Jumak
- Hours:
Mon-Thu 11:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Mon-Thu 5:30 p.m.-12:00 a.m.
Fri-Sat 11:30 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
Fri-Sat 5:30 p.m.-12:00 a.m. - Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Private Lot
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Dinner
109 reviews
Palo Alto, CA
"The last time I went here was sort of a date, I guess you could say. I arrived ahead of time to get seats. I was quickly ushered to my…" read more »
37 Reviews for Jumak
Went to try this place shortly after it was opened. It was a very neat little place and the decor was the only WOW factor for me. Tried their ramen during lunch time and I don't think I can say this is a real ramen place. They tried though. I would not go back for the ramen alone however. I would probably still prefer to go to a real Japanese place for ramen, such as Ramen Halu. Their food did not taste bad but just nothing special. The staff was friendly.
The decor inside is very very nice. The service was really nice too because the people were friendly. I went here with my bf with a 25$ gc from restaurant.com. We had to order 35$ worth of food to use this gc. So, we order the donkatsu, fried tofu appet, deep fried spicy tuna sushi rolls, and skewers meal. It added up exactly to 35$! Crazy stuff! Anywhos, the food was not that great. :[ My skewers were burnt so it didn't taste so great. The tofu was not bad and the sushi rolls were just ok. I've had way better at real Japanese sushi places. Bf's donkatsu was thin and crispy. I think his meal was the best out of everything we ordered. The total came out to be 12.89$? Around there....which was sweet.
Next time, I should try some other things....maybe the stuff we got today wasn't the best choices..
3.5
one star for service
one star for decor
one star for being on restaurant.com
half star for food
Great place to go after 9pm!
We were cruising around 10:30pm looking for a non-fast food place to eat and found this. (pretty tough to do in the bay area)
We were greeted with an energetic "IRASHAIMASE." I didn't expect much since the workers were all young and the place was open so late.
Surprisingly, everything tasted very good and service was well! I was in disbelief, I tried to find something wrong with their food and moved to the soup, but even the soup was good. Give it a shot :)
I would've given them a 5/5, but I was turned off by the server(s) going out to greet their friends at least twice during our short stay instead of filling up our water. Great that they have friends visiting, but just not what you expect from a nice and chic looking restaurant.
Good food and nice ambiance. For a Friday late night dinner, it wasn't so bad. Spent about $35 for two people. Ramen wasn't that bad. We also had the Deep fried spicy tuna roll which was presented nicely and tasted good too. I would definitely go back. I really like the decor too.
Seafood ramen was cramped with lots of seafood, and it looks like a lot, but don't let looks deceive you. There's lots of shell but little meat. Broth was delicious. Ramen didn't taste fresh, looked like it came out of a package. Decor and service was nice! It's one of those places with nice packaging, but when you get down to it, it's not all that.
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Is it tradition to serve ramen with a big hunk of fat? Every ramen place I've been to does that. Despite not having meat compose at least half my meal at Jumak, I was still very satisfied. The broth was tasty, loved the chewy noodles, and it went well with a side of kimchi and radish.
Alright, so this ramen house played Korean music, served Korean beer and side dishes, had a Korean waitress, and had a menu written partly in Korean. Most all "Japanese" restaurants in Santa Clara are Korean owned, don't hate.
This place definitely took some chances with the decor, and succeeded in delivering a classy ambiance. My personal recommendation is to stick with the Ramen because you can get better bento elsewhere, and the kabobs were marinated in a sauce I didn't like. If anything, come here for a good ol' bowl of noodles and some $3 large Hite and OB for dinner!
I would imagine that Koreans would know how to make Japanese style ramen in new and innovative ways. Both countries shared much in styles of cuisine due to the Japanese colonization of Korea. It is evident that this restaurant is a fusion of that past relationship in history while retaining its name Jumak which represents the Korean huts that travelers could let their weary horses rest while enjoying a nice meal and beverage. Many reviewers of Jumak say that this is ramen restaurant but I think it is evident that Jumak is also striving to offer Japanese cuisine with a Korean kick.
