On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Category: Japanese
Neighborhoods: Pacific Heights, JapantownMon-Sun. 12:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
"I'm almost offended by some of the so-so reviews given here. Ten-Ichi is a fantastic family owned Sushi restaurant. They've been in business…" read more »
i was having one of those days. it just seemed like fitting to go eat "on the bridge." i've always been skeptical of this odd looking place with bright green paint, all those stuffed animals but this day i was drawn.
the menu scared me. spaghetti and meatballs? ham & cheese? what the hell? i had to search to find something "Japanese." I settled on Udon. To my surprise it was delicious. Huge portion and not that expensive. Watching Japanese cartoons were a nice treat .
If you're looking for a little kitsch with your meal, this might be an option.
I've eaten here a few times. I was all ready to give this place five stars for the tasty food and nifty atmosphere, but during my last visit, I was treated quite rudely.
I ordered a melon soda because, face it, what other restaurants in the city serve delicious melon soda? When the older white waitress came by to drop off my beverage, I thanked her politely and she rolled her eyes as if thinking "What a loser, ordering a melon soda on a friday night" and then she walked away. The nerve! In a place where toys and comic books line the shelves and cartoons constantly play on flatscreens, she has the nerve to look down on me for ordering a melon soda!
I must have been visibly irritated, because when she walked by a few minutes later, she had a smug smirk on her face as if to say, "Good, I pissed him off. Score one for me." Grrr... Way to alienate your customers.
That said, the younger waitresses seem a lot nicer than that older beyotch. Nonetheless, I think I'm done with this place for awhile.
"Hey Honey, let's eat on the bridge!"
"What? You want to eat on the bridge?"
"Errr, yeah? What's the big deal?"
"F that, I ain't eatin' on no bridge like a hobo!"
On the Bridge, is really on the bridge in the Japan Center that connects the two sides together. It's really really small and I have to admit that the service is a bit slow sometimes. I've had the kara-age, the curry, and both versions of the Locomoco (too many times... :P) and honestly, sometimes I think the hype kills a restaurant experience. The general rule for me is to ignore hype and really go in and try a place for what it is, and is worth.
Kara-age - meh, it's alright. Sometimes its a little overfried and greasy, but there was this one time it was absolutely divine! Probably just got lucky.
Curry - Tasty, but other reviewers are right, the portions are a bit small, and for it being advertised as SUPER spicy, i was like...meh. XX Spicy was not spicy at all. Next time, I'm going to ask for xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxspicy, just to see if it can make me break a sweat. :) Masochist?
Locomoco Sizzzzzzzllleeee platter - so, here's my first love (at this place)...its a hamburg steak with your choice of sauce over noodles served on a sizzling platter. And HOOOOMG, this thing is huge and GREASY FATTENING goodness. I also like the nice little egg on top! Yum to the maxxxxxxxxx!!!!
Locomoco Over Rice - a variation of the above and equally as yummy. I have no issues eating this all the time. But beware gassiness after you eat? TMI? Don't worry, your significant other will thank me for warning them! :)
AAAAAND....THEY HAVE ASAHI BLACK. Love!
Serves Japanese Fami-Resu (Family Restaurant) type of food. Sometimes I crave Japanese spaghetti and Doria and I miss Fami-Resu such as RoyHo (Royal Host) soooo much. Unfortunately, I never found a good restaurant in the US who serves Fami-Resu food... On the Bridge's food quality is much worse than my high school cafeteria.....
I still love this place, but the service is VERY VERY SKETCHY sometimes. It is seriously a hit or miss. But nonetheless, i still love it.
Mentaiko spaghetti is my weakness.
Many people don't discover this place because they walk into the plaza, see Mifune or the sushi boat… Read more »
People in this country often speak negatively about "Westernized Japanese" food when taking a blow at unauthentic and/or poor quality Japanese restaurants. This place has "Japanized Western" food. If you expect high quality Italian or French food, this is not the place. If you're curious about how the Japanese bastardize Western food, then this is for you! Being relatively new to this style, I sampled all over the menu. Next time around, I may have to focus on different varieties of my favorite dishes: appetizers, pasta dishes and curry-based dishes.
