Hands down one of my fav. Kawa Ni in Westport. I recently went there for late lunch. Its the kind of atmosphere that feels trendy without trying too hard. Ive been there for dinner time as well, it's lively, loud in a good way, and immediately feels like somewhere you could stay for hours. I ordered the miso ramen, and it was honestly one of the most satisfying bowls of ramen I've had in Connecticut. The broth was the star of the dish its deep, rich, savory, and layered with that perfect balance of umami and subtle sweetness from the miso and a bit nitty form the sesame seeds. The noodles had the perfect texture: chewy, springy, and able to hold onto the broth beautifully. Nothing was overcooked or mushy . What impressed me most was how balanced the ramen was. Some ramen spots go overboard with salt or spice, but this bowl felt refined. Rich but not greasy. Flavorful but not overpowering. You could tell there was actual technique behind it. The portion size was also generous enough to leave completely full without feeling uncomfortable afterward. The service matched the food perfectly and so freaking sweet. I have trying to rec this all my coworkers read more

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Ok, where do I even start with this spot!? Highly recommend making a reservation because they book up fast. Like one of Westport's hottest restaurants right now! The decor is a lovely authentic izakaya with the wood paneling and everything. It's a beautiful homage to Japanese culture. Ok now menu. Lunch there is great but recommend going for the dinner menu over anything to have more options! The addictive cabbage is just as it says, addicting. It's acidic, savory and has the perfect crunch to it. The crab Rangoons are sooo good. They give you plenty of sauce and you can tell it's the good crab. The cold sesame noodles are perfect! A little bit of heat, a bunch of flavor. I'm drooling just thinking about it! The chili dumplings were good but a little too spicy for me! We also really enjoyed the kimchi carbonara and personally, I'm a sucker for udon noodles! And now the star of the show for me and something I've ordered three times now! The crab fried rice! The crab is so tender and buttery, like it actually melts in your mouth. And the pork belly chunks in it, also tender and delicious. I like dream of this dish every week! And the great thing is you can order the half size during dinner so you can try other things too! This spot is in my top 5 for 2026 so far! Please go try them asap! read more

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What a refreshing Westport experience. Most of the restaurants in Westport and mediocre, pretending to be some elevated cuisine. Kawa Ni is the best restaurant I've been to in Westport. From ambiance to service to the food. Every decoration is intentional, the service is friendly, and the menu contains elements of fusion while also staying rooted in Japanese cuisine. Altogether creates a really good experience. The rangoons are a must get and you'll never want another Rangoon in your life. The karaage is so fresh and tender. The crab fried rice has nice large chunks of lump crab. The salmon don buri was light and perfectly cooked. Mochi was perfect. The only recommendation for Kawa Ni is to turn the lighting up a touch. Literally every table around us was using phone flashlights and the candles to read the menu which took away from the experience because the flashlights were going right into our eyes lol. read more

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Who would've thought such an outstanding place would be located in a cute little CT town?! This place was seriously so good and I can't wait to come back. Our drinks were great but strong. We split a cabbage and pear salad that was excellent, as well as the shrimp dumplings and the roasted clams. The salad had a great mix of textures and flavors, and the dumpling were plump and juicy. Roasted clams were good too! To eat, my boyfriend got fried rice and I got the clam udon. The clam udon was so creamy with a lot of clams. Filling but creative and yummy. The udon was perfectly chewy and the Parmesan added a great nuttiness. I got a sesame mochi for dessert! The vibe in here was so so cute and our waitress was very nice. read more

Kawa Ni - Clam udon - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

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Love the interior, reminds me of being back in Japan...especially the Japanese toilet ! The food was great! We enjoyed all our dishes, none of the were bad...our least favorite was the kimchi carbonara but our top two faves was the purple cabbage & pear and the Hamachi. The Hamachi was so delicious and fresh and the cabbage was a good palate cleanser for the multiple dishes we had on the table. Great spot to bring your food friends, the service was lovely as well! read more

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Stopped in for lunch and the food was amazing! The Spicy Tuna Nigiri and Crab Rangoon were so so good read more

Kawa Ni - PEEKYTOE CRAB RANGOON, CREAMY SPICY TUNA NIGIRI*, Dumplings - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