I loved the spicy mussels and deep fried spring rolls that I had for appetizers. Both provided a sweet and spicy element to whet the appetite and was perfect to have with sake. I ordered the Sashimi Salad (Korean Hwe-du-bop) and was happy with my very Korean dish while my husband ordered the Spicy Seafood Ramen which I also enjoyed tasting. I look forward to going to Jumak next time I am in the area for both its food and ambience.
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I am a ramen fanatic so upon reading reviews headed to Jumak. Previous posters were correct, the spicy seafood ramen is the way to go. I wasn't impressed with the majority of other items on the menu. The Okonomiyaki was alright only because there is such a scarcity in San Jose.
The other major find was that between 5-9 they have large bottles of OB or Hite for 3 bucks -- sweet. I will continue to frequent here for cheap beer and spicy soup.
i had a dream while eating the spicy something ramen here. and that dream was to one day eat an ice-cream while riding a whale in the south pacific. i told you i had big plans.
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Other reviews for this restaurant are pretty lukewarm, which I think is pretty harsh! Maybe because they got ramen for lunch, and I got grilled snacks at night.
This place is like...a Korean izakaya? I guess that's what I'd call it.
Gail F. and I got sake and soju and some little grilled dishes.
THEY WERE ALL DELICIOUS.
The service was really, really nice, and the food was great! Order the small dishes! Our favorite was the "Pork and mushrooms," or something, which was skewered chunks of mushroom, wrapped in BACON. WHOA
The bamboo soju was SO MELLOW. Is soju always so mild-tasting?
I had a really good experience! And this place is within walking distance from my house! No designated driver needed! I'm so excited to have decently-priced Izakaya food and drink so nearby. I will definitely go again.
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Interior decor - Simple, modern, original, clean. Gives a cool atmosphere. I love the fake cherry blossoms and the lotus lamps.
Wait staff - Very courteous. Very good service throughout our dinner. They never missed refilling our water or tea.
Bento box ($9.50)- I ordered one with pork cutlet and pot stickers. The bento box comes with the usual rice, salad, and soup. However the miso soup was not really miso soup. It was just a broth garnished with green onions. It's served extra hot! I burned my tongue. :X The salad is very plain with just lettuce and a slice of tomato. Pork cutlet and pot stickers (4 pieces) were all crunchy and tasted fine. The serving size of the bento box was perfect for me.
Ramen bowls - My step dad and sister ordered these. I didn't ask their opinion, however my step dad thought the ramen lacked veggies. The ramen come with a side of kimchee and diakon.
Overall, don't expect it to be a typical Japanese restaurant. It's located in a plaza of many other Korean stores. On the outside of the restaurant, it even says "Korean Cuisine" and "Japanese Cuisine" on the windows. Their menu has item names in Korean and the staff is all Korean. You can definitely tell in the food that it's not authentic Japanese. They don't serve sushi here. Anyway, I thought it has a good flavor of Korean cuisine influences. The food uses minimal ingredients, but I think the atmosphere and service pushed this review to 4 stars. I'll definitely come back and try other dishes and some soju with my friends.
I've come here a couple of times for lunch now. Both times I've gotten the Kimchi Ramen Seafood Bowl. When they say seafood, they really mean it. There was soooo much stuff in the bowl I felt like I was eating the Pacific. The ambience is very clean and trendy, pretty nice. They also serve bento lunch boxes, I haven't had those but they look tasty. One thing... I ate here yesterday and I started feeling a little during the afternoon. Hmmm... highly suspicious minus 1 star.
we definitely needed a ramen place on el camino. this is a great place to try out ramen w/ great ingredients. i love their spicy seafood ramen. just a warning: it's a lot of food! we've been here a number of times. they packed my leftover ramen w/ fresh soup during my first visit there, which really impressed me. the service there's amazing! the decor's upscale for a ramen place. i tried out the lunches as well as dinners. i really like the kkochi (shish kabob). they open late... so bring friends and hang out @ this restaurant.
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Came to this restaurant for a birthday dinner back in Sept '07, not the best place for a birthday celebration just because its so small.
Anyway, came here again for lunch. Not too exciting at all, whats a Japanese restaurant without a sushi bar.