Garlic-Potato Fries: More like fried circular slices than your traditional fries. Good bit of sautéed garlic on each round. Not completely crispy, but that adds the charm of novelty. Wish they had offered some Japanese mayo-based dipping sauce instead of boring ketchup.
Pizza w/ Sausage, Sansai and Fishcake:The size and thickness of the bread remind me of a personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut. The sauce is decent, but unremarkable. They put some yellow cheese (cheddar?) with the mozzarella to add a bit of sharpness... that reminded me of homemade snack pizzas on English muffins. Overall, the standard cheese pizza base didn't seem too exotic. The fact that you can add Japanese vegetables (sansai), fishcake and vienna sausages deviates from traditional pizza joints. The availability of odd ingredients is what really sells this pizza, not the dough/sauce/cheese.
Seafood Curry Pasta: My favorite dish by far! The waitress offered to prepare the pasta in an off-the-menu "wa-fu" style. It was sautéed with mushrooms, veggies, soy sauce and some other stuff. When the dish arrives, you can add the amount of curry and seafood you'd like. The noodles by themselves were delicious, subtle and buttery. Throw on the curry and you can truly appreciate the yoshoku style that is the Japanification of Western dishes.
Chicken & Sansai Au Gratin: Probably my least favorite dish. Rice and béchamel sauce combine to create the base, which is the tastiest part. Next layer is the chicken, which tastes overcooked and bland. Perhaps it would be better with a different meat, but the chicken was not good. Over that was a crazy amount of Japanese vegetables. I appreciate the gesture to make us eat healthy, but the ratio was clearly off when having to dig through all of that to hit the chicken and rice layers. On top is some melted cheese, the same combination as on the pizza. Would have been nice if they used more complex cheeses and/or more of it. By the time you eat through some of the vegetables, you have no cheese left to go with the rice.
SLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOW.
That's the one word that best describes this place.
We had 20 minutes to make it to our show and after relaying this to the waitress and asking what the quickest food to make would be, we set in for what ended up to be a looooong wait.
It was so long that we almost missed our movie, the boys had to eat in the theater (mine showed up on time) and we had to basically force our money on them to get them to check us out.
I had ordered the gyoza, which though it was yummy (and green in color) came with a bunch of random veggie crap on the plate. It actually took up more room than the food did.
I also had a miso soup, which tasted like it came out of a box and was served in a tea cup with a spoon. A spoon?
There is a special circle in hell for people who serve miso with a spoon.
Yea no. Never again.
Menu interesting, a japanese twist on west, italian, etc. food.
The service was slow because there was only one waitress
Food was flavorful and cheap
Lots of variations to try
Curry Udon - Smells sweet, great flavor and the noodles were OK.
MENCHI KATSU W/Tonkatsu Sauce...(Minced meat
[pork & beef] cutlet) - This dish was really good as it was flavorful, crispy, and moist.
Me and my boyfriend really really love to come this place.
Whenever we want to eat curry food... this is the good place to eat, very casual many Japanese comic books!!
We have been here for more than 5 years now, we know chef and his lovely daughters everyone is so friendly and nice!
I really like to eat chicken katsu curry donburi and shrimp katsu curry don. You can add spicy on curry as much as you want I think... I love crazy spicy food..... also you should try their pizza as appetizer
think it's called Karage or something,,, you can add any toppings on the list be creative!!!
I thought this would be better but the service was so slow! Waved a waiter over and had to wait so long to take an order. After ordering, the food took soooo long to come! I was famished by the time the food came. Normally while i am hungry, anything would do but the spinach with cheese was not for me. The other meal I got was good though.
I liked their Garlic Potatoes appetizers - round, sliced potatoes, covered with generous pieces of garlic.
The curry was just OK. I ordered spicy with onions, whole garlic and chicken. It was just thick and wasn't tasty or spicy. A bit too bland for me.
This is a cute shop though, to chill or to kill some time at.
Had the fried pork cutlet mild curry over rice. very eh. especially for 12 plus tax and tip. the garlic potato fries were even more eh. tasted like my own miserable attempt at homemade french fries. next venue.
