Tai Sei Ramen Incorporated

Quick service, the food came out hot with steam coming out, solid taste, cheap and filling! The name is slightly misleading since I feel that their best items are not the ramen. However, I feel like the ramen is made light on purpose to compliment the rest of the menu. If you just need a nice place to relax with cheap and good food, then this is it!

Great friend rice. It is local style and the House Special Fried Rice is always full of flavor. It punches your mouth with the bacon and veggie medley. Their fried gyozas are also a treat. The service is also pretty fast even when they are really busy. Although I haven't tried everything, I find what I have tried great. I give them a thumbs up. By the way, they also have party trays that are pretty tasty.

I stumbled into this place--literally, because my blood sugar was low and I was fading fast--in January. It was a good deal for the money, and the food was delicious AND the service was fast. Triple play, right? It was tricky for me to find--there's a sign on the street side that I came in on, but I had to cross through and pass some offices, then go down a set of stairs before I found it. It was totally worth it, though. I had the lunch special (ramen), which would have been filling enough all by itself, but I had to try an appetizer--pot stickers, as I recall--and they really rocked. I was almost too full, and yet spent less money and time than almost anywhere I've eaten in Hawaii--to include any fast-food joint. If you're hungry, try this instead of a fast-food option. The ramen here reminded me of the stuff I enjoyed during four months in Japan--delicious flavors, great portion size and dang near authentic as far as I could tell.

Right up front, I'm going to be clear that the food here is good, but not great. I've never stopped here and said "THANK GOODNESS I CHOSE TAI SEI". That being said, there is a certain serenity to eating here. Perhaps its the close proximity to Honolulu's Finest. Maybe it's the very friendly and accommodating staff. I have given them my business time and time again over the years because there's something about this place that I can't quite put my finger on that I like.