I gave an extra star for the COOL toilet seat, it had one of the those heated toilet seats, complete with air dryer and water spray. A Jaapanese in your seat bidet!
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This place is awesome... the decor is like a fusion asian thing, i really like the decor.
the food is pretty good, especially the bento box and their cold ramen. Oh, you have to try the grill squid. the service is nice and mellow... It's just a good place to go have your lunch or dinner and then head over to Santana Row.
We found this place driving up and down El Camino looking for a place to eat the other night.
My husband was none too excited about spending that much money on ramen but we thought we'd try it anyway.
I wish we had stayed home and made ramen there instead. The shoyu ramen I ordered was very bland. It came with veggies and pork, but the port was too tough. Hubby ordered the kim chee ramen and was not too pleased with it either. The girl ordered the miso ramen which she liked and the boy, grilled saba, which disappeared before our eyes!
Ambiance was ok - lights were dimmed but decor was nice. Service was also good, though there were only 3 other parties there aside from us. I don't think we'll be going back - it truly wasn't worth spending that much on ramen that kept needing more shoyu!
"The Kid" loves noodles. He can eat them by the ton. Ja Jang Myung, Mak Guk Soo, ramen, pasta (of all kinds and sauces...including plain with a little butter or olive oil plus Parmesan)....The Kid has noodle skills. So we've been to a lot of noodle shops....been there, done that.
So on one guy's night out, I ordered the Shoyu Ramen for him and the Spicy Ramen (Hae Mul Ramen) for me.
At the end of the meal, 1 nearly full bowl of Shoyu Ramen and 1 half full bowl of Spicy Ramen. The Kid has strong opinions. "Daddy, I like the potatoes. I like the potatoes."
He was referring to the potato crisps they serve gratis when you order the meal.
Granted, Jumak does not advertise itself to be a ramen place per se. It's really more like an izakaya (but as is so often the case in this multicultural land, it's a Korean joint in Japanese clothing). So to be fair, The Kid and I have to go there and order the grilled items (Go Chi). We'll make it another guy's night out...BRING IT OOOOOOON!
It does open late and the decor is nice. Might not be a bad place to talk and have a late night meal with beer, soju or sake (sorry Kid, past your bedtime). Might raise it to 3 stars if it turns out good.
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jumak means a tavern, a drinking place. as their name suggests, this place looks primed for their dinner and drinking menu, but i wanted to try their lunch menu first. so i went today during lunch hours.
for lunch, they serve ramen (both japanese and korean style), bento box, and some other korean-japanese dishes. both kimchi ramen and seafood ramen (their specialty) are prepared in hot and spicy korean style and have boatload of seafood inside. but i've noticed that they have the same ingredient, except the kimchi ramen has kimchi and the seafood ramen has crab. the rest are the same. the portion is surprisingly large and pretty tasty i would say. their service is great. i will definitely come back for mo'.
This place has a nice ambience when you walk in (although towards the end of the night, it can get loud depending on the groups that are there). We came here mid-week for dinner, so we (a group of 4 & a baby) were seated right away. The lighting is on the dim side compared to the sushi place that was here before.
The menu seems like an asian fusion tapas place... with more korean and japanese influences. Since it's tapas style, it's not really family style -- but it could be if your group is 2-4 people. Any more than that then you have to order multiple orders if everyone wants a taste.
Everything we ordered was good: the seafood ramen, asparagus & beef skewers, chicken katsu, okonomiyaki. Service was ok. We did wait awhile for some of the dishes. But I'd definitely come back to try their other dishes!
We went into the place for its nice decor. Food is blend. We got seafood Kimchi Ramen which is really spicy but not much taste and Shoyu Ramen which is too blend. You can buy the packaged ones in supermarket and they would taste silimar. Agedashi tofus is ok.
Probably will not go for lunch again. There are so many good korean and japanese restaurants on El Camino Real. This place is so mediocre..sorry.
5 stars for decor
5 stars for service
3-4 stars for food
The food is quite nice, not superb.
We had a salmon entree, a ramen, and a few of the Yakitori style items.