Disappointing. You should expect more from a Japanese curry place in Japantown. The karaage (fried chicken) which was featured on its own page (in the confusing disorganized) menu as either an appetizer, entree, or meal was oh so yup you guessed it disappointing. It was over battered, over cooked under chickened and possibly msg'd. The curry I got "mild" and it was spicier than my cousin's "medium". It wasn't just spicier it was bitter with a plummy-ness to it... to make matters worse the texture of the curry was thick and goopy. It was so thick that it sat over the rice... or maybe it was the rice's way of rejecting it... smart rice. The ingredients weren't cooked with the curry but placed on top of it and served awkwardly in a gravy boat. Perhaps to accentuate the lack of flavor in everything? In which case well done! Total incohesiveness: achieved!
The Expectation : A yellow/brown curry - less spicy and oily than an indian curry and not as sweet as a thai curry in a not-so-thick-my-spoon-leaves-an-indentation- sauce with fresh ingredients (sauce included).
My dad ordered a pizza... the nicest thing I can say was that it wasn't terrible. You could probably make something similar and quite possibly better at home... we made the mistake of having the curry on it. nuff said.
The wait staff was very nice and the only reason I mentally teetered between 2 or 3 stars... but don't expect them to refill your cups or check in on you especially if you're the only ones there... it must be confusing for them to have customers.
I think I now have heartburn... excellent.
This place is okay. The service we experienced was really slow. They weren't even crowded. We ordered curry udon and curry with vegetables. Both were eaten up pretty quickly so we expected to get our check pretty fast. We waited patiently for a little while and then we finally stood up and paid at the register. We were planning on making this a fast meal in order to get to a show at the Fillmore later that night. The food was pretty decent though and the spice was perfect. The menu has lots of American style food with Japanese takes on them which is pretty clever. A word to the wise, don't go here if you need to be somewhere. Luckily, there were lots of crappy opening bands so we didn't miss the performer we wanted to see.
I admit that I've only had basically two items off the menu at On the Bridge. But those two items I've had at least 15 times, so I think my review will be pretty accurate on those points.
1. Curry - I love their curry! I am pretty picky about my Japanese curry and this place has the good stuff. I usually get the "choose your own" curry and get the spicy kind with broccoli, eggplant, and an egg. But they have multiple options that you can try. What I love about the curry is the sauce. The flavor and thickness of the curry is just right. I hate watered down curry and this curry is definitely not watered down.
2. Sanuki Udon - (Wild Mountain Vegetables) I don't know too many places that offer Sanuki Udon, so it's a nice change from all those tempura flakes floating around getting soggy in your broth. It's quite tasty and my boyfriend orders this every single time we go there. Which is a lot.
Okay, my small disclaimer is that I might be a tad bit biased in my liking of this place because we talked to the owner once and he was just super sweet and cute. (The picture of the guy with the bushy eyebrows that's always in front of the entrance? That's the owner/chef!)
In anycase, I vouch for the curry. If you have general cravings for Japanese Curry, this is the place to go.
If curry be your thang..then you should try this place.
I've eaten here about 6 times and each time, i pick the same thing.
The chicken katsu curry! Its so good! Yummy chicken, curry, rice and a fried egg on top...cant beat that!
The curry is a bit spicy for this white boy...but i am not complaining, my sinuses were clear the rest of the day, and I could breath!!!
Next time i will ask them to take it down a notch!
The cute thing about this place is sometimes the owner's kids wait tables...the first few times I ate there, one of them gave me a hard time, in a very wise beyond her years sort of way....Child labor is soooo precious!
If Anime is your thing, this place might please you as well..they play Anime movies for you to watch and have tons of books for you to browse through...(if you read japanese)
I've never actually eaten at the restaurant, though I've walked by it countless times. However, my husband bought me takeout from this restaurant a few nights ago.
Katsu curry over rice with Parmesan cheese.
I know, it sounded a bit strange to me, too. But it was surprisingly delicious. He explained to me that the restaurant doesn't serve fusion food, but rather a mix of Japanese and Western food. I asked him what the difference was, and he couldn't really explain.
