Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

So disappointed with the curry shrimp. Too expensive for big portion of rice, curry sauce and 2 medium size shrimp. I was shocked, only 2 shrimp for like $ 12. Just CRAZY.

I tried the regular curry udon and it was pretty good! It was simple with thick noodles and chicken. The curry broth was hot and savory. Pretty big portion size for $ 10. I didn’t add slice because regular was well flavored but based on my friends, 3 or 4 is pretty good for you spice lovers. But you do have to pay for higher levels of spice. The service was fine, friendly, with lots of refills. But our waiter didn’t know what was in one of the curries and had to go to the back to ask. Im not sure if she was new but that didn’t leave the best impression. Other than that, this is a neat curry place. Things to know: you can get two hours of free parking in the Zion supermarket garage lot right next to it off of Mariposa and 6^th street.

There is free parking in the garage. The curry is okay but I love that you can put a lot of toppings. I liked their salad dressing. Service is polite, good and friendly.

Visited the place about a month ago after hearing all the hype from friends about their curry, although they frequent the branch in Torrance more. I personally love spicy food so I ordered the level 10 (supposedly their hottest advertised on their menu). It didn’t take too long (10 – 15 minutes) and once I received my food, I could tell they give you large portions. However, the taste was underwhelming in my opinion as I felt that it wasn’t spicy at all and almost felt like the curry was watered down a bit. I included add-​ons like the shredded beef along with a traditional pork cutlet but felt it tasted bland the entire time I was eating there. I believe one of the waitresses/​servers there actually was surprised that I wasn’t even affected by their level 10 sauce. They recommended I upgrade to a level 15 (which is not on the menu) next time if level 10 was not spicy enough.
Their establishment definitely looks nice as I can tell they did their best to make it look appealing with their décor (even looking at their menu, you can tell it looks very nice to the eyes). They also validate your parking, but the parking lot is a large lot shared by the entirety of the Zion Market parking lot. We actually had to ask for directions to direct ourselves to CoCo Ichibanya. While it’s nice to get free parking, the parking lot itself is borderline similar to CGV Cinema’s parking lot in Koreatown due to the amount of impatient and inexperienced drivers in the area.
Overall, while I really wanted to like the place, I felt that it wasn’t as great as it was hyped to be by my friends. I also think there are better alternatives for curry houses within the vicinity, and the only thing I can think of that CoCo Ichibanya does better than anywhere else in Koreatown is the variety they offer with their curry.
³⁄₅

I used to dislike this place.(I thought curry house was better), but after giving it a few more tries I decided I like it. Their curry is good but what I like the most about this place is their choice of naan bread sides. I LOVEEE bread– get a side of naan bread to eat with your curry and you won’t regret it.

NOM, NOM, NOM, yummy, curry, woohoo!!! On a cold, windy and chilly day, Japanese curry rounds out my Top 3 Asian Favorite, Comfort Foods (Phở is #1, and Tofu Soup #2).
Located on Alexandria and 6^th, Coco Ichibanya is located in the same plaza as Zion Market, Crystal Spa, EMC Seafood & Raw Bar, etc. You park underground, take the elevator up, and out of Zion Market, turn right, and head towards Coco Ichibanya. They are oppose way of EMC Seafood & Raw Bar that’s on the other side heading towards Mariposa Ave.
I ordered the Chicken Omelet Curry $ 12.50. It’s a huge plate with generous amounts of curry, and rice underneath the omelet. The omelet itself is also huge! I love the chicken cutlet — tender, juicy and big pieces! Fried to perfection, yummy!!! As for the curry itself, I got the mild version, and it still had a kick to it, but a warm and comforting sensation, and, thank gawd, not a burning sensation, lol! Though, the curry in the beginning looked watery, but once you mix it with the omelet, and rice, it got thicker. They also give you a canister with sweet, pickled daikon that you can sprinkle on top of your meal too.
The restaurant itself is clean and nice organize, which makes it seems spacious for a small joint. Came in, was greeted, and seated immediately. I was shown to the singles’ table, which was a long table against the wall. At first, I was miffed sitting there because it felt like detention — facing the wall, but afterwards, it was actually nice since it was private, and I can Unilocal,and Facebook, while eating my meal, lol! Soon after, a couple joined me along there. I also dig that they had a buzzer along the wall to call over the waiters when you need something. I got to play with it once to get my bill, lol!
Fast and friendly service. Once you get the bill, they will validate your ticket with a stamp — 2 hours free parking. Overall, a delicious, and satisfying meal that didn’t require having to drive down to Lil Tokyo, whew! I’ll definitely be back again next time!

