Foo Foo Tei

I love the Hacienda Heights shop and have been going for years. After hearing about one opening in Alhambra, I was excited as hell because it’s so much closer to my house.
However, I went on my third visit and witnessed probably the worst food experience I’ve ever had in the states. Right when we finished our meal, we saw the cook come out and chase a huge rat that was running along the ceiling ledge. This rat was HUGE. I’m talking long nasty tail and all. The cook chased it until the rat stopped right above a table of customers and then slid into a hole it made. We were shocked.
This was about late December and I understand it was cold outside, but you have to do something for your customers. Free green tea ice cream or something!
Anyway, the food is good. but I hope the took care of that problem.

We came back tonight — because the OC just doesn’t have nanchatte ramen and I was NOT DISAPPOINTED! Oh my goodness — this is a complete 360 from the last time I came here and I will tell you why.
They are training ALL the staff at the original location and then moving them here! The chef let us in on the secret and said that the new owners are Japanese and wanted to make sure that the Foo Foo Tei reputation stood up to Hacienda Heights. So after months of re-​training and customer feedback I can honestly say that the broth is much better. It’s more rich, flavorful, and just spot on. I have to admit, the original location will always have my heart because that’s where I first fell in love with ramen, but after all of the changes Alhambra is almost right up there.
The takoyaki is also better! Much better served with mayonnaise and the extra bonito flakes — MMMMMMMMM!
If you came here a year ago and were disappointed — GO BACK! Give them another chance! They have definitely stepped up their game and have gotten so much better than their initial grand opening. They’ve also gotten rid of the sushi bar (good riddance) and are truly focusing just on their ramen game and side dishes! You will not be disappointed — no other ramen restaurant makes Nanchatte Tonkotsu ramen like this!

Been to the one in hacienda heights multiple times and loved it. I was wondering how come this place isn’t packed as the other one whenever I drive by and have such a bad review… I guess I know now!
The whole vibe is off. It doesn’t even feel like you are dining in a Japanese restaurant. The ramen itself was okay… My tonkatsu white soup was a little too salty though… And the way they already mixed onions and ginger inside the soup made it feel like they were not made fresh.
Oh and when I asked for a straw for my iced water, the guy used his bare hand and put a straw (without the wrapper or napkins around) directly into my water! Are we friends or something?
The appetizers we got are both… Pretty gross. The skin of the akedashi tofu was so hard and way too chewy then usual, and the fried soft bones was just… Oily and fatty.
I wasn’t happy and was very disappointed after my meal… Should’ve gone to the other places instead. They need a serious make over!

++ Broiled Squid
+ Miso Ramen
I love Foo Foo Tei and have no qualms with this branch — frankly, I’m surprised at the harsh reviews. My friends and I came here for dinner one night maybe 30 or 40 minutes before closing and felt terrible, but hunger outweighed the guilt. The servers were very patient, kind, and understanding. We never felt rushed at all. If anything, we simply rushed ourselves. No dirty side glances, or ‘I want to close up and go home, please eat quickly and leave’ vibes.
This place tasted just like the Foo Foo Tei in Hacienda Heights, but much larger and minus the hour and a half wait. I shall be back!
And hooray for the broiled squid! So good! None of my friends wanted any, but whatever! More for me :)

The original in Hacienda is smaller but the food is much better! The number 17 here is good but not great! The soup is more watery and they give less meat and noodles. Overall not bad! Its much closer than the Original Location. My gf liked the soup here better because it’s less salty and not too thick but to me i’d rather go to the original.
I came here around 7:30pm on a sunday night and it was a ghostown. Only 4 other people eating and this place is 3x bigger than the original… Sad! Overall i would come here again if i’m feeling the cravings for some ramen and don’t wanna drive too far!

