This place is very cute and the people are nice. I really wanted to be in love with it. They get a 10/10 for presentation, friendliness, service and general vibe. The drinks were also unusual and quite good. Sadly all the food was very underwhelming. The pictures of the whole grilled squid looked deceptively large and juicy. It was actually a pretty sad little squid. I ordered dumplings and they came in this massive dish, but there were only 4 dumplings. It looked a bit awkward. The food is not bad, it's just not that amazing especially for the price. You are paying for location and presentation. Overall I had a good time, and if someone wanted to go, I would go back, but between having to pay for parking and the food being mediocre fusion (not authentic), I wouldn't drive out of my way to do this again.

Update: came back from a 2 week trip to Japan. This location is still 5 stars! Unfortunately I was told they are closing their doors to become a crawfish boil location??? It is so sad to see such a good place because just another crawfish restaurant in Houston. What a shame. Great location. The entire staff was extremely professional and kind. We were here during open/happy hour. All the food was very flavorful. Everything is made in house. I don’t thing the Kobe beef is real Kobe (they have have the certificate, but that is ok.) We got a lot of the small plates to share. It was enough food. Will definitely come back!

so i've been here once about like 5 years ago and i remember not liking any of the food i ordered and never wanted to come back. however i decided to give it another try yestersay and my experience was great. it was a friday night around 9pm and they were pretty busy, almost packed. i walked in alone and got a table right away. despite of dining alone, the service was amazing, i felt welcomed. everyone i encountered were professional and friendly. i ordered the beef skewers, korean bbq wings, soup dumplings, creme brulee, and some hot green tea. the beef skewers were so yummy. korean bbq wings were good as well, a little dry. a solution for this is pouring some water and let it sit and it gets soft. the soup dumpling was exactly what i expected. ordered hot green tea and loved the design of the cup. for dessert i got the creme brulee and it was so delish! it wasn't too too sweet and i enjoyed it a lot. i ordered a lot and the total came out to be only $50 - such a good price. as for parking i parked at the 24h cvs across from it. i think everyone parks there because the lot was full. overall i think their menu have changed and i can see myself coming back here. also the music wasn't overly loud, and so that was another plus for me.

Izakaya is an absolutely amazing Asian bar food tapas-style restaurant. They excellent have service, the food is fantastic, and a really awesome drink menu. My personal favorite all is the Izakaya fries, which are reason enough to go. And the pan seared dumplings or Kobe beef lettuce wraps are just as good if not better. You can’t go wrong with anything on this menu.

Izakaya has a wide variety of Asian tapas style food. We loved everything we had!! The soup dumplings are excellent. The fries are a MUST. They are so good and the curry sauce on the side has an amazing flavor! We also had the bao with chicken which was also amazing. It was pretty fairly priced and again, such a wide variety. Would recommend making a reservation because they do get pretty busy!

We came here for lunch on a rainy day. There was no wait. We took our friends here from out of state and they loved it. The food was delicious and beautiful. The service was amazing and it was a really fun experience.

Warm and cozy spot to chill with friends or for a date night dinner. The food tastes delicious, and the location is great so you can do other fun activities in the area after dinner. Great customer service as well. Would recommend this place.

This is an amazing place if you order the right things at the right time. Their “Sunday Funday”, from 12-4pm offers almost half off ramen, making it the best priced for quality ramen I’ve ever had. Delicious and portions were quite large, and they had a great variety of options. I tried the classic tonkotsu ramen and mazemen, and I’d definitely recommend the mazemen ramen for anyone who likes flavorful drier ramen. We also tried the xiao long bao dumplings and the fries, which both were great. Overall, a good place with is worth it if you can afford the price or come at a good time deal!

Saw a review from 6 months ago that could say exactly what I am thinking. Server is so sweet, presentation is great, drinks are fabulous (they even have really good mocktails which is a huge plus for me!!) but unfortunately this is the most flavorless meh miso ramen I have had at a restaurant. It was not good. At all. The egg was literally not seasoned. I got a soft boiled egg in my ramen. I took a pic, you can see it’s just plain white. It tasted like a soft boiled egg and nothing else. Come on guys - that’s the best part! Everything really just fell short on flavor. :( I too really wanted to like this. Great place for happy hour, good drinks and decent snacks.

