Motomachi Shokudo

Added Oct 17, 2009 by sojuman of Burnaby (3 Reviews)

Dissapointed
We figured we would try one of these ramen places on Denman. My wife had some charcoal (black-coloured soup) ramen. I had the spicy miso chicken.

When we wordered, the waitress tried to upsell us on the ramen by trying to add eggs or gyoza. She seemed dissapointed when we didn't add those items. It's about $10 for a bowl of ramen. I also know that ramen is extremely cheap to buy and has a lot of calories and no nutrients.

When the food came my wife didn't like her charcoal ramen so I ate it. It didn't taste good. The spicy chicken miso ramen was marginally better. It was not spicy. Both dishes were very oily tasting.

Overall I would not recommend this place. Food is expensive, service nothing special, and it doesn't taste good. If i eat junk food at least I want it to taste ok.

Oh and also they don't accept visa.

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Added Sep 26, 2009 by quart of Downtown, Vancouver (8 Reviews)

Great ramen in a nice environment
Food: This place is owned by the same people as Kintaro Ramen on the next block. It's basically the same food but better ingredients for a slightly higher prices (like $1.50 more). Ramen are excellent, and portions are good but not huge. They use organic eggs and I think chicken as well. Always happy, great food. I love the Shio Vegetable-only Ramen, and I think the broth is not meat-based.

Service: Good service, attentive and smiling waitresses.

Value: Good value, great food and filling for under $10.

Ambiance: Nice environment, lots of dark wood and painted concrete walls, kind of industrial meets nature/woodlands style, very Japanese modern. Small but not too crowded. Lots of friends enjoyed it as well.

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Added May 27, 2009 by pookiebear of UBC (38 Reviews)

Organic ingredients and soup base - Loved it
A few of my friends recommended this restaurant to me since they know how much I love ramen.

The unique aspect about this restaurant is that they use some organic ingredients. I had the spicy miso chicken ramen and my bf just had the regular shoyu chasiu ramen. My ramen was filled with a wide variety of vegetables, which is different than the other restaurants that serve ramen. My bf's regular shoyu ramen had sooo much chasiu. We both enjoyed our ramens very much.

The price for each bowl of ramen is a bit steep at almost $10 a bowl, but I think the high price is justified by the use of organic ingredients. Also, it's the biggest ramen bowl I've ever had. I was barely able to finish my bowl. (I am able to finish my bowl of ramen at the other ramen restaurants). We also had the gyoza which was decent.

I will definitely be back!!

Added May 7, 2009 by lifeoffood07 of Surrey (25 Reviews)

A little more money for a little better quality
As ramen lovers, we are constantly in search of good ramen. Having tried most of the ramen places in town (just haven't bothered to write reviews til now), we went to Motomachi for about our 3rd time. It serves up a decent ramen. The chashu is nice and tender, the tonkotsu soup is good and the noodles are firm but not hard. A bit pricier than some of the other places but we think it's one of the better ones. The tonkotsu is probably the best. There will be a split between those who like the charcoal and those who don't (really a matter of taste on this one). The miso ramen could be done better though. We recommend adding the gyoza to the meal as they are pretty good here.

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Added Mar 26, 2009 by vanfoodie9 of Vancouver (4 Reviews)

Delicious ramen
I had the charcoal ramen with a side dish of pork gyoza and enjoyed it immensely. The presentation and taste of the ramen was great. The gyozas were not overcooked nor undercooked - they were just right. The servers were polite and friendly and the food arrived at my table within a reasonable amount of time. The ambiance was pleasant and relaxing. This is a good value restaurant as the quality of the food is very high.

Added Jan 29, 2009 by redpanda of Vancouver (17 Reviews)

Yummy ramen on a foggy night
Went with hubby last week for the first time. It was a foggy night - perfect weather for a steaming bowl of ramen.

Food: Hubby's charcoal ramen was incredible. My shoyu ramen was pretty good too. The best part is that you don't feel all greased out after the meal because they use an organic chicken soup base. Looks like others ordered spicy chicken miso ramen - maybe I'll try that next time.

Service: They were so friendly and polite - always smiling and coming by often to ask if we wanted more water. They are a great example of what service should be. Also a plus: food came out really quickly.