The big problem is that Jumak lacks a theme. I understand Jumak tries to please everyone but there has to be a reason why
1. they were not jam packed on 830pm Saturday night.
2. we witnessed 2 groups of people leaving without ordering (that is sad, but they are the ones who miss out on great service and good food).
Obviously the restaurant is trying to find it's footing.
Advice for Christina, James, and the Jumak Crew:
Focus on being a Korean "Izakaya" (sorry I dont know the term in Korean) or something else, create a theme.
You have done well with the decor and quite well with the food, not to mention to impeccable service.
Add a brief ONE-PAGER in the menu explaining why the founders started the restaurant and give the diners a bit of insight on why the selection of items in the menu. This will definitely allay the fears of the 1st time customers who are too chicken to order anything from the menu. I know you guys are friendly, attentive, and perfectly bi-(or multi)-lingual so you have the advantage of being able to cater to all customers, but a bit of outbound marketing will go a long way for you.
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***Review only for their Ramen***
A Korean restaurant that offers Japanese style ramen for lunch. With numerous Chinese owned ramen shops opening up (Majikku, Osaka Ramen, etc.), why not a Korean ramen. Thanks to heads up from Sofi P. (http://drnerd.yelp.com/), I stopped by Jumak for lunch on my last trip to South Bay. I sat there debating between shoyu ramen or spicy seafood ramen. Living so far from this place, I knew I would not go back anytime soon, so my choice was critical. I went with spicy seafood ramen, which I was glad I did, because it was tasty. I wouldn't go here looking for the most authentic Japanese ramen, but if you want a change-up in your usual ramen rotation, a trip to Jumak to try their Korean-style Japanese-ramen is well worth a trip.
DECOR: Quite impressive. This new restaurant really did an excellent job on interior decoration.
Men (noodle): C. Medium thickness, wavy. The usual prepackaged stuff. Disappointing.
Soup: A- for their spicy seafood. Creamy and spicy - very nice balance. By far the best part about their ramen.
Toppings: B. Looked like they used frozen seafood mix, which I could find at Costco.
Their Gyoza unfortunately was deep fried. All in all, I would probably give them 3 Stars based on their Ramen, but I'll give them an extra star for how pleasing this place was to my eyes.
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Damn. If I had known Toro E had already reviewed this place for the ramen I would have tried that. Not to mention the huge RAMEN sign outside. However when I saw that they had all sorts of skewered items and other grilled, like ribs and steak, I got excited for carne. There were a lot of choices and I didn't know where to turn. Luckily there's a Combo Skewer plate that is a sample of ALL of the skewers. That's correct: ALL!
So what came to me on two different plates:
Grilled Chicken
Chicken Gizzard
Squid
Baby Octopus
Bacon Wrapped Cherry Tomatoes
Bacon Wrapped Oyster Mushrooms
Grilled Pork
Beef Wrapped Asparagus
Black Cod
Grilled Ebi Shrimp
In addition to that you get Miso with your meal. All this for $25. That just rewls. In addition, my friends went with the following:
Grilled Ika (large squid)
Mango Salsa Salmon
Everybody was really happy with their food. The only drawback is that there are certain items are only available for dinner, all the specialty soups, a Japanese Udon pasta, and the okonomiyaki (which I haven't had in years).
The service is pretty friendly and I got my soda refilled several times. However we were there for a late lunch and they definitely wanted to close the cashier at around 2:30pm. The place was pretty empty except for a few people at the time and the decor is very new and hip. The waitress said that the menu was changing soon too, so I guess I'll just have to go back for dinner and try some of these dishes that you can only get then. Oh and the ramen too.
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A nice restaurant with fancy decor. I like the trees that they installed indoors. The food was all right - I ordered shoyu ramen (noodles in a soy sauce soup base) and tako yaki (grilled octopus) and they tasted all right, but I always get a little weary when people don't serve food from their own country (i.e. Koreans serving Japanese). On top of that, our server was like always asking us how everything was without waiting for our response... it's like she on auto pilot. The place is good for a late meal and is reasonably priced.
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The service here is impeccable. I would give that 6 stars if I could. They are really attentive, nice, and personable. All the waitresses are super cute too. I also love the decor. There are even indoor trees decorated with fake snow for the winter season.
