Marugame Udon

First of all, shoutout to Jacob, who provided top-tier service. Also, tl;dr: get the nikutama. Now for the actual review. I've been a regular of the location in The Shops At Santa Anita for a while and this is just as good, if not better. It seems to me that the layout is a bit better, and there's even two entrances. The prices are really good, service is fast and efficient, the options are many (please get the Big Chicken Katsu as a side), and the noodles have the right amount of chewiness. They also currently have good promos, but I was really hungry, so I just went for a regular Nikutama (Beef 肉 + Egg 玉) udon bowl. 10/10

The music in the restaurant was so loud it was driving me crazy, and the food portions were ridiculously small. A serving of noodles costing $15.99 was incredibly small; I've never seen such a tiny bowl used for noodles before. The noodles themselves tasted very ordinary, and the sauce was terrible. I'm never coming back! I'm very disappointed; I should have gone to a Chinese restaurant instead! The only advantage is that you don't have to tip.

This was my first time visiting this location — I usually go to the one at Arcadia Mall. The food here was good, but I had some issues with the service. When I first walked in to order, three staff members were chatting and laughing together in the same spot, and I had to raise my voice to get their attention. I ordered the fresh veggies and noticed that the ones left in the bowl looked quite old — mostly yellow with brown edges. I saw a new batch of veggies nearby and asked the staff member (the one in the photo) if I could get the fresh ones, but she said they were the same. When I went to pay, I showed the veggies to a Chinese-looking girl there. She immediately threw them away and replaced them with fresh ones. She seems to be very hardworking and provides great service.

First timer at this place. Ordered the most loved items #1 and #9. The meat was tender and flavorful and so was the soup!! Everything about it was soooooo good. I liked that you can see how they prepare their food and the udon noodles. We also got the pineapple sunrise drink that super refreshing, A+ For sure! Lol

The food at this location is mediocre. Some of the items are disappointing. I ordered the 1/2 seasoned egg today for pickup. The half egg I received was so tiny and in a very sad state for $1.99. Some of the tempura items aren't prepared well, one time I found the powdery and raw flour between sweet potato and its batter. Costa Mesa location is far more better in food quality than here.