Ramen Hook

The ramen here has always been mediocre, but I come back on occasions because the portions are big and there’s few ramen places in town.
Today I made an order to go on the phone, asked for the extra spicy Hook Ramen w/​no green onions. I was charged almost $ 12 for it. So either they raised the prices or they charged me extra for those requests, either way, this ramen is not worth $ 12.
On top of that, when I got home, there was no chashu or seaweed in the container. Not to mention their egg has always been subpar. Won’t be coming back again.

I’ve had a ton of ramen in my life so this place only ranks low-​average.
I dislike that the soup is kind of isn’t cohesive?
It’s more watery than flavorful to me.
I’ve tried different things every time I come here, but it’s only ok.
The toppings it comes with aren’t very generous for the price. It’s not overpriced, i just think it could use a little more.
The noodles are cooked well but with ramen a big part of it is the soup and toppings.
Came here twice and I probably won’t return.
Also, if your ramen soup is red, wear a bib because it WILL stain your clothes…

The ramen bowl itself is pretty big. Lots of noodles but sometimes there isn’t that much taste. The place is pretty nice and clean though. The katsu there is pretty tasty!

I come in a lot since the portions are pretty big. The servers are always very nice and welcoming. Since they changed the style of ordering, I always get the Hook ramen since it’s the best deal. Flavor isn’t great but the large portion make up for it. The tonkotsu broth is hit or miss and can be bland. I’ve also tried the kim chee fried rice which is pretty flavorful but very oily. I recommend if you’re really hungry and want a lot of food. Be careful when you go since the place can get very crowded.

Decided to give this place another try since I was very disappointed the first time. I’m still not impressed.
My friend and I came right when it opened at 12 PM on a Sunday. Despite the low reviews, the place got extremely full within 15 minutes.
The menu upgraded since the last time I came here. Now they have a separate page for additional items to add-​on to the ramen. You pay for the price of the ramen, then add the additional charge of anything on top. It’s honestly pretty expensive if you ask me. They have all kinds of extras such as kamaboko, octopus ($ 5 additional!!), and bulgogi to only name a few.
There’s was one listed «combo» which had mussel, kamaboko, octopus, and a variety of other things. It looked delicious, but that combo dish is $ 13! And that’s not even counting the ramen price added on top. Generally, the ramen would be $ 8 – 9, so if you ever choose the combo, that’s friggin’ $ 22 +tips/​tax! I don’t know anyone who would ever pay that much for ramen! Especially since this isn’t even top-​notch. That’s just crazy.
Anyway, my friend ordered the Hook Ramen, and I got the Yaki udon. Since the last time, I wanted to steer away from their ramen. The Yaki udon is basically a stir-​fry plate of udon noodles with chicken and veggie. It was only okay. My friend’s ramen was also average, but he got a huge stomachache after lunch :(Watch out!
I don’t think I’ll be coming back again, nice try.

After my most recent visit I don’t think I will be coming back for awhile.
I came into an empty shop at 11:30am and ordered a bento box #2, a lunch special, for $ 9.28. I waited 10 – 15 minutes for my food and then left because you can’t dine in if you order a lunch special.
The box stated that it included Tonkatsu, 4 pcs California rolls, and 2 pcs Croquettes.
The Tonkatsu was super thin and oily — did not taste appetizing at all. The California rolls had old avocados in them and tasted stale. The croquette was actually just one piece cut in half.
So… Felt like false advertising and didn’t taste super decent. For the amount of food I got I felt the price was fair but the quality was definitely not on par with my last visit here.
I would advise you just get their ramen or rice dishes, avoid the lunch specials!

I had the shoyu ramen, and it did not come with corn or an egg the way it used to a few years ago. The lone piece of beef was tender, but I prefer pork. It seemed like the broth was saltier than Shoki ramen.
On the plus side, the serving was enormous and the service was friendly. Also they take credit cards, probably helpful since it is so close to campus.
The restaurant is cozy, and placed in the back of a nearly empty strip mall. Not a first date kind of place but good for the college student on a budget. There are a few «outdoor» tables but the view of the mall lobby isn’t much to write about.
I guess it’s just business, but looking at past posts and pictures, you used to get more toppings with your ramen, and at a lower price.
Overall, I would come back only if I was craving ramen and in the area, but I would try a different ramen. They also have sushi.

