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“Good udon, huge portions, queuing necessary”

Tsurutontan Shinjuku
Ranked #12 of 1,771 Restaurants in Kabukicho
Price range: $0 - $22
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Restaurant details
Dining options: Late Night, Reservations
Neighborhood: Shinjuku / Nakano / Suginami
Reviewed October 5, 2016 via mobile

This restaurant serves a great bowl of udon noodles with a tasty broth (clear and curry versions). The portions are huge (look at the size of the bowl compared to my hand) and the prices were reasonable (around $10-$15 per portion).

We came during the evening and there was a 20 minutes wait. Inside there was a band playing line music which added to the atmosphere.

All in all recommend visiting.

Date of visit: October 2016
Thank 206guyh
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviews (189)
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25 - 29 of 189 reviews

Reviewed August 31, 2016

Get there early. By 7:15 pm the line runs up the stairs and into the street (it's at basement level). Almost exclusively Japanese clientele, a good sign. Hearty portions of genuinely delish udon dishes. Very cold beer. Like many many places smoking is allowed, though the place is well ventilated and that was not an issue. Very nice atmosphere, service is great, and the menu will have something for you

Date of visit: August 2016
    • Value
    • Service
    • Food
Thank scottt177
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed August 29, 2016

We decided to go here for an uncomplicated meal based on Udon noodles. What a great find.

A restaurant with a difference. The clientele appear to be basically young people who queue up, there doesn't appear to be a capacity to book a place. It's noisy, but not to invasive.

Terrific service and well able to deal with monolingual English speakers. Big servings in huge bowls, which make them appear even larger. The various noodle dishes ordered by our party were without exception really enjoyed.

Would certainly go again if I were in Shinjuku.

Date of visit: August 2016
    • Value
    • Service
    • Food
Thank handr40
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed August 11, 2016 via mobile

We went to this place with a Japanese friend; it was good enough that we came back for another go. We would have missed it otherwise - it doesn't have any English signage, it's a basement restaurant in front of a place called 'Little Sheep'.

Even the regular udon servings are substantial, I had a beef tendon curry udon and my wife had the creamy scallops udon, both were superb and plentiful. The staff were friendly and helpful, and the service was pretty fast.

This place is pretty popular - we turned up at 5.10pm, it was 5.25pm ish when we got our food, and folk were queueing out the door when we left at 6pm - so you might want to book ahead. When we went the second time, we were the only westerners in the place.

The ambiance is nice, with booths and spaces at the bar alike for dining. English menus are available. If you're looking for somewhere to eat before you visit the Robot Restaurant, you could do much worse than this place.

Date of visit: August 2016
2  Thank markm2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed July 23, 2016 via mobile

My son, Chris, booked a dinner table for eight of us. It was Tuesday, June 28.
Our waiter host was a very polite, friendly and smiling all the time which made us all feel so at ease, relaxed and happy.
When we arrived, we were immediately ushered into a private room. The menu is extensive - some of the dishes we chose : stewed miso-nikomi udon, beef udon, mixed bouillabaisse udon, spicy pollock roe thick egg drop ankake udon and wakame seaweed udon.
I was told it is possibly the best udon restaurant in Japan. Food is superb and we were very happy with the impeccable service.
There was a band and singer to entertain diners.
When we were walking out of the restaurant, we noted there were people seated in the lounge area waiting to be seated and further towards the entrance there was a long line waiting to be seated.

Date of visit: June 2016
1  Thank Extraordinary806622
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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