Value: Very good, considering how tasty the ramen is and how the ingredients are organic. That's why the prices are higher than at other ramen joints.

Ambience: Nice and clean. Very interesting decor. Small, though - so you'll probably end up at the common table.

Overall: We'll definitely return. Can't wait to try the spicy miso chicken ramen...

Added Nov 21, 2008 by diningdandy of downtown vancouver (46 Reviews)

The ultimate ramen!
Okay for those of you who say this place is bad value... this place uses ORGANIC INGREDIENCE, and unlike other places doesnt just fill their bowls with mainly broth and noodles. It has such a savoury pork im still tasting it while writing this. Im on a Ramen kick now and this is the best without a doubt. The ambience was so nice, a little plain with a bit of jazz music made this place have a casual, warm, inviting feel to it. Service was awesome! Our waiter was so friendly and didnt rush us to finish our meal even though there was a line up and refills of tea were prompt. I tried there gyozas.. .excellent! I had the house ramen and my guest had the spicy miso ramen. Both were excellent not too much broth and noodles and not to little but it came with an organic egg which was just perfect. Oozy and soft boiled to perfectly with kimchi, bean sprouts, green beans... i really want to go back and try the charcoal bamboo ramen which is suppost to be excellent for digestion. They have alot of choices on the menu which i must go back and try because there house ramen was just so excellent. THIS PLACE WAS WRITTEN UP IN THE VANCOUVER FOOD MAGAZINE UNDER 101 GREAT TASTE. The ramen is like nothing else ..so light and delicious once you get into the ramen the flavours really start to sink in with the bean sprouts and green onions and just wow... best ramen ever. I think before when i rated the other ramen places i was being too generous but this is just ramen at its finest with the finest, freshest ingredience. Kudos Motomachi.. you've got a new regular.

Added Jul 21, 2008 by ifrit of Westend, Vancouver (3 Reviews)

Not as I expected.
From all the good review on here, I was hoping it to be better. The food is not much better than Kintaro or Benkei but the price is more expensive. So not worth it. They also charge for the hot tea. Maybe they have free hot tea but didn't tell me. Credit card is not excepted. For the price they charge, I would expected them to except credit card.

Added Jul 13, 2008 by LewisMan of Vancouver (2 Reviews)

Hidden Gem, Hole in the Wall
Food was excellent. Creative options, colorful and careful presentation. Service was very good - there was only one attendent, which was suffice for a dining area the size of a storage room. Value was decent - slightly higher than your usual Japanese hole in the wall. But this is downtown, and business is harder for such small places. Understandable - and it made no real impact. Ambiance - Outstanding. Storage-sized room, open kitchen, seat fit into every possible space; one side was even a concrete wall that made it look liek we were in an alley -- unintentionally. Then why such a high rating for such crappy decor?

Simple. You feel the authenticity of a small Japanese place, making it's best effort to attract it's few customers. You can taste the care put into each item. The juxtaposition of a mess of a dining room and a beatuifully presented dish just makes it feel that much more precious and worthwhile.

Good shit.

Added Jun 25, 2008 by JooJoo of East Vancouver (63 Reviews)

Great Ramen!
Compared to other Japanese ramen restaurants, this place gives you a great selection and quality ingredients! I like the gyozas here, its a good bite size and a great appetizer to start off with. The soup base is very good, you don't taste grease at all unlike other ramen restaurants. The ramen noodles are cooked to perfection with sides on top. I would highly recommend Motomachi! Its a small place but great place to hang out!

Added Apr 24, 2008 by hoisin of Vancouver (11 Reviews)

Not bad
Tried Motomachi Shokudo for the first time. A bit pricey but the gyozas and noodles were tasty. Gyozas were big and juicy and the noodles had a lot of substance to them. The soup broth was good and made with organic chicken stock. I think I prefer Kintaro though but I would go back again. Really small place but the waitresses were friendly and there were a lot of Japanese clients that ate there so that's always a good sign.

