House of Pong Asian Fusion

Me and my fiance usually come here on slow days and the food/service is always good. Usually don't get anything other than the Ramen, the salmon salad, and appetizers like fries or fried tofu, but this place has always been at the top of our list when we're in the mood to eat out and say "where should we go." The only downside is parking, but that's also a problem for literally all of the businesses that are located on that same street. After hour 5 of driving endlessly up and down the street waiting for someone to move their car, their ramen makes up for it. They make the effort to acknowledge you regardless of what you order, or how much you spend there.

Stopped by for lunch on Saturday, 12/21/24 with my mom. Located in the Claremont Village, we ordered the following:- 1 Tempura Udon = $17- 1 Wonton Noodle = $12SUBTOTAL = $29TAX = $2.76TIP = $7TOTAL = $38.76The atmosphere was okay - chairs and tables were a bit outdated. I really enjoyed looking at the cute birdie figures. It's a pretty small yet spacious place.Also saw a cute, chubby doggo outside napping.

Last night (12/14), I came in with my mom and grandma to introduce them to my favorite restaurant. We ordered the sizzling rice, yakisoba, and a bowl of ramen. It's worth noting that during our visit, we spoke Spanish out of respect for my grandma. When our food arrived, our server (a white woman) began mixing the sizzling rice. During this process, a piece of chicken fell off the plate onto the table. The server stared at the chicken for a few seconds, then reached over, grabbed my grandma's fork, used it to pick up the chicken from the table, and placed it back onto our plate. She then handed the fork back to my grandma and said, "Enjoy."We were in complete shock and couldn't believe what had just happened. We felt very disrespected and uncomfortable. Assuming a customer would be okay with this is crazy. It also makes you think about what might go on behind the scenes. We know the tables are cleaned but not everything is going to be sterile. We are at a restaurant not the OR and that's fine. After speaking with another person (whom we assume to be the owner), our server asked what had happened and went to the back to talk. She was clearly aware of the issue, but she didn't apologize. Instead, she ignored us and interacted with other (English-speaking) customers until it was time to collect the check.We understand that mistakes happen, and that she probably acted out of instinct. However, not acknowledging the incident, ignoring us, and only returning towards the end to collect the check and tip felt incredibly disrespectful. If she eats food off the table at home, that's her choice, but to assume we would do the same is just crazy. The owner did offer us new chicken, which we genuinely appreciated, but the entire situation was weird. We felt there were subtle undertones from the waitress as well .. just watch your plates when she is serving you. Unfortunately, I will not be coming back here

We have often passed this place by but have never gone in; we decided to change that. Service was fast and friendly-- they even have a server robot! We tried the pork chashu fried rice and the garlic noodles with chicken, which were both quite good. We also tried the beef balls, gyoza, and egg rolls from the happy hour menu, which we recommend if you love snacking (not pictured, as we gobbled them up quickly).

House of Pong Asian Fusion is one of my favorite local places to get my fix of vegetarian Asian fusion. I love their tofu veggie bowl... the tofu is cooked to perfection! I have also tried several if their meat dishes, and all have been good, but lately, I'm trying to eat more vegetarian, so I have been sticking to their veggie bowl, and I don't miss the meat bowls!I have been frequenting House of Pong since they were at their original location in a different part of Claremont, and at another location, which is now closed. But I'm glad this location remains!The restaurant is small, but they have a few tables outside. They used to have a cute patio they built during the pandemic shutdowns, but sadly the city has now ordered removal of those for all the restaurants in The Village (so sad!).It us family-run, and the people who run it are super nice! I always enjoy interacting with them!

Great food and great service. I lived my seared salmon rice bowl. There are so many good things on the menu here to choose from. Went there with my family on Monday. Everyone loved what they ordered. My husband and brother loved their ramen. It tasted the broth - very good and garlic-y. This was my second time there, but remembering they have raw and seared salmon - I will be back more often now. Fantastic place. Looking forward to seeing what their happy hour has to offer. I wish places would push and explain and advertise their happy hours even more. It is always a bit difficult to find happy hour info and most places change it often. Will be back soon to try happy hour and for many more lunches and dinner! The inside bar looks cool as well and probably would be fun to sit at. :)

One of my favorite little places to go for lunch! I always order the noodles with shrimp so good everytime! I also love their dog that is there...I heard the dog lost its partner and has been depressed so now they bring her to work Service is always on par and everyone is very friendly. It has been quiet the last few times I've went and they now have a little robot that helps serve. Worth trying!

I haven't been to this place in a free years. There last time was they were still in their old location. The menu had been streamlined from what I remember which is not a bad thing. I actually ate here two straight days. On the first day, The lunch specials they had looked good but I decided to get the sushi taco trio which is pretty refreshing. Fish was seasoned well and had a good amount of rice to go with the seaweed. Then I wanted a side dish, my waiter said that it was already happy hour (daily from 2-5) so several appetizers were only $5. The crispy tofu was good but the sauce was a little too sweet for me. On the second day I bought my son with me. He got the tonkatsu ramen and I did the build your own noodles bowl. The serving size was pretty generous especially for the price. Both broth were flavorful and had a little kick to it with wet liked. The slight disappointment was the shrimp croquettes, it was a little greasy and small. It's a fun novelty to have the robot server bring you your food. Overall a pleasant dining experience.

Came here on a Friday at 6:30 and beat the crowd that showed up around 8 pm. To our surprise, they had a service robot that was fun to watch wheel around the store and deliver dishes. Not at all what you'd expect in this little traditional feeling spot.The service was prompt and on top of it and kind even though we took up 2+ hours conversing with our friends. I could tell this was a neighborhood favorite since some locals were rolling in with their reservations and ordering their usuals.I shared the yakisoba mixed veggie noodles with my husband and it was a perfect light meal for the two of us. The veggies were delicious in the sauce and it comes out with great presentation on the skillet.Our friends got the lobster roll which they said was delicious and the steak fries. Devoured all of it!This is a great little spot to get some quality comfort food.

This restaurant has an interesting feature - a robot that brings you your drink and food orders. It was fascinating to watch.The lunch menu specials hit the spot. I got the fire dragon wontons which are dumplings with chili garlic oil, while my husband got the fried tofu (crispy and delicious!) as well as the bulgogi taco. Their food is tasty and given that each dish was priced (more or less) at no more than ten bucks, we got so much bang for our buck.Our server Carmen was so attentive. She knew exactly when to come over to refill our glasses with water. She was also there with a fresh pair of chopsticks when I clumsily dropped mine on the ground. She was so solicitous and good at anticipating our needs. She is a good enough reason to come back. We loved her!