Noren Izakaya

Delicious food, very friendly service. Would highly recommend.Their mushroom skewers are to die for. And the unagi/eel is incredible.

Servers were all really nice and the food was also all really good. They decorated the place well with izakaya themed lanterns and posters, and even a street fighter game! My only complaint is that they were a bit overpriced and they included in a 'Dine-In Fee'.The 'Dine-In Fee (18%)' was mixed in the receipt with the food items, and there was a tip field at the bottom separately. It was just me and my husband so it's not like we had a big party...If I did not look closely, I would have given a 20-25% tip on top of the 18%.Just seemed a bit shady to do that and not let the customer know.

This is my go to izakaya spot in the city! All the meat is cooked so well and it's fun to try a little bit of everything! I was also very impressed by their mushrooms.Definitely a great place for date night or even large parties!

Truly delicious experience at Noren! Service was quick (order on a piece of paper and the waitstaff bring out the skewers per order), and it definitely reminded me of a Japanese izakaya style vibe (dim, moody lighting). Although some of the dishes were on the saltier side, the overall char and flavor on the skewers was perfect. My personal favorite was the scallops. Super succulent and juicy, with the perfect grilled flavor. I would skip out on the curry if I come back, and would just opt for more skewers. That being said, I got full quicker than it thought I would and I would love to come back for some more skewers in the future!

Really good. All the meats were juicy and flavorful. My fave was the wagyu and the meatball. Dipping in the yolk took me by surprise--so goood. Filet also good and chicken breast came with other veggies. There wasn't a single thing I didn't like. Food came out fast even though it was busy. Felt satisfied but not full. High quality, not a lot of quantity for the price which makes sense :) Left smelling like smoke lol so girlies, go on wash day.

Food is fantastic! Try as many skewers as possible, but you have to order the meatballs, pork belly and the bean sprout dish. Every item is extremely flavorful and perfectly cooked! Space is on the smaller side so come in smaller groups! Service is great and the food comes out very quickly!

We were craving some skewers and found this place! This store is very cute and cozy - loved the decorations. Service was pretty good and staff are attentive. We were a bit disappointed by the skewers given the price. The chicken skin and karaage are a must try!!

A friend and I grabbed dinner here on a Friday night and were seated right away around 8pm without a reservation. The host (& possibly the owner) was very kind and gave us recommendations for sake. We ordered the chicken skin which was amazing and probably my favorite thing we tried since I'm also a fan of the one sold at Foodland in Hawaii. We also got an assortment of skewers and the onigiri on the side. The ambiance was familiar to that of izakayas I've visited in Japan but definitely more spacious. Towards the end of our meal, the kind host/owner gave us a sample shot of another bottle of sake on the house which was a great way to end our meal. Highly recommend checking this place out if you're in SF!

Came here with my dad on a Sunday evening around 6pm and it wasn't too busy. It's located in North Beach so it's a super cute area.We ordered a few meat skewers. The beef was the best and chicken I found a little on the dryer side. The pork belly was delicious though! The rice balls could have been a little more flavorful and tasted rather plain. Overall, the food was decent but nothing spectacular. The service was good though and they were all very kind. A good experience and seemed like a nice place for drinks with friends as well!

