Kinzo Udon

This place specializes in udon, making it a must-visit for udon lovers. The noodles are handmade not frozen, which makes a noticeable difference in taste and texture. You can choose from several soup bases, including tomato, fish, and beef, and customize your bowl with or without meat.After ordering, you pick up your udon and select any appetizers you like from a variety of options. The service is impressively fast--it's a semi-self-serve setup, and you'll have your food in under five minutes.The restaurant has plenty of dine-in space, but parking can be tricky. You can either pay for a nearby parking ramp or opt for street parking, which may require a bit of a walk. Still, if you love udon, it's absolutely worth it!

I was so excited to try this as soon as I saw them put up their sign. Walking in, the decor was very nice and felt like an upscale cafeteria. You order at a kiosk, give your ticket to the person at the counter and pay! They had different sides and tempura set up like they would be at a cafeteria. The staff was friendly and very fast. The food was great! The tonkatsu broth was fatty and rich. The noodles were the perfect texture and the meat fell apart.My boyfriend enjoyed his curry but said he felt as if it could be used a little more salt.I felt as if the portions were big ! neither of us were able to finish our entire bowl.Overall i enjoy this place! I hope they add a couple more things to their menu!

Pretty mid udon in my opinion. The flavor is okay and the noodles were fine but I honestly felt like you could get it anywhere. The fried dishes were also extremely expensive and not worth the price. If you've never been to a place like this, it's a fun experience. But it's nothing special if you've been to other places outside of Minnesota.

While Punch Pizza will always be missed in this spot, I couldn't be more excited for Kinzo Udon to take over in its place! Walking over from my office on campus, it's a pretty slick experience! You simply go up to the ordering tablets and choose your broth, protein, and toppings! You then take your ticket to the line where you are given your noodle bowl. Lastly you make your way through the line of additional options, such as Katsu, Shrimp Tempura, Gyoza, etc. Check-out and find a seat to enjoy! I had the beef bone broth, which had a lovely flavor and the noodles were perfectly chewy! The 3 slices of pork Chashu was tender and flavorful! I will say that I'll probably skip the tempura flakes next time...they get soggy instantly and make for a less desirable broth texture. Overall, the perfect cool weather lunch spot on campus! Excited to come back!

I'm hoping this place improves with time but for now, I didn't like it much. The soup base options and toppings were pretty limited. I would have liked more flavor in the broth (more savory and umami taste) and wish it was hotter- it wasn't warm but also not hot enough for my preference. The noodles were really good, they had a good bouncy and chewy texture and was not mushy at all.I would say I really enjoyed the chicken katsu or fried chicken piece- it was crunchy on the outside, salty and juicy on the inside.It is cafeteria style with limited service interaction so I can't say much there besides the staff not really saying something but the total cost when checking out before sitting down or take out. There is a small condiment bar with soy sauce but the water station.In total it was about $20 for udon with egg, chicken katsu, shrimp tempura and veggie tempura- which I think is reasonable with the current prices of things but maybe pricey for students.It is located at the UMN East bank so there is limited metered parking.

Kinzo Udon fills a niche of fast, well-priced, yet quality food that's disappearing fast. There's a high degree of customization available, starting with choosing one of six broths. Of the four I've tasted, the beef broth with white pepper is my favorite. It's very rich with a flavor deep enough that you want to drink down every bit once your noodles are gone. From there you can add scallions (do), tempura flakes (don't, unless you want your bowl to quickly feel like mushy cereal), and a range of meat and egg options. If udon isn't your thing, they've got a couple rice bowls too.Service is quick and friendly, done cafeteria style with self-serve tempura sides to add once you've received your main dish. The environment is nice too, highly recognizable as a former Punch Pizza.Kinzo Udon is still in its first month, so there are a couple growing pains. The biggest thing that needs attention is temperature regulation. While I haven't received a cold bowl in my two visits, I wouldn't have minded if they were hotter. Same goes for the tempura. Also, the ordering system should be clarified. They hype up their paper ordering sheet online and throughout the store, but then you actually order via an electronic kiosk. No big deal, but a bit confusing at first.All in all though this place is a welcome addition to the UMN food scene, and I'm excited to see them grow!

Kinzo is our favorite new Japanese restaurant in the Twin Cities, and one of the best Udon spots I've been to in the US. Everything about this restaurant is super cool: the inside reminds me of being in Tokyo, right down to the computer ordering and the fun decor. The udon iteself is really tasty; they have a few different broth options, and the regular broth as well as the curry broth were both delicious. The noodles are fairly standard, but the toppings really "make" the bowls. We tried a couple different tempura items, and both the shrimp and sweet potato were perfectly cooked. The gyoza were great too. Customer service is awesome (they made a special bowl for our young daughter), and they have big doors they open in the summer which is cool. A must visit new restaurant in Minneapolis!

For Minnesota, I think this is a great addition to the food scene. Udon is a delicious comfort food and I definitely appreciate a place dedicated to that. It's pretty cheap and is cafeteria style where you order at a kiosk, get your bowl, and then serve yourself sides like shrimp tempura and gyoza. They only have 6 types of udon to choose from and I tried the curry base. I also got the chicken which was very crispy and well flavored. It's fast and convenient and probably perfect for the college environment it's located in. These kinds of chains are pretty common in Japan so it's cool to see it in Minnesota.

Fast service. Fresh and chewy noodles and the tonkotsu was actually spicy! The space is accommodating with various areas for seating. I like the decor here as well and it was really clean.

Love the concept that they have of ordering. You order on a kiosk, but originally they were suppose to have paper menus but I didn't see them during my visit. Udon was perfectly made as they were chewy and thiCCC Broth was more mild in depth, but great taste! As a first timer on ordering udon, I do wish they had a description on what the bowl comes with because I didn't know charsu, poached eggs, and etc were additional, but it's a learning experience!i have a tiktok video post for this review as well on @xcyannlee