Ezogiku Noodle Cafe

I loved this place. I lived in Japan when I was really young, and the ramen brought it all back. I had the spicy pork broth ramen (sorry don’t remember the name) and I am still dreaming of it.

I should have walked home and gone to one of the amazing ramen places in my hood, but I hadn’t tried this place and wanted to add it to my ramen tour. At least I know to not go there again unless I don’t have much choice.
The place is a slacker ramen. Rather than fresh, interesting toppings, like typical ramen, this place serves it up with regular old teriyaki vegetable mix on top. The pork was okay. They do have chicken options which many other places don’t. The miso was bland but there is one positive here — they have hot miso paste at the table! Which is awesome.
All in all though, not the worst I’ve had, but definitely not the best. It’s not somewhere I’d chose to go to again.

My first review on Unilocal and I write it for the wrong location. ha…but this location across from the Vancouver Library is the one I frequent. 2 blocks from my work and one block from my hotel :)
I’m not usually a big fan of ramen but this is a place that I have to go at least once a week while I’m up during my weekly stays in Vancouver. I always order the P-​Toro ramen. The pork is very lean and tasty. Add your amount of chili oil to put some spice into it. Quantity of the ramen bowl will fill you pretty well but you can always get some gyoza which aren’t bad.
If you go for dinner, make sure you don’t go too late since they sometimes run out of the P-​toro from orders throughout the day.

After an evening event nearby, we decided a hot, steamy bowl of noodles was needed. I ordered Sesame Chicken Ramen at $ 7.49 and the bowl was huge with seven large chunks of deep fried chicken floating amongst the ramen and bok choy.
The roasted sesame seeds were plentiful and tasty, but the soup didn’t taste like Japanese Ramen. It was hot, and plentiful, and the hot miso sauce did enhance the flavors.
My friend had the Wonton Ramen (!) for $ 6.79 which she declared delicious. The noodles were good, not over cooked, and plentiful. Nice touch was the tea brought immediately to our table. Very pleasant service, and I noticed a large number of take-​out orders during our meal.
A handy place, close to the stadium and the library main branch — with a very clean restroom. Quick, friendly service.

Upon the recommendation of a friend, I stopped in on my lunch break to see what all the fuss was about. I had originally asked for the vegan ramen, but apparently the noodles have eggs in them. I guess this is the part where I tell my vegan friend and he cries himself to sleep, or maybe that little devil on my shoulder wants to keep it a secret and just smile to myself whenever we eat there.
Total cost for a soup that was big enough to feed two of me = $ 7.22. The servers were kind enough to bring me tea while I waited, since my order was to-​go, so I hung out and read the paper until it was ready.
I got the vegetarian miso noodley soup, and was told that the gyoza had meat in it, so I wouldn’t be getting the combo, but when I look at the take-​out menu it says they have veggie gyoza… hmmmmm… not that I needed the extra food since the soup was so freakin huge I couldn’t even finish it!
Usually I grade my noodle soup on how much hot sauce I have to put it to make it flavourful. Surprisingly, I didn’t even use the hot sauce I asked for. There wasn’t a huge amount of broth, but it was seasoned enough that it gave the soup a lot of flavour. The soup was packed full of veggies that were still crisp and crunchy little sprouts. I will be back to visit Ezogiku with or without my non-​egg-​noodle eating friend.
P. S. Do you know how hard it is to find a veggie ramen in this city?

I went here during the Olympics with my dad. after a very chilly afternoon walk around town, we decided to warm up to some soupy noodles. I ddin’t want to go all the way along the west end. it was just way to far so I suggested this place. At around 1:30pm in the afternoon, the place was busy but we were lucky to grab seats facing the outside to people watch. The interior was warm and smelling of the cuisine. The pictures looked enticing and I ordered their signature ramen while my dad got the chicken teriyaki ramen.
we got a gyoza combo as well.
The food came out pretty quickly. The staff was friendly and were fast to fill our tea cups when we asked.
The texture of the noodles were pretty standard. Not over cooked, but it didn’t wow me. My dad says that his broth was too salty, which I completely agree with after trying.
The gyoza had a lot of meat to it which was good. It didn’t come with dipping sauce, although I think the little jars along the ledge was what we were supposed to use.
All in all it was okay. I still go with Benkei.