Our family had an enjoyable dinner at Noren Izakaya in Russian Hill / North Beach. My sister found this place on Yelp. The reviews were generally spot-on. The food was pretty solid and service was great. I also loved the vibe.We parked for free nearby on Powell Street, next to Washington Square (yes, we found a space on that tiny strip).There was almost no wait for our party of five on an ordinary Sunday around 6:20pm. We didn't have a reservation. However, I recommend making one. You can book reservations for Noren Izayaka via Yelp. We got lucky and arrived as soon as a similarly-sized group was leaving. We just had to wait for their table to be cleaned and set up for us. The restaurant and bar were moderately busy during our visit.Noren Izakaya has a more limited menu than I'm used to when it comes to izakayas. For example, they don't serve any sushi or ramen. Here, the emphasis is on skewers and small plates. The menus we received had 20 different kinds of skewers ($2.50-9.50 each), like Berkshire Pork Belly and Kurobuta Sausage (pork), and a dozen small plates ($3.00-12.00 each), like Kani Sunomono (red crab cucumber salad with ponzu jelly) and Crispy Chicken Skin.Here's what we got:Yakitori (Japanese chicken skewers)* Thigh x2 ($4.75 each)* Meatball x2 ($6.25 each) - served with Jidori egg dipping sauceVegetables* Cherry Tomato ($3.00)Meat & Seafood* Beef Short Rib x2 ($4.75)* Wagyu x2 ($9.50) - with wasabi* Bacon Scallop x2 ($6.50)* Bacon Mochi x2 ($5.00 each)Small Plates* Miso Soup x2 ($3.00 each)* Edamame ($5.00)* Agedashi Tofu x2 ($8.00 each) - fried tofu with bonito flakes* Tori Karaage ($10.00) - "old school style" fried chicken with tartar sauce* Gyutan Curry x2 ($12.00) - slow-cooked beef tongue with daikon in curry (available on weekends only)* Yaki Onigiri ($4.50) - grilled seasoned rice ball with tare sauceIn general, everything was tasty. There wasn't a single thing we were disappointed with. The skewers tasted hot and fresh off the grill. Since the individual portions are small, you have to order several dishes per person to get full; part of the nature of kushiyaki (Japanese skewers). According to the menu, Noren Izakaya grills their kushiyaki over bincho-tan, which is traditional Japanese white charcoal. Also as the menu points out, you should season your skewers with shichi-mi togarashi (Japanese seven-flavor chili pepper spice mix) and sansho (Japanese pepper similar to Sichuan pepper). Small bottles of both are available at every table.My favorites and recommendations are the Chicken Meatball, Beef Short Rib, Bacon Scallop, and Bacon Mochi skewers and the Tori Karaage, Gyutan Curry, and Yaki Onigiri small plates. The Chicken Thigh skewers and Agedashi Tofu are good too.I think the Chicken Meatball skewers are one of Noren Izakaya's signature items. Not only are the meatballs plump and flavorful with wonderful texture, but they're served with a Jidori egg dipping sauce. Jidori eggs are eggs from Japanese free-range chickens that are fed a vegetarian diet. Noren Izakaya serves the eggs with yolks intact. You beat and mix the egg(s) into a sauce yourself. The yolks we received were bold yellow-orange in color and tasted delectably rich. The meatballs had an appetizing char on the outside too.The Beef Short Rib and Bacon Scallop skewers were terrific. The Bacon Mochi skewers were interesting, in a good way. I wasn't sure bacon and mochi would work together, but they did in a more savory, less sweet way than I was expecting. If you're familiar with tteokbokki (Korean rice cakes), this reminded me of bacon-wrapped tteokbokki, except the rice cake here was a lot softer and suppler. While the Wagyu skewers were fine, the other skewers were better, especially for the price. The Wagyu was tougher than I expected. The wasabi they served with it was "real" wasabi, not the paste that's typically served with sushi.It's hard to go wrong with the Tori Karaage. It's an ideal app to share. We liked the Gyutan Curry so much, we ordered a second bowl. It's a hearty, filling curry with high-quality ingredients. The beef tongue was tender and succulent. The Yaki Onigiri really hit the spot for me. The rice ball was nicely grilled and seasoned. Noren Izakaya serves their onigiri unwrapped, which makes for a unique presentation. It was served with a few small yummy pieces of tsukemono (pickles) on the side.Service was fantastic. Our server was friendly and on top of everything. My niece accidentally spilled some miso soup. A young worker was quick to come and help us clean it up. The restroom was clean.I really dig the restaurant's "retro Kyoto" atmosphere. It's an izakaya with a hip ambiance. At the bar, they were playing interesting adult (but not explicit) anime. On the speakers, they were playing city pop -- Japanese pop music from the 70s/80s. I love city pop so I approve.Noren Izakaya opened in March 2019. It replaced Sushi Hunter.