I am truly sad that I didn’t try Coco Ichibanya sooner! All this time I could’ve had this yummy goodness. Boo hoo. Well, now that I’ve finally had a taste I can come here as often as I like! My rating is solely for the food here. Customer service was just as expected. Maybe even worse because we were practically forgotten after receiving our food. Nobody was on the floor to attend to our needs or to ask how we were doing.
The food though… YUMM-​O! I loved it. I liked it much better than Curry House. I ordered the thin sliced beef curry with an addition of chicken katsu ($ 4) and mushrooms ($ 1). You can choose the level of spiciness of your curry and add whatever ingredient you want, just like at Orochon. I went with 7 for my first time. The waitress said level 4? Or 5? is about the same level as Sriracha. My chicken katsu was surprisingly deeelish! It was perfectly fried with the right amount of crisp and cooked just right where the chicken was juicy and neither raw (like some place I know– Ahem~ like The Phở Shop in Little Tokyo. terrible) nor dry. The other dish we ordered was the curry udon. That was good as well but not really my cup of tea. I don’t think curry should be eaten in broth/​soup form. I believe curry should be nice and thick poured over rice. But that’s just my preference, of course.
At the end of it all we ordered some mochi ice cream– strawberry and mango. They need to adjust the temperature of their freezer or something because the mochi was a bit too frozen.
All in all, though the mochi and service was subpar the main dish far exceeded my expectations. And typically in my book the service, food, and everything needs to be pretty outstanding to earn 5 stars from me but this time I’m just trying to bring up their average rating because I do believe they deserve a better rating than what they have now. Can’t wait to go back for more! Think I’ll even go again this week!

So even long before Curry House CoCo Ichibanya was officially opened, I was so excited to try this place because (1) it was close to my house and (2) I saw a CoCo Ichibanya in Tokyo, and it is always exciting to try something that is originally from the motherland. I’m a pretty loyal customer at Curry House, but Curry House unfortunately does not deliver. So we finally tried CoCo, and here are a few reasons why I try avoiding this place if possible:
(1) The obvious: I got super sick after eating here. This is enough for me to never re-​try this place. What trauma does to you…
(2) I asked for the chicken cutlet with rice with an egg (okay, I know this dish is from curry house, but I want what I want). They said they can’t deliver anything with an egg. HUH?! Why the hell not? It wasn’t even that they said they couldn’t make that specific dish. It was the fact that they said they can’t deliver anything with EGG.
(3) The food is average.
I will most likely never dine here (on my own will) again. You know it’s bad when the delivery option doesn’t even swoon me.

First time going to Coco Ichibanya was in Rowland Heights. I thought the curry and cutlet was great but the drive was too far for making a trip just to grab a bite to eat. I’m glad that there are several locations that are near by to enjoy these dishes.
The Ktown location is like all others, same menu and provided the same experience as my first time. I went with a friend on a weeknight and the place was not packed which made it a lot more enjoyable to get seated and served right away. (was hungry) The staff was attentive and friendly. The best part: since we’re not ready to have the level 10 spiciness in our plates, we ordered a couple of levels under the highest. We then asked the waitress if there was a way to have a sample of level 10 and she was able to find a way to get it to us.
Ktown location is the closest to me and I would be definitely be visiting again in the near future.
VERDICT: Rinse and Repeat

I first ever tried coco ichibaya finally.
My friends and i all ordered curry rice
Taste was good as i expected,
Servers were really kind and they took care us effectively.

Came here for a quick lunch around a month ago.
It’s very fast, easy and pretty good.
I got the keema curry cheese fries which were surprisingly really good! I also got the beef omelette curry. It was just okay, pretty standard. I was a little disappointed because the beef was very dry and a little tough. I would come back here again for the keema curry cheese fries. They were bomb.

Fast food style Japanese curry. Coco Ichibanya originated from Japan and branched to the US. The curry quality is decent for the price. It hands down beats Curry House cuz their curry is bland and nothing special. This place you can has variety of toppings and you can choose the spicy level 1 – 10. I got the beef omelet curry lvl 7.
Tip: I was told level 5 and up is considered spicy so I got 7. I love hot stuff so I wish I got 10 to get the real kick!

Keema Cream Curry Udon… YES
So much deliciousness in one plate. The cream went really well with the curry and I love my noodles!
The fries were also so good, like chili cheese fries but substitute curry instead of chili– even better!

Out of all the other big JDM curry names in LA this spot has my favorite dish. However, I am very specific on how I order and I now know why I get it right all the time.
I love spicy food and every time I order it level 8 comes perfect. Massive amounts of curry on a bed of rice with a very solid piece of meat. Yes. Just perfect. A good mix of herbs and consistency. Just awesome
However one day I order it mild and was horrible. Not on flavor only but on consistency. It was super runny and that’s not how I like curry. I like its thickness and ability to mix and stick to the rice. Felt very Indian consistency wise. The flavor was missing a lot of things. A lot.
Service is average. Nothing good nothing bad. My girlfriend always like ordering in Japanese and well, no one here spoke the language. Was that bad? Nah. Just something we noted.
Conclusion: if you’re getting it spicy then it’s bomb, but if mild beware that it’s runny as heck.