But, I would give the food 3 stars. At first, I really liked the ramen but the more I had it, the less impressed I was. You do get a huge portion for what you pay, and the pork, broth, and enoki mushrooms are really good. But unfortunately, the noodles taste like they came from frozen packages.
I finally tried some of the grilled items the other night and I got grilled corn, tomato wrapped with bacon, and yakitori. I love that nice grilled slightly charred taste on all the food. The best one was the tomato wrapped with bacon. The grilled corn was good but I suspect that it was also frozen. The yakitori was good except for the overpowering spicy sauce that was on top.
I really do like going to Jumak though. I am guaranteed to be full without going broke, and besides, I love the variety on the menu. Although it isn't amazing food, it is good enough for me to keep coming back again and again.
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warning!! do not order the spicy soup unless you REALLY like it speecy -spicy. i do like spicy food, but this was so hot, i really could not eat it. once our food was served, no one came by to ask how we enjoyed our meals - they were busy from table to table and no one even looked in our direction. they were about 1/2 full.
kudos, however, when they finally did get to us to clear the table. i told them that my soup was to hot to eat and without me asking a thing - they made up another one for me - with less hot peppers ( or whatever was making it so hot). super nice of them to do. since it came after we were all done, i asked for it to be packaged to go. they did it and put the udon noodles separately so they wouldn't get all soggy. this redeemed them in my eyes.
on another note, one of our party ordered what she thought was the chicken liver and garlic skewer. make sure you read the menu carefully...it says GIZZARDS, not livers! needless to say, chopped livvah it was not :+}
I thought this would be a ramen house but no, it isn't. I had the spicy ramen which was o.k. Just tasted like Ichiban Sapporo brand...
The decor is really cute tho. Very "asian, earthy" vibe.
I decided to go tonight, since I was not feeling well and did not want to cook. The place itself was very pleasant and clean. Our server (Judy) was so very nice. My daughter and I ordered the Pork Katsu and a couple of other items. When the food arrived it was well prepared and hot.
However, I did not read my menu very well and when they brought out my food, it has a slightly spicy sauce on it. I can't take ANY hot spice at all, it makes me very sick. I felt so bad, when Judy came back to check on us, which she did in less than 5 minutes after our food came. I told her that I made the mistake, and she was so kind about it. She felt as though she should have told me that it had a spicy sauce on it.
She order another, packed it togo and gave me an extra soup along with it since it seemed I as though I wasn't feeling well.
So, I give this place 5 stars for service, tasty food, nice dinning area, and a wonderful and kind experience.
Thank you
I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt here with 3 stars because I didn't really like what I ordered. However, the other stuff may be okay. The food I got is probably around 2 stars.
I ordered the spicy kimchi ramen and tried some of the agedashi tofu.
The waitress warned me that the kimchi ramen had seafood in it, and I should have taken the warning as a hint not to order it. Two other people ordered the same thing at my table and we all concluded that the ramen was too seafood-y. I don't understand why they couldn't have had a normal beef kimchi ramen bowl instead...I think that would have tasted better.
Oh, and it was a little too spicy for me...I was sweating like a pig while eating it.
As for the agedash tofu...I've had better. Way better. It was too soggy and not crispy enough on the outside.
Maybe I should try the bento box next time...my friend had it and he liked it. Also, there was a mango salmon dish that looked interesting but was a little expensive ($12.50).
I guess I wouldn't mind coming back here and trying something else.
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Jumak has good food for an inexpensively priced restaurant. The chicken teriyaki is well seasoned and not too saucy. The pork in the ramen is too fatty, but the noodles are great. Try the gyoza (potstickers/dumplings)!
read about this restaurant in the merc news... sounded yummy, so i had to come check it out myself... the restaurant was nicely decorated as stated in the merc and from other yelp reviewers and it was very clean...
so with the food, i was slightly disappointed...
my SO had ordered the spicy ramen and he seemed pleased with it...
i was going to opt for the shoyu ramen but decided to try the skewers because the merc made it sound so delicious...
i had the unagi skewers... they were delish, but a tad on the oily side
i also had the oyster/mushroom wrapped with bacon skewers... little skewers of heart attacks!! it was yummy... but way too oily... i could only let 2 slide down my throat before i felt sick to my tummy... i think they could take out the mushrooms... then it wouldn't hold in so much oil
service was ok... a little slow...
nothing here that i'd HAVE to come back for, but i would come back to try other things...