Regardless, my meal was exceedingly good; katsu doesn't even travel all that well, so I can imagine that it would have been even better at the restaurant.
I came in excited and I left disappointed.
The portions were tiny (and I swear I don't even eat that much! *wink wink*) and the flavor was definitely lacking. I ordered the curry and it was sub par at best.
I probably won't return anytime soon although the other items featured on the menu do look rather tasty...
Fun! Comic books! Otaku! We got a plastic cat in our drink. Japanese spaghetti so good. Go here! Have fun!!
I went this weekend and, it just took too much time. It's a small comfy place for chatting and watching miyazaki films in the bkgd while eating some small dishes, but its only 'functional' if nobody is in it.
My friend and I sat down, and it was obvious from the get go service was an issue. The servers were too busy taking care of their own business, than the customers and even though there were people in line to wait to get in, it was very obvious there were vacant tables to be occupied.
The menu leaves much to be desired though, considering they have a katsu-curry donburi, but not a regular katsu curry entree, which was weird. I had assumed that curry was what this place was known for, and I myself ordered curry beef, but it took SO long to arrive(over 20 minutes) and i found that the portions were so small i finished it in 10 minutes and was still hungry.
Furthermore, I found that we had to ask for our water to be refilled, and for the servers to take care of us(which was kind of annoying). My friend was obviously annoyed by this place, but for me.. I felt bad because they seemed understaffed BUT its such a tiny place it doesn't seem like another server fits into the functionality of the joint.
We walked away with a forgettable experience here. :(
Tasty, cheap, and fast service. Fun, cheesy decor. I wish this place was open after hours, it's great hangover food. Curry this, curry that or noodles with this or that. Fun, interesting choices. You can even get curry pizza. Tasty spot if you don't feel like anything fancy or expensive.
I LOVE THIS PLACE!
I come here so often, it's almost once a week! I usually get medium or spicy curry with two orders of chicken, one mini sausage and a potato croquette. Their katsu and spaghetti are great too!
When choosing a spice level, there isn't much of a difference between mild and spicy, but once you add the X's, it starts to heat up. Sometimes, the drinks are warm, but that won't be enough to scare me away! If you want a seat, avoid the early evening or weekends at lunch time. The off-hours (2-5pm) are the best times to go. Any complaints about the service were probably during the busy hours...This is a MUST for curry lovers.
Eclectic menu. I opted for very awesome DIY curry. I did roasted garlic, shrimp (I chose big over small), and mixed veggies. The space was really cool. The tea was really good. It was a solid find.
I'd probably give them 3.5 stars...
I ate here a gazillion times during the international film fest a few months ago, and recently went back after watching yet another movie at the Kabuki.
I keep forgetting that they add Parmesan cheese to the chicken katsu curry. I am not a fan of cheese with my curry. But otherwise, their curry is delicious. I've also had their seafood Udon (with lots of seafood, they definitely don't skimp on the seafood), regular chicken katsu, and the Japanese spaghetti. All are tasty.
Service is usually great in the beginning then it takes forever to get your check and they also don't time the dishes so it's entirely possible that your dining companion(s) will be halfway done with their meals before you get your meal. On the other hand, they're always nice and friendly and totally accommodated my demand to have my meal in half an hour or less to make a movie during the film festival (I told them the situation and asked which of the dishes would be best to order given time constraints).
ooooh this place has awesome curry! I love their seafood spaghetti's too. It's a small little place in japantown but I absolutely LOVE that place. The service is pretty friendly but it is a little pricey for what it is.
I've been lucky enough to walk in when its super quiet. I'm not sure how it is when they have a full house but I can see how they would be understaffed. From what I can tell, there is only one chef back there.
Did my brother drag me here on a bad day? I have no idea. Although I feel badly bashing a small mom+pop restaurant, they brought it upon themselves.
3 adults, 2 kids $75 + tip! Seemed outrageous for a low key sit down restaurant. Especially considering the quality of the food.