I was so excited when I found out Foo Foo Tei opened near me! Now I don’t have to drive all the way to Hacienda… but after I ate here I would rather go to Haceinda. The menu here is pretty similar to the first location but the taste isn’t the same. The place is pretty big with big tables. We were seated right away but I felt like our server wasn’t that great. She seemed as if she didn’t want to serve us.
I ordered the hot and sour soup and it was neither hot nor sour. The pork that came with it is pretty tough. But they did give a lot of mushrooms and other stuff. My sister ordered the Nanchatte tonkotsu and it only came with 2 pieces of pork, what?! The broth was creamy, light, and well seasoned. The ramen is pretty decent as well. My brother got the pork cutlet curry omelette with rice and everything was good except for the meat. It was tough and tasted like it was frozen and they just cooked it. Didn’t taste that fresh. My parents got the vegetarian ramen. They really enjoyed it because the broth was vegetarian and it came with lots of tofu, mushrooms, and vegetables.
Overall, the price you pay isn’t worth. I probably will not be back because I would want to spend my money elsewhere. Everything here is just average and nothing really to rave about.

Meh. I’ve never been to the Hacienda Heights location so maybe that’s why i don’t understand the hype.
LOCATION: The back lot has parking but only about 10 – 15 spots maybe. It’s near the dumpster haha
I walked into Foo Foo Tei, & wow! It’s super spacious! There were only 2 other parties dining in when I walked in on a Tuesday night. Foo Foo Tei is NOT going up on a Tuesday, apparently… LOL
#20: Spicy ramen – MEH. Only got this because everyone in my party got the #17 and i wanted to be «different». Loaded with hella mushrooms, oysters, veggies, & an egg yolk. The bowl is seriously SO much bigger than my friends who ordered the #17. Could’ve been shared between 2 people… Honestly, the soup tasted a bit off. Some instant noodle packets taste better and more flavorful than this…
#17: Broth was so creamy, the pork was delicious n sooo tender! STICK TO THIS ONE. Seriously, there’s a reason everyone only raves about this one.

This is a great place to get your ramen fix taken care of, because the bowls are huge! It’s not really authentic ramen, but there are many varieties, so one is surely going to hit your cravings. A lot of them are fusion-​y, for example, the hot and sour soup ramen that I got.
They also have good takoyaki, not the super mushy kind that is sadly very common.
The place has a great clean interior. Also, the owner, or at least who I think is the owner, was really kind and was one of the few men that my infant son took to right away.

Look no further! If you love Foo Foo Tei’s vast menu of varied ramen creations, their Alhambra location is a dream come true. The space is huge, at least double the HH’s location and the menu is identical. Our favorite is always the hot and sour ramen and their chicken wings. The place is also SUPER kid friendly. They have really nice high chairs, provide plastic cups with straws for kids, and even have plastic bowls with suction cups at the bottom for the kiddos.

Foo Foo Tei Alhambra
Overall
4 Stars
I use to go to Foo Foo Tei in Hacienda Heights, back in the day. When I found out that Alhambra opened one, I had to go try it. The one in Alhambra was not as good as the one in Hacienda Heights.
The portions are large. Foo Foo Tei has lots of different types of ramen. The Tonkatsu ramen was the most ordered ramen at the Hacienda Heights location. The broth in Alhambra wasn’t as tasty as the Hacienda Heights location. It was more on the salty side, than tasty. For some reason the one in Hacienda was hard to stop eating. Even after telling myself that I was full, I would continue eating the ramen in the bowl.
The seafood ramen had a very generous portion of ingredients. The oyster ramen only had 5 small oysters, but the broth had lots of oyster flavor.
HAPPY RAMENING!