With every place serving booze within walking distance to GM and BC Place packed in like sardines and my belly howling, a safe bet was ramen.
Definitely delivered on filling me up (with some perfectly chewy noodles) so I could belt out some U2 tunes but you’d think they’d be prepared for a game/​concert night. Even if they’re not hugely busy most days, the foot traffic poses a definite increase in food sales — especially 55,000 people walking by! Maybe just a stock up on gyoza since they offer it as a combo for EVERY one of their meals. (And were sold out of that plus a couple of other menu items)
On the plus side: I was in, full and out within 25 minutes which meant I could get myself back to some spirits down the street. Rock the ramen on!

On a cold &rainy Vancouver day you may not want to wait in line for an hour at the more popular joints. This place is decent for a bowl of miso ramen (an added scope of hot miso kicks it up a notch) make it a combo with gyoza (their gyoza is good if you don’t compare them to gyoza king). All this including complimentary hot tea for under $ 10. I won’t come especially to try this place but if you are in the neighborhood give it a try.

I did not know better because we were walking down Robson, and I was really really famished. Decent ramen, nothing memorable. It was so hot inside and they only had little fans going, so it made the meal a bit hard to enjoy.

There’s a reason there’s no line up at Ezogiku, where you’ll have to line up and wait at either Kintaro or Motomachi.
I don’t know the real story behind Ezogiku, but I remember a time when it was half decent. At some point, and I don’t know exactly when that was, clearly there was an ownership change. Instead of focusing on becoming the best and most authentic ramen shop in Vancouver, they instead decided to become all things to all people, and fail miserably in the process.
To begin with, the broth is clearly second rate. It really lacks depth of flavor, and as someone already mentioned, this is the true yard stick of any good ramen shop. It’s neither clean and light like Motomachi, or rich and flavorful like Kintaro. It’s the manila folder of Ramen broth, average at best, forgettable for many.
Secondly, the menu will make any Japanese cringe. Wonton ramen? Sesame Chicken Ramen? Teriyaki rice bowls? Chicken cutlet curry (not pork)? It reads like the menu at a food fair, trying to pander to everyone, whether you’re into Chinese food (have some won ton), Korean (Kimichi ramen), Japanese teriyaki combo boxes (have a teriyaki rice bowl), etc. I was excited when they added a combo option for gyoza and fried rice (something you do find in Japan), but while the gyoza is decent, the fried rice is absolutely flavorless.
In the end, if you’re new to Ramen, then by all means give this place a go. But just remember that it’s second tier and not a truly authentic experience. That might not matter to a lot of people, considering there’s a Chinese owned and operated Sushi restaurant on nearly every corner in this city, but If you want to experience the kind of ramen you might actually find in Japan, then visit Motomachi or Kintaro.

So I don’t forget, let me say now– CASH ONLY!
They do have a card for frequent eaters.
This is a very very crowded place around lunch time. I can’t imagine getting a group in here– yet I see people try all the time. Really it’s a good place to go for lunch alone, because mostly you find single seats available along one of the bars. Tables are very limited.
The miso ramen is pretty authentic and has a great flavor. The chicken teriyaki bowl is good– and offers much more than a blank American style terriyaki.

This place rocks! I will risk waiting at the border for two hours just to grab a meal here. Back then they use to have one in Seattle (broadway) but now Vancouver is as close as it gets :(
Service = none really, but that’s not the point
Ambiance = end of Robson St, convienent while you shop
Food = Never fails to satisfy! Miso Ramen is awesome!
Price = $
Crowd = always a line, good sign
Favorite = Nothing not to love! Cheap, easy access, fantastic food
Worst = it’s in another country, far far away
Final Say = Hey if you shopping out here, it’s worth the stop!

I’m always on the hunt for authentic Japanese ramen, and Ezogiku is the stuff. I always order the kimchi ramen, and it comes to me like a noodle dream. You’ve got piles of big thick noodles — so you know some shyster isn’t just cracking open bags of Sapporo Ichiban back there — topped with bamboo shoots, pork, sprouts, and of course, kimchi.
It’s a nice big portion for about $ 8, plus the servers keep the green tea flowing the whole time you’re there. I’ve had them ask me if I want more tea when they’re bringing the bill. I’m always happily full when I roll out of Ezogiku.
Maybe it’s the out-​of-​the-​way location of this outlet, but I also love that I don’t have to line up for this place. You don’t want to be standing next to me all hungry and impatient!

Broth is key in the art of Ramen, and this place clearly fails. I ordered the shoyu (soy sauce) base Won Ton Ramen but it was so tasteless, I had to add about half-​a-​cup of soy sauce at the table. If you’re in Vancouver to try ramen, head over to Denman Street to Kintaro Ramen. They’ll show you what the Japanese really have to offer, but expect to wait a bit in line — it seems like it’s not just me who agrees.