The service was downright terrible, there were many moments I almost walked out of this place. We waited a long time to order, all the food was brought out randomly spaced, and the waitresses knocked into me regularly (cramped quarters). Contrast this to the group of 8 people who arrived after us and got most of their food on time.
My simple Unagi Don dish arrived last, taking 1 hour to deliver, while everyone else had finished eating. And the unagi was rubbery and over sauced. I truly don't want to hate this place, but I really would never come back here again.
Note to owners: For the sake of your own income, please clean up your act!
Cute japanese restaurant literally "on the bridge" between the 2 bldgs in Japantown. Lined with comic books/manga and figurines, this diner made me feel like I was IN japan! The owner is a japanese man and the restaurant is employed by his wife and 3 daughters...whom are all bi-racial--Japanese and Hispanic! =) Friendly staff. Curry was GREAT!! =)
i only give it a 4 just because i haven't been there in YEARS and don't know if they still taste as good (i hope they do).
last time i was there was probably 2 years ago. it was still super good :) i don't know much japanese style spaghetti place around here. and their food other than pasta is good too. i always get the ika tarako spaghetti :9 SO GOOD. very creamy and full of flavor.
perfect for lunch after walking around in japantown. i'll update this review again after i visit again soon and see how everything is now.
but for now, i'll just say that i totally recommend it. :)
there's only one cook and one waitress so it takes a while for the food to come.
but it's worth it!
Took my four-year-old niece here after taking her shopping in J-town. She loved, loved, loved the veggie cream pasta--and she hates eating vegetables! She even asked me if I can take her here again. My niece is the pickiest eater known to mankind and she gave it 5 stars out of 5! Good job, OTB!
Service was phenomenal as usual, and I ended up sticking to my guns and got the veggie cream pasta.… Read more »
Get the seafood spaghetti or the flying fish roe spaghetti.
Nom nom nom nom nom.
This place reminds me of Japan. Japanified Western food - SO good.
Sometimes they are a little slow.
Their closing is listed as 10pm, but sometimes they're already closed at 9:45.
Oh whoa! I wrote two reviews in a row...
Hamburger Patty with Egg? On Rice? That is as Americanized Asian cuisine as it gets! The food here was pretty good! I would have gave it 4 stars, but the service was pretty bad! I guess it was because they were busy. The Cherry Blossom Festival/Parade was today and was fun! There were a lot of people out there. As expected it took 45 minutes to find parking!
Any ways we ordered the Hamburger patty with rice and the chicken appetizer. The food was pretty unique and interesting. Overall pretty good food!
I can see myself coming here again. Hopefully the service is much better next time!
Cute, little Japanese "diner" with interesting curry dishes, surprisingly good coffee, and unique pizzas among other little quirky dishes. Service was friendly, but slow....don't eat here if you're in a rush. It's a very good "hang out and eat slow" place.
This is a great Japanese Bistro. It's Japanese "pop" food for the young, and it's like a fusion of Japanese, Italian and French Bistro.
You can custom make your own curry dish, choose the spiciness, ingredients like triple dose of garlic... YUM! They have curry over Pork, Chicken, or Shrimp katsu.
The egg-over-hamburger-meat-over rice dish seems to be very popular although I never tried it. But I tried all the "Rice Au Gratin" dishes and they are super delicious.
If you are looking for a different twist to the Japanese food, this is definitely worth a try!
Really cool good japanese-american food, but waiting for the food is looonng. Definitely not efficient in that aspect. I thought, "No wonder they have so many books lined up next to the tables...the wait is so long." But then I open it, and it is all Japanese. So I did not know what to do with my boring self and boring sister besides wait in a little cramped area.
The " japanese pizza" was very good though--definitely fluffier than the usual American pizza. The curry with rice was delicious, and so was the spaghetti---but only if you reallly mix it well with the sauce hidden underneath all those noodles. Definitely a place to get a full tummy!
I must admit, the DIY curry is a great concept, with lots of ingredients to choose from. I had curry with whole garlic (yessss!!!), chicken, and a croquette, and washed it all down with a Yebisu. And I think my sodium levels spiked (minus one star).