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Fantastic food! Came here for lunch and my husband and I were very pleased. The tequila cocktails were a must, we both loved the Maya Bae. Everything was delicious. The tofu pouches are a must, I got a second order of them at the end and might have been my favorite dish. Loved the sesame cold noodles, would definitely come back for these. The tuna nigiri was a deconstructed spicy tuna crispy rice dish, yum. The only thing that didn't do it for me was the kimchi carbonara, but my husband loved it and I have to admit the chunks of pork in that dish were tender and delicious- I'm just not an udon noodie fan. Over all great meal, will be back! read more

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Henny was the flakiest and by far the worst servor we have ever had first time I resented the automatic 20% tip added to our dinner ( for 3 of us) tips, like bonuses, are supposed to be for going above and beyond she never checked back and the food was served noticeably slowly which impacted significantly on the experience which was decidedly inferior read more

"No. No. No..." Walked in with my family, was not greeted. A party walked in behind us and was helped. Cool. The host asked if we had a reservation. We did not. He looked at us and said, "Oh, no. No. No. No..." Then with his trailing "no", walked over to the computer and continued saying, "No... No..." That was all about he offered us. No help. No waiting time. He could've even said, "I'm sorry but you really need a reservation." And that would've been acceptable. With all his trailing off, it felt like he was trying to set a trail for my family and I to go on to get out of the restaurant. I guess we looked too poor because it definitely felt like we were getting the bum's rush. Anyhoo, service is terrible and unwelcoming. Food is ? Ambiance feels like a club. read more

Cute little place! Lots of great food choices! There was so much we wanted to try!! We ordered: - shaved broccoli salad - scallop tamaki (do it yourself hand rolls) - 3 piece raw - kids ramen - kimchi carbonara - matcha tiramisu - cookies with gochujang caramel It was all really good. We were quite blown away with the taste of the ramen broth! Definitely want to come back and try the full size ramen! The drink was delicious but I thought I would be getting more oolong taste - it was a bit light. For the cookies - it was worth a try since it was different - but only one try for us. The cookie itself was good but we weren't too keen on the gochujang filling. read more

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Been wanting to try Kawa Ni for some time given all the good reviews for it and I finally got around to it today. Everyone's right, this place is very good. It has a large menu and it was hard to choose between dishes. I settled for the pork and garlic ramen based on suggestion from the waiter. Let me tell you, it is a very large bowl of ramen with generous servings of pork! The pork is cut thick and crusted so it is more chewy than the thin sliced pork you normally get with ramen. The highlight of the dish for me was the Japanese egg, which was cooked to perfection with a soft yolk and hard white. It was flavored excellently and I wished there was more than one egg in the dish. I will come back and try some of the other dishes here for sure. read more

Kawa Ni - PORK & GARLIC RAMEN* - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

Last night was my second time visiting for my girlfriends birthday and the whole experience was just so mediocre and the service made it worse. First time I went was the week of valentine's day everything was just ok but I chalked it up to it being unbelievable busy all week. It was so hard to get a reservation. On Monday I made the only reservation available on Thursday for 8:30pm, late but no big deal! The host was welcoming when we walked in but the server seemed pissed off we were sat in his section at 8:30 because apparently the kitchen closes at 9. So by the time we got settled got water and put in our drink order it was around 8:45. The server comes over and says "the kitchen closes at 9 are you ready to order?" Feeling kind of rushed now we ordered a few shareable dishes. We were very much in the mood to relax after a long week order a bunch of food to share and have some drinks, but it was very clear we were being rushed out. Drinks were mediocre for $14-$16 price range, where as the first time I went I really enjoyed the cocktails. Some food came out so quick and some food took like 30 minutes which was weird we were really the only table waiting for food (dumplings, wings, boa buns). My gf got the baked clams and immediatly regretted eating them. They were so undercooked and has such a bad taste and smell it was clear they went bad. We were kind and just said to our waiter that they were undercooked and we really couldn't eat them. He was rude and said "oh you don't like them?" Took them and ran away, never offered to fix the situation or offer her another selection. The point is that we didn't just want to me off our bill because we didn't like them but because they were undercooked and spoiled... it's a health concern. After that we decided to leave and enjoy drinks and dessert in a place we felt welcome. They had no problem running over the check as fast as possible while we waited longer for drinks and other service. $200 for a meal that was so basic and rude servers that did not make us feel welcomed is not an enjoyable birthday experience. Also note, they automatically add 20% tip. I normally tip more than that, but places that do this leave such a sour taste in my mouth. Anyways I would skip this place and the hype. I gave it 2 tries and about $500 too much. Decor and environment is nice on a plus side. read more

