Don Ishiyaki & Ramen

After exploring the small city of Greensboro from Atlanta we decided to drop in for lunch.
First impression while walking in was small, nice and cozy. Just the right size for this small growing city.
We ordered the «don katsu don» which is the pork cutlet, egg and onions simmered in dashi sauce served over rice in a rice bowl. It was the right size. The taste was very good and the pork was seasoned perfectly which electrified my tastes buds.
At the end they provided a complimentary ice cream. If I make a trip to Greensboro in the near future, I would stop by again.

Love this place. Ambiance is great, the Food is very tasty and comes quickly. Waitstaff has been prompt and courteous. I love the Bibmbap! The owner is very kind and has given my kids a free sleeve of their vanilla wafers after dinner. It’s little things like that which make a difference to us. We repeat when we can.

One of my absolute favorite places to eat in the world. Found this place 6 years ago after a night of partying with my girlfriend. Woke up with King Kong in my skull, and all I could think was «I need ramen».
Holy shit did I find Ramen! We now refer to Don Ishyaki ‘s as «The Gods who make Ramen» it’s that damn good. I’ve never had ANYTHING on their menu I didn’t love. Everyone we’ve ever taken there had become a repeat customer. And the owners are the sweetest most attentive restaurant owners I’ve ever had the pleasure of dinning with.
You’ve done yourself a grave injustice by not eating there if you’ve ever passed by and not made the effort to try it.
It’s traditional yet mode feel inside almost makes you feel like your inside the owners house, and at the same time, in some trendy Asian café on the other side of the world.
For the love of foodies everywhere do yourself a huge favor and try it before you die.

Food was mediocre at best. Had the spicy ramen, it was practically beef paste, miso paste, and a chili paste put together. Super small portions for the pricing. Complimentary ice cream was delicious though.

We were so glad we decided to come here last minute for some Japanese comfort food. It was a 25 minute drive for us but, we didn’t really care as long as we got some good curry and ramen. We were seated right away, the décor was very close to the traditional Japanese ramen place. Our server was nice but, not as attentive as I had hoped. We were parched when we arrived and I asked for water right away but, we didn’t receive water until after our dinner came out! We ordered the curry chicken katsu and the chili ramen with chicken.
The food came out surprisingly fast and piping hot! I was a little weirded out by the appearance of the curry, I’m used to the darker, earthy Japanese curry. I did appreciate that they included veggies like zucchini. They did omit the potato however. It came out a little bland for me, but the bf thought it was normal. I loved it after I added Siracha. The chili ramen was delicious! We opted for chicken instead of beef which they were happy to do. The bowl is also huge for $ 8.99. The complimentary little ice cream palate cleanser was very considerate. We will definitely be back for more.

Seeing that my go-​to sushi place was closed, my sister and I opted for Don instead. The reviews for the most part were extremely good and so we figured it wouldn’t hurt to try. Our mistake.
Although the interior was delightful enough, the food was anything but. I ordered the chicken teriyaki while my sister ordered the chicken hibachi. When the food came out, sis was disappointed to discover that it was not served with fried rice (which is customary with hibachi/​teriyaki anything) but instead with steamed rice. I’m not one to complain though, and quickly used the sauces given to mix up my own concoction of it. That didn’t save it from the general blandness and greasy feeling it left. I could not even get ¼ into my dish and downed 2 full glasses before leaving. My sister and I were shocked to hear a lady saying the restaurant was her favorite (makes you wonder how many places she’s been if this is her best). I know I’m being biased with this being my first try here, but honestly 2 stars is GENEROUS. I would rate it a 1 star but those are reserved for the nightmare-​inducing places, which «Don» was extremely close to reaching. Not to mention the hot bowl in which it was served in. never cooled. I was shamelessly coughing up food with every burning bite. (Which I understand some people enjoy, but I in fact do not)

An intimate place to get an excellent meal. The lounge style music played in the background as we enjoyed the atmosphere. I recommend the bibimbap. It is excellent. (just say bee bee bop fast and they’ll know what you mean) The seaweed salad is very good too.

My friend and I shared the ramen and chicken teriyaki bowl. I really enjoyed the food! It is one of the few places to get ramen in GSO, but I would gladly come back if I was craving ramen or the bulgogi bowl!

