Riozen - Makati

First time here in riozen a japanese resto in makati phil, at first all the staff greeted us with irasshaimase, mening welcome to the store, or come in! they are giving cold towels to start. i ask the waitress to order for me coz its my first time, She gave me a breaded pork with egg and rice, that i didnt really like because the pork is not crispy anymore. But i love the ramen She gave with mild spicy and very tasty, california maki roll with average taste. I notice one wooden shelve with bottles and name on every bottle and curiously ask her what is that for, she told me its for the regular customers its keep bottle, they will return to drink it again if they didnt finish the liqour. Ambiance is good, service is fine, taste of the food is average and expensive.

Located at Little Tokyo, Makati where the ambience is very.. Japan-like! Haha of course!???????????? must-try? Shoyu Ramen and sashimi roll (was my first time LOL)

Since it was raining, we chose to dine in instead. Due to the weather, I naturally went with some ramen. I had the Champon ramen and all I could say was "uma!" ❤️ It had this creamy white soup based and had this rich umami flavor that I couldn't describe. It was full of veggies and the noodles weren't too soft either, just the right chew in it which I like. Despite being 320, I think this bowl of magic deserves praise. But it is true, for their other dishes, it seems quite expensive as other places offer things on par with taste with lower prices.

I'm Japanese and I think Its a good restaurant. Very nostalgic for me because it is like the izakaya we have in Japan. Mostly Japanese customers few filipinos. Going there is like going back to Tokyo. Good food, the chief is Japanese, and the price is the same as in Tokyo.

Riozen is a very good restaurant and worth your consideration. I lived in Japan for 5 years as a working exchange student and this resto is one of the closest you can get to capture the authentic taste and food of a down town Izakaya in Tokyo. The Japanese Chief is always there supervising the staff and their dishes are not only a wide variety but also very close to taste of the resto bars in Japan. In fact The very fact that the restaurant is patronised by more Japanese customers than local filipinos shows that the restaurant is authentic.   I respectfully disagree with the other reviews. There was one reviewer comparing the prices of Dampa with Riozen, thats unfair as Japanese restaurants usually command a premium because of the craft involved in cooking Japanese dishes. There is no Japanese restaurant out there that have the same seafood prices as Dampa (which is basically a market place). A cook in Dampa cannot compared to a authentic Japanese Chief in skill and their dishes have a difference in taste.