Oja Noodles House - Toronto

Popped in late last night. Had some lovely fresh sushi, edamame and delicious miso soup. This is coeliac friendly for certain sushi options. Relaxed atmosphere and nice setting. The host was lovely.

This restaurant has a typical cozy style that blends between Korea and Japan. Nice atmosphere, very friendly service. The wait time was very little. The food was quite good. We ate vegan kimchee soup with dumplings. The price was reasonable. Would definitely recommend.

A friend, my husband, and I went to OJA for dinner on the recommendation of someone who had tried it. Aside from some diner style booths, there was little visually special about OJA. So we tried ordering food: pork bone soup, bulgolgi and tempura bento, bibimbap, and jasmine tea. But when I went to wash my hands, the women's washroom had no running water. I tried the men's and only a trickle came out. I was disgusted by OJA's poor sense of hygiene as if we were in the third world. But my distress did not end there. The miso soup was lukewarm, and the bibimbap was the hot type with rice stuck to the inside of the stone bowl. The staff never bothered to ask if we wanted hot or cold bibimbap. It was also not clear if the three side dishes were for all of us, or that they only came as sides for the pork bone soup. As a result, we were a bit confused and left most of them untouched. While the food on balance was acceptable, it wasn't great. A place such as OJA could try so much harder, beginning with respecting miso soup as a hot item. If you had been made to drink room-temperature broth, you would remember the unpalatable taste. We also asked to have our tea topped up, but the hot water was also lukewarm. All in all, we felt very let down by a Korean restaurant that came with personal recommendations. Still, we left a small tip since the servers were probably students trying to make a few bucks on a Saturday. When my husband said we wouldn't be going back to this mediocre quality of Korean food, my thoughts were that OJA ought to fix its plumbing or I would tell everyone that its washroom is a health hazard that spreads diseases because people couldn't wash their hands. Oh yes, the washroom was upstairs through a long and winding staircase. How could people with mobility problems use it at all? My final suggestion is to find another Korean restaurant that serves hot food hot, and that has a functioning bathroom.

My friend and I used to go to Oja a lot, many years ago. We dropped in recently with friends and were not impressed with what they are now. My friend had a beef and rice cake soup dish and the beef was almost completely inedible. I had the Kimchi Soup and there was next to no Kimchi in it. They still make remarkably good dumplings but the rest of it didn't impress. Friendly service. No televisions. Relaxed vibe. But the food is no longer what it used to be.

Find it by walking on the street. Stopped for lunch. Food was really hot with good portions. But a bit expensive for noodle and rice. Ambiance was relax service was correct. Enjoyed our quick.stop at Oja.