Liu Asia & Makotoya Ramen in Graz

The joint branding is easiest to understand through the menu structure. Makotoya contributes ramen, ramen specials, small plates and donburi, while Liu contributes a wider selection of Asian starters, main dishes, sushi, nigiri, rolls, maki and poke bowls. Current delivery menus display both names and both families of dishes in one ordering flow. That makes the restaurant unusually convenient for groups in which one diner is focused on ramen and another wants sushi or a rice-based main course.

The trade-off is that the venue is not a narrow specialist counter. Diners seeking a purist ramen-only experience may prefer to concentrate on the Makotoya section and ignore the rest of the menu. Travellers who enjoy variety can do the opposite and share across categories. Because prices and dishes on delivery platforms can change, use online menus for orientation rather than treating a saved screenshot as a fixed menu. The core identity is more durable: Japanese ramen sits alongside a broader Asian menu in the same Sporgasse restaurant.

Ramen Makotoya’s official site describes the dish through broth, noodles and toppings, presenting ramen as a complete Japanese comfort-food format rather than simply soup. The Graz location appears in the company’s international list and is dated to September 2023. Current menu examples include beef-bone broths and toppings such as chashu, marinated egg, spring onion, mushrooms and sprouts. That gives travellers a recognisable Makotoya product even though the restaurant also carries the Liu identity.

If ramen is the main reason for visiting, order from the Makotoya section first and build the rest of the meal around it. Gyoza or another small plate can make sense as a shared starter, but ordering sushi, ramen, donburi and several starters at once can quickly become excessive. The location is particularly useful in cold or wet weather because a hot ramen meal fits naturally into a day of museum and old-town sightseeing. In warm weather, the broader sushi and bowl selection gives the restaurant a lighter alternative.

Sporgasse 11 is one of the restaurant’s greatest strengths. Sporgasse leaves Hauptplatz and runs uphill toward Karmeliterplatz, making it a natural sightseeing corridor through the historic centre. The address is documented as a historic residential and commercial building, and heritage records place it at roughly 47.07205, 15.43845. Visitors can therefore reach Liu Asia & Makotoya Ramen without leaving the old town or adding a separate transport leg.

Hauptplatz is the key tram reference. Graz city information explains that the central tram lines meet there, and nearby museum directions likewise use Hauptplatz as the stop for reaching Sporgasse on foot. This is the practical route from the main station and other districts. After eating, travellers can continue uphill toward Karmeliterplatz and Schlossberg or downhill to Hauptplatz, Herrengasse and the river. Cars are the least convenient option in this pedestrian-oriented core, so use a central garage if driving is unavoidable.

Makotoya’s official location list gives 11:30–22:30 every day. Recent restaurant platforms agree for most days but often list Sunday at 22:00, and Wolt stops delivery orders at 22:00. The safest interpretation is that the official dining-room schedule runs to 22:30 while third-party order channels may close earlier. Travellers should still avoid arriving close to the final half hour, especially on Sunday. A restaurant can be technically open while the kitchen is already winding down or a delivery service has stopped accepting new orders.

Current directories list wheelchair access, booking, takeaway, delivery, outdoor seating and Wi-Fi. These are useful indicators but not substitutes for detailed access information, especially in a historic Sporgasse building. Confirm directly if step-free toilet access is essential. The restaurant phone number is +43 316 811252. Reservations can be useful for groups, but the seven-day schedule and central location also make the venue suitable for a spontaneous lunch. If ordering takeaway or delivery, compare the platform’s order cut-off with the venue’s own opening hours rather than assuming they are identical.

The breadth of the joint menu is easiest to manage if diners decide what kind of meal they want before they begin ordering. For a ramen-focused visit, start with one of the Makotoya bowls and add only a small side if needed. Ramen already combines broth, noodles, protein and toppings, so treating it as one course in a large sushi-and-donburi feast can lead to over-ordering. Current menu examples such as Gyujan Ramen and truffle-accented beef-bone ramen show the style of the Makotoya offer, with substantial broth-based bowls rather than tiny tasting portions.

Sushi-focused diners can use the Liu side of the menu instead. Current Wolt categories separate sushi and nigiri, rolls and maki, allowing a table to build a shared selection. Poke bowls provide another route for guests who want rice, vegetables and toppings in a single dish, while Liu main courses broaden the choice beyond Japanese formats. This makes the restaurant especially useful for families or groups where “Asian food” means different things to different people. One person can have ramen, another sushi and another a hot main without forcing the group to split across venues.

Donburi sits between those two approaches. It offers the convenience of a complete rice-bowl meal while retaining Makotoya’s Japanese branding. Travellers who are tired after sightseeing and do not want to navigate a large sushi order may find donburi simpler than composing several small plates. The key is not to interpret the huge menu as a challenge to sample everything in one sitting. The restaurant’s flexibility works best when each diner chooses a main direction and the group shares only a few extras.

The joint concept also makes the restaurant a practical choice for repeat visitors. A traveller could eat ramen at lunch one day and return for sushi or another Liu dish without duplicating the same meal. That is relevant in bad weather or for accommodation near the old town, where a reliable seven-day restaurant can become a useful fallback. Delivery and takeaway extend that flexibility further, though delivery menus and order cut-offs may differ from dine-in service.

For travellers with dietary restrictions, menu breadth can help but should not create false confidence. Vegetarian options are listed by current restaurant directories, yet a broad Asian kitchen may use shared preparation areas, broths, sauces and fryers. Severe allergies or strict dietary requirements should be discussed directly with staff. Ramen broths in particular may contain ingredients that are not obvious from the name alone. The restaurant is flexible in format, but individual dishes still require careful checking when dietary needs are non-negotiable.

The restaurant’s central location also makes it suitable for travellers with uneven schedules. A museum visit that runs long or a sudden rain shower does not require a major transport decision because Sporgasse is already inside the old-town circuit. Seven-day opening reduces the risk of discovering a weekly closure, though late-night diners should still respect the possible Sunday discrepancy. In practice, the best value of the hybrid concept is convenience with choice: several Asian formats, one address, and a location that keeps the rest of the sightseeing day intact.

Visitors should also distinguish the current joint restaurant from the separate Liu Asia listings that can appear in search results. Using those details prevents confusion with another Asian restaurant or an older listing. When reserving, ordering delivery or asking about allergens, state the Sporgasse location explicitly so staff and platforms are referring to the same venue.

Because the menu is extensive, first-time diners can also save time by deciding before arrival whether ramen, sushi or a rice bowl is the priority. That makes ordering faster during busy central-city periods and reduces the temptation to combine several full meal formats simply because all are available on one menu.