I really liked this bar/restaurant, it was a pleasant surprise. I love whisky and first noted the vast array of Japanese whisky prominently decorating the top shelf. My shorts weren't jerked down on the price of a Yamazaki 12, a now difficult whisky to find as it becomes more scarce. Ken, the bartender embraced my passion for whisky and let me try a Togouchi 10yr on the house. Just after 6:00pm on a Tuesday the place was quite and melodic as a good music gently dripped in the background. I ordered Vegetable Ramen that I would grade a C+; with that said this is a great bar to talk with your loved one or good friend without competing over the noise of a gaggle of other people. Warm and intimate, with good drinks is where this place shines.
Fantastic ramen for lunch that come in a wide variety of soup bases, spice levels, and add in ingredients. Great for going out with a small group of coworkers. No idea what the night lounge is like.
It's a pretty chill place to grab drinks after work and I've never had any issues with getting a spot. If you're there for HH, I highly recommend also giving their tofu fries a try!
Even though Lava Lounge is first and foremost a bar, I usually come for their delicious ramen. Yep, you heard that right-- Lava Lounge has some solid ramen. It's no Orenchi or Mensho, but their signature broth is actually pretty bomb. I love their shrimp tempura and usually go for the seafood ramen with dumplings added, but you can totally build your own bowl too. I'm a total wimp when it comes to eating spicy food, so I only go for the mild version of the broth. I will most likely keep it that way since I've heard about and witnessed the horror of stronger spice levels!
Lava Lounge is a great lunch option in the soma area and their prices are pretty reasonable too!
Just had a surprise 50th Birthday Party here on 11/16/2018. Wow! very awesome place to hold a party, event, function. Food was catered here within this location. we had about a dozen delicious items during my event. Great bar setting, lounge private function room in the back, very nice ambiance lighting, large TVs to watch sports events, music, PA system, comfortable seating. Absolutely love this place and will book my next event here.
First time here and I ordered the Molten Lava Ramen dish - their hottest ramen. Most times a restaurant's "hot, spicy" food doesn't phase me. I have a very high tolerance for heat. Well, shoot, this thing had me sweatin' bullets. It is truly, deeply hot as hell. But also quite delicious. Next time I'm going a step down in heat, just so I can enjoy that flavor a bit. But kudos to these guys for figuring out what real heat feels like without compromising on flavor. Day-am!
With the 20% off for happy hour, two bowls of ramen + two drinks + tax/tip came out to be less than $30. Solid ramen. Not the best, but was definitely filling. Recommend the Surf and turf or Dumpling ramen. Great ambiance and friendly bartender/waitress.
Went during their lunch hours because I needed something to cure my hangover and tried their Lava Ramen... OH MY GOD spiciest thing ever!!!! The broth is red. Just pure red. After a few minutes, I was dying so I was forced to eat the thing super slowly. My mouth was on fire. After surpassing her limit of seeing us suffer, the waitress offered to bring out non-spicy broth to mix in and hopefully dilute the spiciness. It helped a little but still, I think my mouth went numb.
Admittedly, I'd do it again though...
Love a delicious hot bowl of Ramen? Eat at the counter and enjoy a spicy bowl of noodles, and if you are lucky a plate of fresh dumplings! Yum!
My friend recommended this place during my visit to SF and I'm so glad he did. They have a full bar and ramen here is very well prepared.
Maria is awesome. Im talking about great first impressions here at Lava!!! Drinks food service!!I enjoyed their japanese whiskey very much. Im really looking forward to seeing their price list in the near future. They have over 40 bottles of japanese whiskey and scotch combined.
I had the surf and turf and added kimchi. Superb!!
I tend to build my own ramen every time since their house dumplings are so good and the pork belly melts like butter
The food was pretty good but the Japanese whiskey collection was impressive. I will be coming back here regularly for a beer/ whiskey and rrsonably priced ramen.
Chill bar/lounge with decent food and an amazing selection of scotch/whisky. The bartenders are very friendly and sociable. There are 2 big TVs if you want to catch a game with friends.
Perfect place to go on a cold day. Lava ramen is my favorite but you can also build your own ramen with ingredients you like.
Delicious appetizer plates. Speedy service at the bar. We happened by on a night they were closed in the restaurant for a private party, but were served in the bar. Great bartender! 🍸
The house lava ramen Fuji spicy and add the roasted pork belly best ramen I've had outside of Japan
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