Kawa Ni - Bakes clams and cocktail - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

A delicious experience! We came for a dinner, a group of 6 people. Very nice decor, quite appropriate to the theme of the restaurant. The restaurant (which is considered to be a Japanese Pub) serves a variety of dishes making it easy to create a "tapas experience", trying variety of foods. We had a number of salads - cucumber, red cabbage and pear (my favorite!), addictive cabbage. We also had edamame (superb). Hamachi dish was very good. Chicken wings were to die for! Amazingly crispy and flavorful. Biang Biang Bao was excellent, mushroom fried rice was very good, curry was superb. Excellent service, excellent timing of bringing the new dishes without overwhelming the table, very friendly and attentive. Highly recommended. read more

I like this place. The food is great and I love the roof top in the summer time. The staff is very friendly and helpful if you have questions. It is a small place and parking there is difficult not to mention finding a table. This place is very busy but expect to wait even if you have a reservations. At the end of the day, if you have patience and wait it out, your palette will thank you later. read more

Food is ok. my favorite is the lobster temaki out of everything. The chicken wings is similar to Korean chicken wings but a bit dry inside and it must go with beers otherwise it'll be too salty. Ramen tends towards the salty side, thick pork belly. Fyi Additional 20% will be automatically add to the bill for 5 ppl. read more

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Very tasty bites, very cool spot, busy Was on the drive and happened to be in this area. We veered course to try this place out. It's a Japanese pub, made high scale and very casual. There's lots of seating, but the parking lots probably the more difficult place to find a spot. Thankfully there was a person around to help everyone navigate around. The severs were very friendly and checked in multiple times through the meal. The food came out in rapid succession and the food was absolutely delicious. Everything was seasoned and balanced. The Crab Rangoons were small but packed to the gills with crab, savory and crisp. They seasoned the outside of the Rangoons, and the house made duck sauce had a delightful heat to them. The barn mi had great pork belly bits, lots of noodles and slaw, loved the mayo, and the bread was crispy but still soft. The dumplings were good along with the karrage. The flavor was great, but not to our pallets. The chicken was very tender and the coating was light. Was a little too sweet for us though. The dumplings had a bit too much oil, but the spices and filling were well done. The plates were small and the price was high, but the quality and the service made the price worth it. I'm fine with price so long as the quality was there, and this place has it in spades. Worth a trek to try, and a great place to get a bite. read more

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What an amazing dining experience!! Definitely recommend a reservation - unless you want to sit at the bar, which we did. A Japanese pub!! So cool. The staff was friendly and attentive, and the atmosphere was casual elegance. Meaning come as you are, but it's pricey so be aware. Beautiful restaurant. The food was delicious!! If you can recognize quality ingredients along with the skill needed to pull off these dishes, you will not mind the price point. In our opinion worth every penny. Definitely a new take a Japanese cuisine in the area, but definitely worth the experience. If we lived closer this would definitely be added into our monthly rotation. read more

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The service was excellent. Everyone was so nice and extremely attentive. I appreciated the most when the manager came around and checked on all the tables. It shows they want to make sure everythings going well during service. It wasn't too loud and it was a fun experience. If you order the special shots, its a whole experience which is fun. The good was great to top it all off. I do wish there was more real crab vs imitation, but everything was delicious. read more

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like stunning y'all. everything is stuhhnninngg. i got no more words except stephanie at the bar is a literal gift. read more