I would definitely come back here again. The atmosphere is really nice for a relaxing convo with a friend. Our noodles came out really hot and the service was really attentive. The noodles were good, comparable to marachui (spelling). prices are ok and are about the same as all the neighbor restaurants. Noodles come with a little side of pickled daikon and kim chee.
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I saw the review in the SJ Merc and thought to give it a try. Service was a bit slow though I appreciated our party of 3 being seated at a table before the parties of 2 that arrived before us. They were eventually seated and even got their food just before us so it all worked out.
I ordered a Bento style box. It was pretty good. The seafood eggroll was not the traditional wrapped roll but rather very light and not too greasy. One of my lunchmates ordered some skewers. I tasted the octopus. It was just a bit spicy with the right amount of grill flavor.
We also split a bottle of moderately priced sake. It was a good Friday.
I finally decided to try this place out a couple of weeks ago after I had passed by this restaurant and saw the sign that the ramen place had opened. I had one of their lunch combo, the shoyu ramen and tempura. Both the ramen and tempura were good.
The reason for me giving this place only three stars is that they only offer three different types of ramen and not a large variety as I had assumed. I find it very deceiving, but then, I could be strict sometimes. They do have many items besides ramen.
i'm going to give this place a great review, primarily for a couple of reasons: 1) it is a ramen/ramyuhn shop that has toppings other than that fatty cut of pork, and 2) it's a beautiful example of koreatown 2.0.
for being billed as a ramen/ramyuhn shop, jumak doesn't offer too many varieties of ramen/ramyuhn. i believe it has exactly four ramen/ramyuhn dishes including haemool ramyuhn (seafood) and haejang ramyuhn ("spicy"). as i said, i'm glad i have choices of "toppings" or ingredients other than fatty pork and chasiu/charsiu (red, bbq pork). ah, so refreshing! i'm sick of picking out the bits of fat or spitting them out. it's nice to have seafood options. also, i was happy to find the broth not overly salty, which is more than i can say for places like ramen halu, which is very expensive.
anyway, this restaurant is not billed only as a ramen house / ramyuhnjip. it's also billed s a robata grill. berkeley migre/expatriates might miss kirala's robata grill, and this one kind of brings me back there. so far, i've had the dalkddongjipggochi, which they've euphemised on the menu as "dalk morae jip" (changing the korean word for chicken gizzard from "chicken dung house" to "chicken sand house," which is an equally truthful description if you understand avian physiology). it was very tasty and not overcooked.
now, let's discuss how jumak may prove to be an integral part of ktown 2.0: many yisei, second generation korean.american younger or youngish adults love patronising korean restaurants to feel reconnected with the korean culture that they feel distanced from either because they rejected it from their parents or strayed from it during high school or college. thus, they like going to what they consider "authentic" korean businesses where the ajoomma and ajuhssi (aunties and uncles) don't speak english [and maybe even speak satoori (country accented) korean for that extra gohyang (hometown) feel] and run a very spartan shop with good food and plenty of extra "suhbiseu" (service) freebies if you speak korean. sure, this is the feel you find in l.a.'s koreatown or that of garden grove or hacienda heights down south. however, santa clara / sunnyvale's koreatown honestly has evolved a bit beyond that. it's a different crowd, a different mix up here in the silicon valley. these savvy restauranteurs are feeding silicon valley's brain power at lunch as well as providing dining options and a nightlife for koreatown's main strip (el camino real). as a result, we have restaurants like jumak and beque grill down the street, which sort of remind me of that failed attempt called boas over on steven creek boulevard. these are fusionish restaurants that have nice dcor and classy tableware. is it fusion as done the asian-am way like straits? i think it's more ilke fusion down the korean way, like what i see in korean dramas all the time and what i've witnessed in chic neighbourhoods of seoul. i believe that these newer restaurants are part of koreatown 2.0. we have younger restaurant owners providing a more high-end dining experience in korean cuisine and their youthful creativity shines through. compare the nouveau feel of jumak to the lotte hotel style baroqueness of sanjang (korean palace) over on stevens creek. do you get what i mean? have a seat at jumak and check out the mix of music: it's a mix of english language, american tunes as well as the latest korean gayo (kpop, not halabuhji jjang jjang jjang trot stuff, which is the korean equivalent of mariachi music juxtaposed with reggaeton). hey, santa clara's koreatown is growing up! it's like comparing asian-am cinema in its 1980s childhood (_double_happiness_, _joy_luck_club_) to its maturity at the turn of the millennium (_better_luck_tomorrow_, _the_motel_). whether you think so or not, i believe it's progress. yeah, it's sad that my old friend steve's family's melody cd and sushi shops that used to occupy this spot had to close; but hey, everything happens for a reason, eh? now why can't american itunes offer a better selection of kpop tunes?!