Had the shrimp tempura appetizer with a little warm sake to wash it down. Excellent! My wife had the bulgogi hot pot and loved it. I had the chicken udon soup which is served in an enormous hot pot of it’s own. The serving size is almost too much to finish but I love udon noodles and the hot pot serves to keep everything nice and hot.
We have come to love this place. It’s getting a little worn around the edges but the food is always consistently good.

I LOVE this restaurant from start to finish. It’s probably my favorite in the area. Upon walking in (there are two entrances), you’re greeted by a dimly lit, warm and inviting interior aesthetic, with a friendly man or woman who immediately seats you and promptly gets out your drink order. I’ve gotten to the point where I don’t even need to look at the menu! My favorites are the spicy tuna bowl and the bibimbap! Lots of bang for the buck at this restaurant! Also, every table is equipped with a sweet cream sauce and bitter plum sauce, which really accentuate the dish, as it cooks and crisps right before your eyes! A bonus is the ice cream and Korean wafer at the end of the meal and the best part of the experience is definitely the friendly staff! Love it!

Best Japanese I’ve ever had, best ramen I’ve ever had, best restaurant in the area by far. Eat here if you want amazing, fulfilling food.
Not much to say that hasn’t already been said; it’s the perfect restaurant.

Great service and the food was really good. Dumplings could be more spicy but great flavor. The hot stone bowls were so good. I will be returning here again.

Our experience at Don Ishiyaki was mixed. The host — a Japanese American man with a cowboy hat on – was friendly and welcoming. An appetizer of calamari was a bit on the chewy side, but not too bad. We opted for two of the hot rice bowls. They are each served in a super-​hot cast iron bowl held in a wooden box. You mix the bowl’s ingredients to cook them against the hot sides of the bowl. The Spicy Tuna Don was not very spicy or flavorful. My son’s Unagi Bowl was more flavorful, until the traditional unagi sauce — which is usually delicious — burned on the hot bowl and made most of the rice dish taste burned. My husband did not enjoy his Curried Fish bowl — there was not much fish and the curry sauce was gooey.
The décor is modern and pleasant at first glance, but after looking a bit more carefully, you see that the room’s dividing blinds are very dusty and in need of a good cleaning. The women’s restroom sink faucet was nearly coming off and part of the restroom wall was being held together (or on?) by clear packing tape. Some TLC is definitely needed for Don Ishiyaki to be up to the cleanliness standards of a typical Japanese restaurant.
Complimentary vanilla ice cream is served to all guests with a bit of fruit and a small cookie. We were also given a packet of the same cookies to take home. Our bill for one appetizer, one soda, and three entrees was $ 48.50 plus tip, which was expensive for the quality of food that we got. I might try Don Ishiyaki again, ordering some less expensive dishes next time, to give them a second chance.

Dumplings were great! I ordered the vegetable gyoza. They were pretty decent, The dipping sauce on the other hand looked a little unappealing, the pepper flakes in the soy sauce had a purple tint to it. I ordered the dumpling to go. A word of advice– Don Ishiyaki should invest in smaller containers for small orders. My order was a total of 6 dumplings (very generous), however the container could fit two meals in it. In this day and age, sustainability is key along with great food :)
Yes– i would try this restaurant again.

I wish I got over here more. The food is great and there isn’t anything else similar in Greensboro (that I know of). I got a glass of Pinot Noir for 6.50 and it was a HUGE pour for a good price. We all got hot stone bowls and the food came out super quick. As others point out, the little ice cream is a nice touch at the end of each meal.
My only complaint is that I felt we were rushed to order quickly and once you get your food, don’t expect much further service unless you flag someone down. I understand because this is a small place and I know they just want to turn the tables over as quickly as possible during the dinner rush.
Tips — there is a parking lot in the back of this little shopping center and they don’t take reservations.
I’m looking forward to trying the ramen and the tuna bowl on future visits.

Delicious bibimbap. It was served in a nice hot stone bowl. You cook the raw egg as you mix the bibimbap. The hot stone bowl keeps the rice nice and crispy and warm. Great service and great location. Free ice cream dessert after the meal was a plus.