Really nice experience here- nice atmosphere without being too crowded, friendly and helpful staff with great suggestions, good food and good service. We didn't try their drinks but the selection was tempting! We got the takoyaki, tonkotsu, and kimchi ramen. Only negative was they seem a little skimpy on the add ons- added shrimp for $3 or $4 and got 2 shrimp total. Still, definitely interested in coming back another time to try more of the menu

The food, atmosphere, and service were all fantastic. I was able to enjoy and have fun while eating. Shout out to our waiter I believe his name was Kai, he gave us recommendations and routinely came around to check on us. There was also another guy that was helping with clearing the dishes along with checking on us. We thoroughly enjoyed the dishes we selected. The shoyu ramen with the added spice on the side was great. I will add that if you are used to eating spicy things then it might not be spicy enough for you. The fries were awesome along with the gravy sauce that they came with definitely something I'd recommend.

This is hands down one of my all time favorite restaurants. It has that tapas feel but with Asian or Asian fusion food. The have a great selection of Japanese whiskeys and I've really enjoyed exploring them. There is also a large selection sake and schochu. They don't have a bad dish here. Also the curry with the fries is amazing.

The interior design, the mood and chatter of casual friends enjoying small bites and good drinks for the room. Decor is great for more old school Japanese Izakiya. Waiter was great but didn't know the liquor much and wasn't able to answer questions about their great Japanese whiskey section. I tried Japanese classics and tastes where very good. How's interpretations of stone other Japanese food too. I'd come back if I'm every in Houston again. Go and try it out!

We came here for their Sunday Funday and had a really fantastic experience. The bartender was so nice and really attentive, even with several customers at the bar; the service was great. They also had NFL on the TVs and great draft specials, which were a plus for us. The ramen special is such a great deal, we both had the Shoyu ramen which was amazing, the broth itself is insanely good! We also had the yellowtail jalapeño hamachi, trumpet mushrooms and pork dumplings, all were so delicious. Everything was so fresh and packed with flavor. We already can’t wait to go back! Thanks for such a great time!

Great Japanese food! Try the small plates Kobe beef lettuce wraps, Japanese egg rolls, Kobe beef skewers, You can’t go wrong. The cocktails are really strong and oh so good! Try the mai tai! The fried rice is delicious as well!! Service was the best!

The service, food, and atmosphere of this place definitely puts it in the top 10 of Houston’s most sought after Japanese restaurants the food, don’t get me started the food. Mesmerizing just as the the picture depicts. Yes I know, I’m using an iPhone. 12 pro max so the pics don’t give this meal proper justice but I can personally attest the taste of this food! It was incredible! Eat it just as it comes, no need to ask for additional sauces. I will certainly be coming back here again! That miso broth was so potent, I could Just tell they cooked for more than 24hrs to allow maximum flavor!!!!!!!! To this day, I still crave their noodles. The dumplings seasoned and the sauces pulled everything together!!!!!

So many great dishes to try! We ordered small plates and shared. Egg plant, egg rolls, pan fried dumplings, soup dumplings, chicken bao, chicken wings. Would definitely order all again. Try the Mai Tai! You won't be disappointed! And the sake flights are fun too!

First time coming here and it was great. The atmosphere is very cozy and definitely gives you an izakaya vibe. The customer service is very good felt very welcome and taken care of. Food was great, I had the Shoyu Ramen and kicked it up a notch with the spicy pepper paste they had. The ramen soup was good not salty and almost has a refreshing affect on the body (in my opinion. It's also a very light broth for those who prefer something that's not too heavy. Had a good amount of toppings as well. Their pork chashu melts in your mouth it waz delicious. My partner got the chicken katsu sandwich (with no veggies and sauce, cause he's picky) but even without those it was still very good. The katsu was a very good size. The fries were crispy and they gave you quite a bit of it. As an appetizer I got the chicken skin cracklins. When I say it paired great with my ramen, it was amazing. It was super crispy with a teriyaki type sauce on it. Overall, I will be going back to try thier other ramen. Out if the few that I have visited this one definitely is at the top. I recommend Izakaya.

Came here with some friends for dinner and overall enjoyed the service and food. The restaurant was packed for dinner and we did have to wait a while before we saw a server but after that eveything came out to us in a timely manner. Shared the seafood platter and the crawfish dumplings, both I would highly recommend as they were DELICIOUS!!!