Added Apr 11, 2008 by EatsFats of Vancouver (209 Reviews)

Nice fresh change on ramen
There's 3 ramen places in roughly the same area here, so there's tough competition.
Luckily Motomachi bring something different to the table. You don't get the fatty broth like the other places. Also, they have ramen with organic chicken and also with seasonal vegetables. Add to that some very different flavours and they've got a solid chance here. (Some of the stuff I have not tried even in Japan, even in the ramen museum).
Just like the other places, it isn't big, though it may even be the smallest of them.
The gyoza is bigger than most, it is probably about twice as long and you get 4 of them. The charcoal bamboo ramen is quite good. We also had the spicy miso ramen with organic chicken and it was absolutely packed with noodles and vegetables. It is probably the most expensive of the places, with each bowl getting close to the $10 mark. However, it also has the "boinkiest" noodles and the taste is definitely different.
Probably my new favourite ramen place in town.

Added Mar 6, 2008 by kewpiebaby of Vancouver (119 Reviews)

Mmm good
Very good food, ambiance & service. Reminded me of the little shop in Tokyo that I went to many years ago. The only difference was of course here there is more meat and veggies in the dish. The soup was very nice though. And a lot lighter than other ramen places in town. It's not a very large place but enough for a kind of homey coziness. There's not a lot to choose from on the menu, but I think having just a few yummy ones they are able to keep their consistent food quality. I'm going for the spicy chicken one next time! =)

Added Jan 14, 2008 by monja of South Granville, Vancouver (13 Reviews)

Best ramen in Van so far
This is the real deal. Finally, finally there is a place worth going in Vancouver that approaches some of the better ramen shops in Tokyo. The chef used to work at Kintaro a couple of doors down, and since he left the ramen there just hasn't been the same. Motomachi is now the place to go.

Motomachi's broth is chicken-based rather than the traditional pork-based broth, so it's lighter and apparently healthier. I usually can't drink all the leftover broth because it's so heavy, but this broth was very light and tasty. I had the charcoal bamboo ramen, which was awesome. It has a miso base and uses charcoal powder (!) for an added smoky kick.

I agree with a previous poster that the stools are kind of uncomfortable, but other than that the atmosphere is great. And you'll definitely pay more for a smaller portion than at other ramen shops. I personally prefer quality over quantity. If that's your preference, this is where to go for ramen in Vancouver.

Added Oct 29, 2007 by foodfanatic of South Vancouver (295 Reviews)

Savoury chicken soup base.
About 4 choices of noodles. Then side dishes & toppings for a premium. Listed 1st is the shoyu ramen. Its savoury chicken soup stock is very good. They focus on chicken stock soup base for all of their ramen offerings as is indicated by the written referral a couple of doors down at Kintaro's. I suppose Kintaro makes a pork stock for their soup base. The soup here is less greasy & the single slab (unless u order the most expensive option that has an extra pc) of bbq pork you get is thicker, less fatty, more meaty than Kintaro but you get next to no greens. I wouldn't call backyard "wild" pickings "greens" & they're the dry weed variety. I'd hate to call them herbs for their total lack of flavour & aroma. It's more of a decorative item. $10 +/- 5-95cents. If you want veggies, more meat, seaweed (a little sheet of the dried sushi rolling type--I felt cheated paying extra for this!). The last ramen option on the list--I forget the name--is much heavier due to the black bean taste/content added to make it a dark green/black soup. Both were served w/ half a cooked (quail?) egg & some bamboo shoots. That was interesting with its strong flavours but masks a lot of the best thing about it--the savoury chicken soup base.

Walking by the very busy Kintaro, I couldn't help but zoom in on the beautiful batch of leafy "bak choi" (?) a girl was enjoying. I remember corn in Kintaro's ramen. I glanced at the prices... $6.95+... $4 less than my bowl of, albeit tasty & not as greasy, noodles but w/ much more barebones except for the thicker slab of meat (a little on the dry side).

Definitely trendy modern & great for the ramen experience but a little more laid back & less rushed than Kintaro. Not sure if it was the mood set by the decor or the fact that there's little to no line-up here in this tiny place in comparison.

Will I be back? Maybe 1-2 times a yr when introducing others to tasty expensive ramen but I'm not sure I'd be willing to fork out more $$ to try their sides.