This is a VERY decent 3 stars. Might be 3.5 when I go back and try it again.
Me and my friend were discussing options for soup after a night of drinking. Being in Davis, there wasn’t many options. We were going to get phở but decided to try this place. Small little restaurant inside the U-​Mall. Luckily we got there early because it got busy real fast.
There’s a page on the menu that say’s «Make your own ramen,» and it gives you all the different ingredients. We thought, hey. make your own ramen might be good and cheaper. WRONG. It’s actually just a list of extras you can add to your ramen. Bummer. Oh well.
We got the Hook Ramen. It was a really big portion size. All my past experiences with ramen have been small WTF bowls. So seeing a big bowl was a plus. There was ALOT of noodles, which is good in my book as well. The chashu pieces were big, tender, and BIG. Nothing like those small itty bitty slices at other places, another plus! The soup was nothing special though. Overall, it was pretty good. You definitely get your money’s worth.
Services was good, like I said, a SOLID 3 stars. Try it out, you might like it!

After all of the hype for it being decent Davis ramen, I ended up trying it. All of the reviews are pretty accurate– you will be full after eating here. However, everything aside from the size was sub-​par across the board. The ramen is expensive, the add on’s will cost you a fortune, and the service was meh at best. Will not be back any time soon– genuinely more satisfied with top ramen.

Reman is really good especially the noodle !!! But I will never ever order the chicken bowl again:(

I had the Tantan Men and it was good. Topped with Bulgogi made it even better.
I wish they had a smaller size, cause I hate wasting food, and I don’t eat left over ramen.
My coworker wanted to order the lunch special bento box, but it’s only for to-​go orders. Makes no sense. So she got the chicken teriyaki bowl… but it was way too saucy! Next time she’ll just order the bento to go and eat there anyway. LOL

I’ve come to Ramen Hook twice now. Both times, I got what I expected: a satisfying bowl of ramen, at best, but a LOT of it.
Parking is plentiful. It’s located inside U-​Mall right next to Forever 21, if you’re having trouble finding it. I’ve never had trouble parking here at U-​Mall so that shouldn’t be a concern.
Waiting — like any restaurant, expect a waiting time if you’re coming here during prime hours (weekends, lunch and dinner times). Given their very limited capacity, you can probably expect a 10 minute waiting time, at the least. After that though, you can expect the food to come relatively quickly.
I think when it comes to ramen in Davis, you’d have to understand that this is the only ramen-​dedicated restaurant (if I remember correctly) in the town. Given their prices, what you get is not bad at all. For just about $ 7, you get a generous serving of ramen in decent broth, with the typical chashu or chicken or beef meats you desire. The most important part is the mere size of the bowl of noodles that they give you! You basically get ‘extra’ noodles without paying extra for it, especially compared to other well-​known ramen restaurants in Sacramento. Ramen Hook is a great place to go to if you’re craving some decent, hot ramen.

Ok spot if you’re craving ramen. They also have sushi and rice bowls.
The ramen and rice bowls are a great deal but the sushi is way over priced!

As good as I wanted this ramen place in Davis to be, it unfortunately just didn’t live up to my precedent of Shoki II in Sac. One thing they did correctly was they included everything. Egg, seaweed and even mussels in my bowl.
The bowls were «ginormous» which was a welcome sight upon entry. While my fire ramen was good, it just didn’t satisfy quite like Shoki ramen did. And the pop music was a bit annoying also. Didn’t try the sushi, probably not going to either.
Oh, and the place is INSIDE of the U-​Mall. Searching for it on the streets will do you no good.

