://mensho.tokyo/