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Looks like I'm the first "outsider" reviewer for this new restaurant. :-)
After hearing about a new ramen place in Santa Clara I've decided to give it a shot earlier this week. It turned out that they offer a bit more than just the ramen -- Upon scanning thru menu Jumak also serves a variety of skewers and other small dishes that'd probably go well with a round of sake or two. But I'll have to come back for them some other time.
Anyhow.. For 8.50 you get to have a lunch combo with ramen + side. I ended up having Shoyu Ramen & Deep Fried Haru-maki. The ramen wasn't too salty (that's the way I like it) and pretty flavorful, but I would have preferred a richer broth and extra garnish such as chopped green onion. Thumbs up for noodle and chashu quality. Haru-maki's crisp and went well with sweet/spicy dipping sauce. For the purists out there this place might not meet his/her expectation at first (non-Japanese owned, Korean?), however I have a feeling that Jumak will probably build enough character of its own to differentiate itself from other ramen shops and izakayas in the south bay. I plan to come back soon to try out their seafood ramen.
Food - 4/5 (still quite new to prove itself)
Decor - 4/5 (nice interior, could use a bar for single patrons)
Service - 4/5 (friendly staff)
Access/Parking - 5/5 (newly paved parking lot, right on El Camino)
Jumak Grill and Sake House is quite possibly one of the best places to work, eat, drink and play at.
It is true that I myself am an employee at this new restaurant, however, please note that I am one to be quite honest about everything and anything. Hell I'm the one who told my best friend (girl) how fat she looked in her prom dress.... so honesty isn't an issue.
I won't say that this is the best place to go to for five star rating food, but it isn't just the food that i am reviewing. The overall environment of this restaurant is very friendly and welcoming. With a great, young, and somewhat experienced staff, service is something that we all view as an important aspect of not just the customers' experiences but an important aspect of our working experiences.
The interior of this place is really something else. With indoor trees and flowers hanging from the ceiling, this is a place i often dream of a date taking me out to for after dinner casual drinks and appetizers.
Dining-wise i would recommend to start off with the baby-octopus, or shrimp or black cod or pork-e skewers (all skewers come in pairs), and if not just drinking, order the white maguro tataki (though many people enjoy the okonomi Yaki, i for one don't care much for it). On to some entrees... for the ladies, the stuffed chicken katsu (stuffed with cheese and vegetables) is to die for, it comes in a very flavorful red wine sauce. The guys pretty much enjoy anything on the menu... rib-eye steak or one of the two choices of Japanese ramen just happen to be the more popular choices.
Though we are named as a sake house, the restaurant's alcoholic beverages are still a bit limited. However, if you do choose to drink try the JUMAK SOJU, which comes in an awesome custom-made bamboo container. It tastes much smoother than any other Korean Sake.
ANYWHO... in short, i must say that i do highly recommend this place to anyone in the area who wants to have a casual but fancy dining experience, moderelately low prices, and smiling service.
COME IN ON THE WEEKENDS AND ASK FOR ME CHRISTEE!!! And don't leave without letting me know what you think!
See you at Jumak!
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