Decided to come here for lunch today with a friend. We arrived about 10 minutes after opening and the place was empty. After being seated in our booth, a waiter brought us the menus. Looking around the restaurant you can tell this is a no-​frills kind of place and that it’s all about the food.
I ordered the Kakiage ramen which is ramen with a fried cluster of onion, carrot, and shrimp. Unfortunately, I had no idea what kind of shrimp they were referring to and assumed it would be regular-​sized shrimp. It was actually tiny shrimp, the one with no meat, the one with all shell, the one that baleen whales consume hundreds to thousands of a day. That kind of shrimp. Sadness. Even as a baleen whale I’d be disappointed in the shrimp that was served. I would order something else next time.
My friend ordered the seafood ramen and seemed to enjoy her meal. Her bowl was brimming with pieces of various seafood. It also had the normal-​sized shrimp but whatever, I’m not bitter. It was too much food for her so she took about half to-​go. It was pretty neat that they provided a soup container and a separate container for the noodles.
We also ordered the steamed clams which was fine but nothing to write home about.
Service was cheery and attentive. No complaints.
I will probably be back to try other dishes when I’m craving noodles around Main St.

First thing I have to say is that they are really really nice. My party and I came in 5 minutes before closing and they said they were still willing to serve us. Felt kind of bad, I hate being those people that are keeping the workers from going home.
We ordered fast, and the food came out really fast. I think it came out within 5 – 10 minutes? I ordered the #17 since I’m a big fan of Tonkotsu Ramen. It came out to be a big bowl of disappointment. I really wanted to like it, but it just didn’t taste right. I usually don’t have to add anything to my ramen, but for this bowl, I had to add some spices to add some flavor to the bowl. My friend got the same thing, and his bowl was more on the sweet side while my bowl was on the savory side. A little inconsistent with their flavors no? Maybe? Probably just all inside my head. All I have to say is that bowl of ramen wasn’t worth the price.
Anyways I probably wouldn’t be coming back to this location anytime soon.
On the plus side, I really like how they have a lot of table condiments on the table for you, especially their own Sriracha Bottle.

OH NO
NO NO NO NO NO
What just happened here? Guys, seriously. If you don’t fix this problem you’ll be out in no time.
Sunday noon, huge area space, only 4 tables with people. By the time we finished around 2pm, we were the only ones left… *crickets*
–Miso Ramen: okay, what was this? it did not taste like your typical miso. The noodles were okay, the chashu was soft but bland, there was a lack of vegetables/​sprouts, no egg?! WHAT! and a small fish cake. I didn’t finish it.
–My friends got the soy sauce ramen and a clear one, both they said were just meh.
–Fried chicken wings: this was the only good thing about it. 4 pieces, well flavored.
Service was friendly but slightly unattentive, I looked back and the wait staff was just conversing amongst themselves, there was no business.
Super dissappointed, nothing like the Haciend Heights one. Do not even try it and hope they have improved since the opening because obviously they have not.
Go to Kozuke, go to Daikokuya, go to ANY noodle place nearby, heck, make your own at home, you’ll probably get better results.
I pass by here almost daily, now i just shake my head, accelerate and avoid eye contact.

A fellow Unilocaler recommended this place. This restaurant is right next door to Hot Red Bus, situated in the Edwards Regal Theater Plaza. You can park in the structure or try to find street parking. There’s a back entrance so no need to walk all the way to the front.
We came in right when they were open for lunch. 12 Noon. We were the first ones in the restaurant. The server seated us at a booth. The sitting area is wide an open. Pretty spacious & bright. The menu has an extensive choice in Ramen, other noodles, sushi, hand rolls, combos… I was recommended to try their Ramen. All right, where to start? So any choices. I finally choose #20– Shin Shin Spicy Ramen. The description sounded wonderful. A spicy broth, oysters, squid, tofu, & Veggies.
The Ramen finally arrived. A big bowl, spewing out food & broth. Looks promising. I couldn’t wait to dive in. The bowl was so overflowing that when I went in to mix the ingredients, super hot broth spilled all over the place. What a mess! So here’s the the moment of truth… The noodles had a good toothiness. Not over cooked, broth had a nice flavor. Not too spicy (had to add more chili for my own liking) broth had body but in a starchy way. Soft boiled half egg, Tons of cabbage-​stem & all! Carrots, fresh Shitake Mushrooms, white button mushrooms, a few Enoki Mushrooms. Tofu was present. So Where’s the oysters? Dug around & found 3 little oysters & squid pieces.
Back to the broth… The broth didn’t have that body like most Ramen places have. You know, sticky lips from bone simmering a long time creating a gelatinous stock? Yeah well this one had globs of coagulated starch! Just shy of bobas. The spicy yellowtail was typical. Over all, service was mediocre, Ramen wasn’t great. Not $ 10 worth. Mostly Veggies. I’d go elsewhere for Ramen.

