Hey everyone!

Joan here. A while back, I went on a date with some guy in Downtown Los Angeles. He had never explored DTLA so I showed him all the cool spots: The Last Bookstore, Angel’s Flight, Grand Central Market, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Grand Park, and of course, Little Tokyo. We discovered an amazing place called Boba 7, hidden behind a thai restaurant, where you can get ALCOHOLIC BOBA!

Adult Boba

Our last stop was Little Tokyo, where we had dinner at Maruya, an all around Japanese restaurant that also served ramen. I’ve been to every ramen spot in Little Tokyo so I was excited to try some place new. Maruya is located in the Japanese Village Plaza.

Maruya 

Delicious sake and pork gyozas

 We started off with sake and some gyozas that were alright. I ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen and he ordered the Miso Ramen. For a restaurant that was not focused on ramen, this place was not too bad. My ramen was satisfying: the broth was flavorful, the chashu was tender, the noodles were pretty firm the way I like them, and the egg was okay. I had a taste of the Miso ramen and the miso was a bit too pungent from what I’m used to. Maybe the bamboo got in the way of the flavor. I hate bamboo… UGH! I definitely would order the Tonkotsu over the Miso.

Tonkotsu Ramen 

Miso Ramen

Overall, Maruya had descent ramen. We only had to wait for about 10 minutes to get our table and the service was pretty good. If you don’t want to be waiting in long lines at the other ramen shops in the area, I would recommend Maruya if you really need your ramen fix.

After dinner, we couldn’t leave Little Tokyo without some dessert and some coffee at my favorite place, Cafe Dolce.

Mochi ice cream and vanilla latte

It was a fun day of walking around Downtown LA and discovering new places to eat and drink. I love DTLA for all its architecture, culture, places to eat, and I’ve always found some hidden treasure every time I’ve visited.

I have more posts coming up so stay tuned! Thanks for reading!

Joan

Restaurant Info:
Maruya
104 Japanese Village Plaza Mall
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 613-9988

There is street parking all around Little Tokyo and a few parking lots and structures.