Tsunami

My favorite place to eat on campus. Best udon noodles I’ve had. The staff is always so nice and friendly. My absolute favorite spot.

If I could give it less than one star I would, really bland «Asian style» noodle bowls and supermarket style sushi that is rice heavy. I don’t say this often but it was hands down the worst food I’ve had in a very long time.

Healthy but nothing special, and below average. The udon and sushi combo is probably the best food here. Hopefully the new noodle place that they’re opening up will be better.

If you want something hot and comforting on UCLA campus, you’ go here. It’s in a corner of Ackerman Union away from the hustle and bustle of the Den and other commercial food vendors.
Food: Spotty. This place is hit and miss. Sometimes it’s an expensive cup of noodles then other times it’s a real meal. I’ve only eaten the veggie udon and shrimp udon. The veggie is really tasty when they put a bunch of bok choy and mushrooms in it. It kind of sucks up extra salt. The shrimp/​seafood udon was good but the shrimp was a bit rubbery.
Service: Mainly students and two older ladies or a gentleman. Simple no nonesense service.
It’s best to eat your meal while it’s hot, this is not good for take out and the containers leak during transport.

Likes: sushi to go, thai iced tea, quick service, downstairs of UCLA Ackerman
Dislikes: sushi rice was okay

For quick and cheap udon, place is ok. Haven’t been here since the pool table was up in front. Not even sure if it’s still there. But as for the food, just take a packet of soy sauce and sriracha with you to enhance the flavor…

Mehh, this is just a fast food Asian place. I would avoid the sushi because it’s pretty gross. The noodles are okay. The service is fast. You order and your food comes right out. It’s a little pricey considering what you get. The udon tastes like instant udon, and the soup tastes canned. I would eat elsewhere in Ackerman.

Quick and easy. You don’t have to walk to Westwood, or drive down Sawtelle to get some sushi… I’ll say this, it’s not amazing, but if you need a quick fix and you got about $ 10 it’s worth getting their combos cause it’s what makes it worth it. And like Alexa Z says, the hand rolls. Only real sushi item here worth getting on it’s own.
And for those who are looking for the «finer» kinds of sushi, you should know better than to think «good» would be on a school campus without an actual sushi chef.
Hey they’re one star up from the Ralphs down the street, but don’t get me wrong, I’m such a sushi whore that I’ll get sushi anywhere… check out my review from when I ordered sushi in Texas… *le sigh*
enjoy.

A glorified cup of noodles. And only because if bigger chicken chunks.
In a little offshoot hallway at Ackerman, I was passing by and this place had the shortest line.
I was in a hurry, so I figured a quick bowl of soup would be reasonably healthy.
Well I got the spicy chicken bowl.
It’s ready almost as fast as you order it, which is good if you need food NOW.
Flavor was that msg-​salty kind that let’s you know a headache will follow in a few hours.
Chicken tasted as though it was from a progressive can of soup.
Noodles were all but falling apart. A good quality for pot roast, not for noodles.
There were some bits of what I think was baby bok choy floating in there, and the requisite green onions.
All in all it wasn’t really satisfying, and I will probably avoid this place in the future. Not a spot you want if you’re watching your (mono)sodium intake.

A bit pricey. But if you want sushi and stuff on campus, it’s descent.
Their Thai Tea is pretty good, but don’t get their boba! They don’t know how to cook boba, and it’s not worth getting it.

The noodle bowls are ok but stay away from sushi unless it’s your first time, then prepare to be utterly disappointed and never want sushi ever again in your life.
To call yourself a Japanese name and say you offer sushi is a joke and disgrace with what they are churning out.

I got the Chicken Fun Noodles — the soup was good for the nasty sore throat I caught 2 days ago but the food was bland. This could’ve very well been a result of my taste buds not being their normal self as I was recovering from that sore throat, but I think I can still tell when something is bland.

This review is based PURELY on one item I purchased + the drink my friend purchased.
While on the search for a snack in between classes, I decided I wanted something semi-​healthy so I headed towards Tsunami for some sushi. I then saw that they had edamame and realized what could be healthier right?! Plain and simple. Got the edamame for $ 2.50 for a 4 oz container and was satisfied. It was pretty standard edamame — nothing really wrong with it. So I’ll give it 4 stars for that.
My friend however got the thai ice tea with boba and absolutely HATED it! She said it tasted super watered down and had no flavor at all. Also, she mentioned that the actual boba balls were really mushy. Needless to say she didn’t finish her drink. 1 star.
So rounding up ill give Tsunami 3 stars. I will be returning if i want a healthy snack like edamame or seaweed salad — but I’d watch out from their drinks.