This ramen house gives you huge bowls of food but don’t be fooled, the amount of actual ramen noodles is roughly the same as any other ramen place you’ve probably been to. They also add things like cabbage to make it look like it’s a lot of food, which don’t get me wrong, it’s a lot of food for the price. It’s just not as «wow» as some reviews are making it. The noodles themselves are ok, better than packaged dry ramen but I wouldn’t pay more than what they’re charging already. As bang for your buck, this is certainly the place to go.
Their hook ramen with spicy tuna roll is my to go order here, it’s a lot of food for 13 bucks. Definitely hits the spot but I’d be disappointed if I got their ramen from Santouka.
Other reviews about their chewy meat and how their broth has hella oil is very, very true.

Sadly, I wasn’t as HOOKED on this place as I’d like to be. To be honest, I don’t even come here for the ramen. It’s subpar at most. Go to Sacramento for ramen. Almost anywhere is probably better.
Somehow I always have cravings for this place… that I always regret afterwards. I hate giving places less than 3 stars but I’ve given this place multiple chances.
The to-​go bento deal was cheap, but the gyoza was gross (like badly cooked Asian supermarket gyoza) and some of the chicken teriyaki was charred so it didn’t taste tender at all.
The rice bowls are yummy, but way too small of a meat to rice ratio. They’re also not worth this price.
Overall, don’t come here if you’re looking for good Japanese food. Yeah the lunch special is cheap and will fill you up kinda, but it’s just not satisfying at all. Plus they don’t even let you eat it in there. Not really worth it at all.

This is the worst Ramen house. They have this stupid rule that you can’t eat the bento box inside the restaurant. .their reason is because the bento box is cheap and its only for take out. Why even bother sell the bento box if you can’t eat there. The waitress said they reserved their tables for ramen eaters. well there is no one there and all tables are vacant. That’s very bad customer service. Then they ask me what I want to order. i said i want the bento box but yet I can’t eat there. i have to take it out. SO STUPID!
Take out the bento box on your menu stupid hook people if customers can’t dine there with the food you serve. You guys deserve 0 star!
Btw. put something in your ramen. it’s all broth!

Wow, pretty big portion of ramen (considering that I paid $ 8.25)! Tried the Tonkatsu Ramen and it was pretty decent (I especially liked the seasoned egg that they included). In the words of my friend, «Not a taste of heaven but it hit the spot.»
The service was pretty interesting-​the guy came by a little too often but made sure we had everything!

Been here twice, hoping this place would get better but it’s still very «meh.»
— FOOD
I ordered the tonkotsu ramen both times I’ve been here. The soup is a strange dark brown color, thick in texture, and lacks any pork bone flavor. The noodles are alright because while it’s not completely fresh tasting, it’s not soggy. I was surprised that they gave 3 thick pieces of pork, unlike most places that only give only 2 thinner slices. Immediately after biting into it, I noticed how the meat was rough, not tender, and had no taste to it. Unlike a lot of great ramen restaurants, Ramen Hook did not marinate the meat well and for long enough, which is probably why they gave out such large pieces. The ramen also had bean sprouts, few bamboo shoots, red ginger, a hard boiled egg (I like soft or medium boiled eggs best :\), and one piece of seaweed. Not only was the food mediocre but it gave me a stomach ache both times after I ate their food.
+ PORTION SIZE
Portion size is enormous. I think it’s to make up for the lack of quality in their food. But remember, quality over quantity.

The sweetest people work here! I really do enjoy my time when I come here, but the food is generally not my first choice for a nearby Japanese joint.
I prefer their sushi as it is equal, if not cheaper, than on-​campus sushi but with a fresher taste! It’s really fast and I never have to wait too long for sushi here!
Takoyaki is also a new appetizer that they recently added, and it’s pretty cheap! I had mine to-​go, so it wasn’t as crispy as I usually like. But I will most likely try it again as a dine-​in dish.
As for their other dishes, such as ramen, I would say it is ‘meh’. The broth doesn’t seem very favorful, which pretty much sets up a noodle dish for dissatisfaction.