Rating has gone back up to 3 ½ stars, but i’ll give it a 4.
Reasons why my rating has gone up!
1) Service got better. Didn’t have to wait 10 to 15 minutes to get a seat when the place is not even ¼ full. Our food came out fast!
2) Sodium level wasn’t high and actually enjoyed my miso ramen.
3) Broiled squid– I liked this app. The sauce that comes with the squid wasn’t too overwhelming and you can actually taste the squid.

YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW EXCITED I WAS FOR THIS TO OPEN! Driving to the Hacienda location was such a b*tch, but now I’m starting to think that it might be worth going to the distance for the quality.
Came here a few days ago, and it was surprisingly not busy. There was no wait at all, which was a great thing for us since we are so used to waiting 30 – 45 minutes for a table. So far, it was looking bright. Our server was super chill and friendly. We ordered a pitcher of Sapporo, and homeboy hooked it up– filled it straight to the brim. The night was promising!
+ Tonkatsu Ramen #17: While the broth tasted pretty close to the original, something was missing. Maybe it wasn’t rich and creamy enough, but at least the noodles were perfect. I will say that I was sooo disappointed with my egg! It was overcooked and didn’t have that slightly runny texture.
+ Unagi Bowl: This was really good. The portion was generous, the rice was fluffy & warm, and the eel was fresh (didn’t have a rubbery texture).
+ Tuna Bowl (small): The bowl was really small, but the tuna was good quality. It didn’t have a fishy taste, and was fresh. I was not a fan of the red sauce they drizzled all over it though. I thought it would have been better without it.
+ Takoyaki: GOOD! Tastes exactly the the OG location.
+ Fried Chicken Wing: I didn’t try this, but it looked BURNT. The skin was a charred dark brown. My boyfriend said it’s lacked flavor in the skin (besides the taste of burnt), but the chicken meat was tender and moist for the most part.
+ Fried Silver Fish: Again, over-​cooked. These tasted like they were left in the fryer for too long. There was barely any silver fish at the center, probably because they were fried to death, but they were very crispy… like chips! So crispy that it crackled when you bit into them.
Overall, this location is okayyyy. Not by any means as good as the Hacienda Heights location, but maybe it needs some time. The décor and the ambiance is also super drab and depressing. Dated booths/​furnishing, horrible paint job, tacky lighting, and random color scheme. It is very apparent that the design of the restaurant was an afterthought. There are so many other PHENOMENAL ramen joints in the area, that Foo Foo Tei needs to step up their game if they want to play in the big leagues.

I don’t know why the reviews are so low since they just recently opened but I came expecting the worse after reading several reviews. I wanted to try this place out since I’m a fan of the one in Hacienda Heights and this one is so much closer to home!
Service: Seemed like a big complaint was the service however when we arrived we were promptly greeted and seated with menus. We received our waters and the waiters were attentive and very helpful. Maybe they’re getting used to the flow or reading the complaints. We were asked if we needed anything during our meal and were thanked as we left.
This location is a lot more spacious and less crowded (for now?) than the one in Hacienda and has a sushi bar, interesting! They have a board behind the sushi chef with the specials and we saw there was a chirashi bowl special for $ 12. Ordered that and it looked picture perfect and was very fresh and tasty.
I ordered the Miso Ramen and I thought it was good! Came out fast and steaming hot! Not lukewarm or cold ingredients, everything was piping hot. I’d say it was comparable to the Hacienda Heights location to my recollection. My parents ordered the #17 Nanchatte tonkotsu and a Duck Ramen. They both enjoyed the ramens very much and my dad really enjoyed #17 and he’s hard to impress!
Overall I think this Foo Foo Tei was great from my experience, it’s closer to home and no long wait times. I think it deserves a second chance from all the negative reviews of those who frequented during the rough patches of the soft opening.