I was pleasantly surprised by the happy hour drink menu! Pics are uploaded!
I ordered the watermelon juice and it was sooooooo delicious on a hot day. I started with a salad and corn soup combo for $ 3.00. House salad is just simple salad with miso dressing and corn soup is plain form soup from most donkatsu places. I ordered carbonara with spinach ($ 12.99, $ 2 more since they add spinach) and the sauce was super thick and dry. I do not recommend it. We also got pork katsu omlette originally with spice level 5. I eat pretty spicy and this was not spicy at all. Asked our waitress can you make it spicier and they brought out more curry that was spicier. Its not Korean red pepper paste spicy but more curry with a little heat and kick from cracked pepper. The carbonara actually had a ton of cracked pepper and it overpowered any other flavor.
I recommend getting curry dish and definitely come for happy hour Monday through Friday 3 to 6 pm. They have chicken cutlet Nan pizza for $ 4.49 and banana smoothie for $ 1.99 which I will be taking to go.
Overall happy and will definitely be back!

Great casual and fast option for dinner. Love the extremely extensive menu. It’s literally pages and pages of different curries with pictures for each type. Like that they offer brown rice and the different levels of spice! Even at level four it was pretty spicy, in a delicious way. Got the stewed chicken (dark meat) with vegetables and a hard boiled egg, with brown rice. Curry is the perfect consistency (hate it when it’s either too water or too thick) and so flavorful and hearty. Personally I like the regular spicy curry over the keema. We had the sweetest server here! He was so friendly and really sweet about answering all our questions. Free refills on iced green tea!
Parking: kind of tricky but it’s the lot next to the bbcn bank one, entrance is small so can be easily missed. The restaurant validates so the first two hours are free!

Curry House CoCo Ichibanya provides a solid curry rice experience but has a difficult time standing out from the saturated market of delicious Asian food surrounding it.
I have never heard of this franchise or the fame associated with it. When I tried its curry, I enjoyed it. It is exactly what I expected from a Japanese curry place… which is really no different from Curry House just a couple blocks down in Madang Plaza by Western Blvd /​Wilshire Blvd.
But why do you have to pay extra for the extra spicy level? It is hard for me to understand how the spicy sauce can justify that much price increase.
At least I can order a smaller portion of rice which lowers the price… unless you order brown rice, which is more. It’s classic Japanese style of customizable food with a pricing sliding scale.
I also enjoyed the Keema Cream Curry… oh wait, Curry House over at Madang Plaza also has this.
My complaint is that the food does take a long time to prepare as others have mentioned (not ideal if you’re crunch for time during work lunch break). Also, the curry rice doesn’t come out as steamy hot (not talking about the spicy level) as I would expect from a freshly made dish.
Curry House provides 2 hours parking validation in the underground mall parking that it shares with the market. Again, you can find that at Madang Plaza.
It is difficult for me to see how CoCo Ichibanya can stand out on 6^th street where every block is filled with exceptional restaurants. Even the most die hard curry fans have multiple options in this area. CoCo Ichibanya can surely satisfy your curry cravings but don’t expect anything out of the ordinary here.

I used to frequent the Torrance location when they first opened. I was actually kind of pressured to go there with the group of people but nonetheless, the food was good for its low price.
I was kind of hesitant to see this restaurant in like the heart of Koreatown because this IS a franchised Japanese restaursnt aftet all. But whatever. My friend recently tried this place and she got addicted so I have been coming here couple times as well.
I tried their Keema curry for the first time which is just curry with chili and veggies in them. It’s surprisingly good. Its a lot more chunky compared to regular plain curry because of its contents. Its very flavorfull and makes you full at the same timr.
I really liked their omelette as well. Their portion is very huge no matter what you do do make it smaller so I never get to completely finish my meal but its a good large portion for one hungry individual.
Only downside about this restaurant is that the service is really slow. Two times I have gone here, the tables werent cleaned and wiped so it was yucky. The server also tried memorizing our order (3 people) without writing or entering it on theit device and of course, she failed! It was very unprofessional. Not only that, they never give our food at the same time. So one of us starts eating and later the other person and later its my turn so its pretty bad.
2 hour validation for parking is offered at the counter as you leave.

Back in Japan, I absolutely LOVED this franchise. So when I saw that it was here, in Los Angeles — It was worth the drive and effort for me to get a taste of Japan.
First of all, the parking is a B! itch. If you park inside the mall, you have to walk outside and to the corner, as the entrance for this restaurant is right across the 7-​Eleven. It is NOT in the mall.
Ok so I ordered my Japan staple: Hamburger steak, with natto and okra and tofu… Level 3. I was SO disappointed! It seemed like everything was ready for a while and they just microwaved the toppings, pieces together. The curry itself was NO WHERE as good as the one in Japan — and a HUGE complaint I had was that it wasn’t HOT as I was hoping it would be (temperature wise). I probably wouldn’t come here again. Curry House it is.

Nothing special.
The menu can be a tad overwhelming. I believe they have two main things you can order. There is Japanese curry with different add-​ins/​ons and Keema with the same add-​ins/​ons.
I had the Japanese curry cutlet omelet with spice level 10. Different spice levels are additional $. They also had naan and fries so we got the garlic cheese naan.
The curry wasn’t that spicy for being level 10 (the spiciest).
The naan was good.
I think I prefer curry house over this place.