My friend and I met up here to try this place out and boy was it a disappointment. First of all, this place is NOT a ramen place. I have been craving ramen and so I chose this place place because of the «ramen» in its name. I made the mistake of not looking at the menu ahead of time, and it only has 3 ramen choices… I felt deceived :(
As others have said, the menu is mostly their rice bowls. I tried the spicy tuna rice bowl and it was 75% rice, 25% non-​rice items. It does come out in a sizzling hot bowl in a wooden box so you don’t burn yourself, which is fun. But the tuna completely cooked (which might not be that bad a thing since I do wonder about the freshness of tuna when we’re so far from the ocean), and there was not enough other items. There wasn’t much flavor to the rice bowl itself and so I covered everything in the white sauce and gochuchang sauce that were at the tables. After that, it tasted pretty good, but then again, it’s because of the sauces, not the actual food itself.
The complimentary ice cream was nice, but doesn’t make up for the lack of flavor of the rice bowl. Not worth coming to this place at all.

Love this Japanese restaurant right outside UNCG’s campus. I’m a huge fan of hot pot rice bowls, and this place specialized in them, which is awesome. My one experience here was for a late dinner, and it wasn’t too crowded. The wait staff was very attentive and efficient with everything, so we didn’t have to wait long at all!
I was debating between three dishes for a while (the spicy tuna don, the teriyaki salmon don, and the eel don) and wound up choosing the spicy tuna don. Unfortunately, I probably should have listened to the other Unilocalers who said that the tuna cooks way too quickly in the hot pot. I really don’t know how to avoid this other than asking for the tuna on the side… as a result, I was quickly scooping up all of the tuna and eating it before everything else in the dish because if I had stirred everything together, all of the tuna would have been overcooked. I wish that I had chosen the salmon or eel instead. Other than the tuna, everything else about the dish was great. The veggies were fresh, and the rice (you can choose to get white or brown rice) developed this amazing crispiness from the hot pot, which added a wonderful texture to the dish. My friend ordered the bibimbap in a hot pot, and he thought it was delicious as well, citing the raw egg on the top as one of the best parts since you can either let it cook against the hot pot or quickly stir it into the rice to incorporate the runny yolk into all parts of the dish. My sister ordered the edamame appetizer (since she had already eaten dinner prior), and I thought the dish to be quite small. It’s the perfect portion for one person but definitely not enough to share with the table as an appetizer.
My favorite part of the meal was the unexpected surprise dessert at the end. Most people on Unilocal said it was a vanilla ice cream, but I thought it tasted more like delicate shaved ice with syrup. Either way, it was delicious, and paired with the Asian cracker and fresh blueberries on the side, it was just the best way to end the meal.
I was very pleasantly surprised with my trip to Don Ishiyaki & Ramen. I highly recommend you get a hot pot rice bowl if you go. If I didn’t order the spicy tuna bowl, I’m sure that I would have loved my trip even more, but the overcooked tuna still didn’t detract from the masterfulness of the rest of my rice dish.

The hot plates are the way to go!
This is kind of like a Korean-​Japanese fusion place, which is odd because both countries serve totally different foods. Don’s pulls it off well though!
It was crowded when we came in and would have been on a wait, but the waitstaff was kind enough to basically create a new table for us so we didn’t have to wait.
An older gentleman who I assume to be the owner was welcoming and came to check on all the tables throughout the night. He gave Tori and I free cookies, which I thought was a nice gesture.
Once the food came out, it was fantastic! I really think this may become my new go-​to Korean spot in Greensboro. It’s in a cool location right by UNCG too.

I thought this place was great! After reading all the Unilocal reviews for Don’s it has been on the radar to go to for a while. Once my fiancé found out they had Chicken Katsu Don we had to head over this weekend. The staff was all really friendly and the owner and his wife really try hard to make sure you have a great experience. There was only one waitress so we did have to wait awhile to order and Zac’s food came out a solid ten minutes before mine did. I think if they had two waitresses the night would have went seamlessly.
The Chicken Katsu Don was awesome, and I don’t know of really any other places in the Triad that serves it. I tried the Bibimbap and it was pretty tasty. I would probably order a Ramen the next time just because I think I would prefer that. The kimchi gives the disk a nice spice and its pretty neat to watch the egg cook.
I loved the complimentary dessert! Such a nice touch. We will be back for sure.
Oh and the table next to us got engaged during dinner so that was all sorts of sweet and fun to watch happen.