We came here tonight with low expectations. I am a fan of the the Hacienda Heights’ Foo Foo Tei. However after reading the multiple not so positive reviews, I was expecting the worst.
Surprisingly this was not the case! We walked in and was quickly shown to a booth. After returning with the menu, the waitress asked what we like to drink and then promptly returned with our green tea. We placed our orders and in under 5 minutes our food was brought out. We were in and out in 15 minutes. Pretty impressive I have to say!
Now onto the food. I ordered the #17 Nanchatte Tonkotsu Ramen. It was pretty tasty. Not too salty. A lot of soup (which was good since it was rainy and cold outside and I wanted something to warm me up)! Three pieces of meat and a half an egg came with my ramen.
Overall a great experience :) Accepts Visa/​Mastercard.

I have been so many Ramen restaurant in L.A. In general, they service is excellent. Many of them I would get greed entering and exit. Foo Foo Tei of Hacienday Height location is one of my favorite ramen. I just love their #17 (Nanchatte tonkotsu) That ramen are creamy and not too heavy.
After hear that Alhambra open their second store, I was thrilled. This is used to be a long time Malaysia restaurant. This is more spacious than before, in fact they even added a sushi bar in this location. It was irony to see a ramen shop has a sushi bar and sushi chef.
Food here is almost the «not» the same quality as the original one, except the noodle were overcooked and not chewy. Beside the broth, the noodle are the second most important aspect of the ramen. The chashu was not cut property, it felt I got the left over piece. It seem my other Unilocal friend also has the same problem, the noodle were all overcooked…
The biggest problem in this place is their service. OMG, I don’t know where to begin. It took like 15 minutes to get our tablet seated, while there’s empty table ! We has to waive our hand so many times that I forgotten to count. This type of awful customer service, I rarely see in a Japanese restaurant. One saving grace is this is still a soft opening. Hope they better get it right soon ! I don’t mind give this place a second visit. But since the original location is about the same distance to me, I might pick the other one since I know it will delivery.

Soft opening happening now folks! Alhambra’s newest Foo Foo Tei is located between Hot Red Bus and Applebee’s on Main street where the old Yazmin used to be! (Park in the Renaissance lot, streets, or parking structure on First St a block away.)
Since today was their very first day, there were a couple of types of ramen they couldn’t make (most likely because they needed specific ingredients that they were in the process of getting/​prepping), so after the first day or two, I’d think this place will get all their ducks in order.
=FOOD=
Today, I only tried #17, the NANCHATTE TONKOTSU because I heard it was quite popular in their Hacienda location (which I’ve never been to). The hype is real and it is legit! I was pleasantly surprised at how unique it tasted! That creamy broth was not something I expected from Ramen base, and it was strangely addicting! Yes, it was salty like ramen should be, but the fact that it was also SWEET was pretty neat. There were a few pieces of tonkotsu with delicious fatty areas (that’s totally my thang, guys!) and half of a soft boiled egg. Though I wish there was a bit more meat, I’m not complaining! Best part? We ordered our food and it came out in about…5 minutes!
=SERVICE=
Service was fabulous! Our waitress, Annie was so funny and sweet! She even took extra time to learn our names and helped us out with our «project». The manager of this location, Jim, was so friendly as well! He remembered me from a previous encounter! The owner of FFT, a super friendly Japanese man (didn’t catch his name) was wonderful and helpful as well! It’s adorable and admirable how humble and shy these folks are.
=FINAL VERDICT=
Now, don’t get me wrong… all this awesomeness might just be because they JUST opened, but I’m definitely hoping they keep this up and get better as time goes on! We need a Foo Foo Tei in Alhambra!