This is for a review of just eating the spring rolls!
Went here for lunch today. I’m a UCLA student, so I stopped by for the first time to try this café out. It was meh. I wasn’t expecting a whole lot from a pre prepared prepackaged sushi/​wraps. However my experience was worse than that low bar. I wouldn’t go back again.
I had the shrimp spring rolls, and the roll was so loosely wrapped that it fell apart right when I picked it up. The rolls were not filled at all, very empty and not much veggies, it was mostly extra noodles inside, which was not what I was looking for. The wrap itself was weird tasting, extra plasticy…

The food here ranges from bad to mediocre. The food textures feel like they just defrosted and heated up in a microwave, and their is something distinctly off about all of their soup broths.
Unfortunately, if you’re already on UCLA’s campus there are not too many options… so I’ll probably be back.

I love the spicy tuna bowl :) & inari roll. I dont usually come here for the soups because its too bland for me. But, its always a great option on campus, aside from the usual green house, subway, and yoshinoya.

I second the spicy chicken noodle here at Tsunami!
Except… get it with the fun noodles! The original spicy noodles it comes with tend to be flavorless and the likeness of eating thick hair. Yuck.
Ok, ok, ok, I admit, it’s not a place I would take my friends or a date, but it’s in the student union at UCLA. It gets a plus for convenience and flexibility. I can generally hide in the shadows and eat unnoticed.
This place gets a walk over all the other dining options at Ackerman Union. This is a place that serves hot noodle soup and sushi? Are you kidding me? It curves even those cravings for Tom Yom soup and Phở… well not entirely, but it’s a decent substitute.
If you’re not in the mood for anything spicy and have a dollar and change to spend, I recommend getting the Udon + sushi combo. It hits the spot when you’re stuck on whether to get sushi or a noodle bowl. We’ve reached a fair and tasty compromise.
If you’re looking for gourmet noodles with hand-​made artisan sushi tough luck, but if you want to have a nice meal outside of the normal fast food options you can get anywhere, go to Tsunami.
Con: it can be a pretty expensive habit. The noodle bowls go for $ 6.00+ even with the student tax-​exemption discount.
The verdict:
³⁄₅ stars
3 = A place I’d be willing to go to dine without too many qualms over my investment.

I’ve been to Tsunami only a handful of times during my two years at UCLA so far. It’s nice for being the only Asian food on campus, but the quality is still just average. (well now there’s Yoshinoya, but that’s far, and I AUTOMATICALLY RULE PANDA EXPRESS OUT BY DEFAULT. Also, I guess Lu Valle has some too but nobody wants to or ever walks out there)
I would say the udon is the most solid choice here, it’s definitely decent and I always enjoy it, WITH FISH CAKES! Pink chewy disks of goodnesssss. However, udon is a pretty boring dish, so when I get bored…
I get the Spicy Chicken Noodle (#1), and while it’s really disappointing standard-​wise, I’m still able to finish it all without feeling sick. The chicken doesn’t taste good, and the spiciness comes from pretty much just green peppers tossed into the soup (aka it’s literally pure spicy, no additional flavor). Why do I get it? Because I like thin noodles… not to say the thin noodles are any good. Because they’re not.
They also sell sushi, which I’ve tried and I think it’s okay, but why buy sushi here when you have Yamato’s or Ami? Also, they have Boba Milk Tea/​Thai Tea, but I hear from friends that it’s just… bad. I haven’t tried it before, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
NEVERTHELESS, Tsunami is still always there to satisfy my noodle craving when I’m tired of Carl’s Jr., and even if it’s not super high quality noms, I appreciate it for that.

I love this place! It’s definitely the best Asian food you’ll find on campus! I used to come here 2 – 3 times a week and never got sick of it!
My favorite is the #4 Chicken rice noodle soup. It comes with a decent amount of chicken and lots of veggies and the soup is usually hot enough. They make your noodles when you place the order so that you’re able to tell them what you want and don’t want in your soup! I usually ask for extra cilantro and jalapenos and they always gladly add it in for me!
I haven’t gotten their boba in a while because I don’t remember it being very good. Some of my friends love their boba though, so you might just have to judge for yourself!

This place is A-​OK. I got the Udon & the Rock & Roll Sushi which is just an eel & avocado roll. It’s what you’d expect from your local grocery store sushi, but it’s pretty overpriced.
If it’s a rainy day & I don’t feel like walking to a sushi restaurant for my fill of sushi & udon, I’d go here. It’s not bad, but it’s not anything amazing. Service is friendly though.
The fish cake in the Udon isn’t that good & the Udon is average. To be honest, it kind of tastes like instant frozen Udon. The broth isn’t bad though.