I have a friend from Italy and I'd been dreading the question I knew she would eventually ask:
"Do Americans make pasta with ketchup?"
No. Hell, no. Never.
*Flashback to pretty much every Asian-Italian fusion restaurant I've been to and several episodes of Paula Deen*
Never.
On the Bridge would almost be comfort food if only it were cheaper. Home-cooked flavor? Definitely. But when I throw shit in a pan and fry it up at home, it usually doesn't cost me $10. I opted for a Japanese style shoyu-based pasta dish rather than one of their ketchupy fare. it was good, but not $10 good. Still, they have cheaper options and the staff, though forgetful when we went, are attentive and nice.
Also, it's on a fucking bridge, ketchup and all.
I went here maybe 2 weeks ago while searching around the Japantown center for a late night bite. This place was the only one open. So we sit down and take a bit to figure out what we (my parents and I) wanted to order. The waitress snickered at the thought that my mother wanted her curry as spicy as they offer. So I was thinking it was justified because maybe it is spicy as all fuck. But when her meal came, it was mildly spicy. Speaking of the meals, they first brought out my fathers. It took maybe 20 minutes of waiting until his dish was served. Then mine came maybe 25 minutes later. Finally, my mothers dinner came another 20 minute later... It's as if they were cooking each meal individually, but regardless, that's no excuse. We should be able to sit down and eat together. Is that not the point of going out to a restaurant?
The service was shite, and the food too was shite. I mean, it was edible, but nothing worth seeking your teeth into. So in all fairness I mark this business with 2 stars for getting our drinks punctually...
I don't understand the hype about this place. The food is not much of a japanese american fusion. The dishes were pretty bland and the service was horrible. The food took a long time before it came out.
We ordered the beef curry, which had sour tasting curry. It's not what normal japanese curry tastes like. They are stingy with the meat. The sauce just tasted off. Claims that curry can be made better out of the box are warranted. I definitely agree that I've made way better stuff than they produced.
Ordered the flying fish roe spaghetti. You would think there'd be fish...but nope, it comes with chicken that doesn't taste too fresh. The best part was just the roe.
Can't say much about the experience except that I expected the food to be so much better for that price. Not worth it to eat here.
My usual stop when in Jtown.
My bf loves the hamburger steak - literally what it sounds like. A big patty of hamburger cooked on a iron skillet. You can get it topped with your choice of mushrooms, curry, garlic, etc. He happens to be a fan on garlic and spicy curry. (It's like 5 tablespoonfuls of chopped garlic as a topping). I'll take a bite, but I certainly could not down this sucker like he does.
Curry is DEFINITELY a go-to here. So good. Be careful when ordering extra spicyness. It can be on the border of life-threatening. I kid. But it's pretty hot.
Katsu-don. A bit on the sweet side, but YUM.
I'm not as much of a fan of the pizza/spaghetti. But keep in mind that the asian cultures had a trend of creating their spin on these dishes. And that trend was surprisingly popular for some time. I prefer authenticity though, so my taste buds tend to shy away from these. Though on a random whim I will order the spaghetti with meatsauce - with the expectation that I am not ordering from a trattoria. It's not a bad spaghetti with meatsauce when you approach it with the japanese taste in mind.
Very full, I went here after seeing an art exhibit with a few friends and siblings. I ordered an udon bowl, potatoe sides, and currey dish. Overall it was a good place to eat, a variety of things to order on the menu. It has been a couple of months since I've been here, so I don't remember too much, but next time I'm in j-town, I will definately becoming back here. The service was a bit slow, so if your just looking for a meal but don't mind waiting, then I'd recommend coming here.
Happy Hour Draft Beer $1.75!
Neighborhood: Nob Hill
99 cents beer & hot sake
Neighborhood: Excelsior
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
Category: Desserts
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
Category: Japanese
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the…
Legendarily terrible places that have earned a…
There is so much more to Japanese food than some…
What? I cannot eat Japanese food on Monday?…
japanese eats that make me miss mama's home cookin…
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
Raw, raw fish. I present to you my recommended…
Reviews of various establishments in my…
Loading...