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My only complaint is that I was too full to finish everything. My goodness was everything just so great here. From the service to the food, I didn't know Westport was so freaking good!!! Things you need in your life: -Shaved Broccoli -Steak Tartare (NEW to the menu and an absolute MUST) -Shrimp dumpling (comparable to DTF IYKYK) -Cold Sesame Noodles -Salmon Temaki (probably my least favorite but still good) -Cool as a.... (Gin based drink that's sooooooo refreshing) I always look forward to coming here when I'm in town! read more

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Consistently amazing. Always creative. Perfectly personal. Cozy. Clean. Going to KaWa Ni is an experience, and you are taken to destination. Also, make sure to try their hot tea, they have so many great options! read more

Kawa Ni - KARAAGE DON - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

We have been coming for years and surprised I never wrote anything! Top notch food combinations. All the veg apps are amazing, the addictive cabbage, shaved broccoli salad with sesame paste dressing, you can't miss. Chicken karaje is standout, miso, kimchi carbonara. Raw offerings are just ok, totally fresh, but never out of the park for my tastes. The bar and bar people are great . Drinks are inventive, delicious and always spot on. Bar fills up fast every night, maybe a dozen stools, several tables. We never eat in DR unless forced..... always feel like we forget they are there, but then when we go, so glad we remember. One of our very top places around. read more

We have been to Kawa Ni numerous times already and it had been about 6 months since our last visit so my husband requested I make a reservation for his birthday lunch. We arrived and was greeted by the hostess - she quickly wished a happy birthday and proceeded to seat us at a 4 seat high top table that was basically in the path of the kitchen and directly behind the hostess stand. I asked for a quieter table out of the busy employee path and to her credit, she eventually did seat us at a comfortable 4 top along the wall. I very much appreciated the extra mile she took to grant our request with kindness - thank you Hannah! She is a wonderful representative and they are lucky to have a calm, professional employee working front of house. Our food was good although a few disappointments in obvious down grades to the favorites we had ordered at our previous visits. The biggest disappointment and it felt like an obvious decision by the restaurant to save some money on the quality of the dish was Crab Fried Rice. Unfortunately their choice to add Surimi (imitation crab meat sticks) along with real crab meat... No. Not acceptable. This was a low end choice to a really good dish we had previously enjoyed that is not cheap. Our server asked if we were drinking and we said no. He responded that he would have offered a drink to my husband for his birthday.... We would have accepted a small birthday dessert but I guess only an alcoholic drink was on offer. I also noticed they now automatically add a 20% tip to all checks. Since I make a practice to always tip 20%, I wasn't upset, just didn't expect it but I understand that a lot of folks don't value the work of restaurant staff which is unfortunate. In the end, it was a solid B experience. read more

The food was good for the most part. I do think a couple of the things I ate were overdone with flavor and a bit too much. I had the foie gras with eel and the rice underneath had way too much vinegar in it, I couldn't eat it. The service was very good and our waiter was very nice. However, when I received my check I saw a 20% service charge added to my bill. I absolutely hate when restaurants do this and honestly this will keep me from ever going back to this restaurant. Gratuity should be voluntary and earned. I would have given this place a higher score if not for that. read more

I love this place so much! It is a cute little place to bring people. Dishes are so refreshing and yummy. And I like the decor.

This was a very good experience. The inside of the restaurant is cool. Service was on point. We went a little early (5 pm). We ordered a bunch of food and they brought it out timely. The quantity and quality of the food is amazing. I can't wait to go back!! read more

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My second time at Kawa Ni as it comes highly recommended by one of my colleagues who lives in the area. The food is consistently good and so inventive. The favorite of this visit was the red thai curry onigiri, which we ordered out of curiosity but was so delicious we fought over who would finish the curry! A recurring favorite is the addictive cabbage and the pork dumplings! The restaurant itself is so nice and I love the decorations and the variety of small plates they have and the service is always outstanding, the wait staff is very attentive and happy to answer any questions on the menu items read more

Easily my favorite Asian spot in Westport. My wife and I typically sit at the bar and go from there. Great vibes and cool bartenders who are passionate about their work and the food. The wing are amazing. The ramen--a delicious umami blast. Go for a sake bomb; they bang the gong when you shoot it. read more

I want to start by saying that the food was truly amazing -- easily a 5-star experience on taste alone. However, the service made our visit less enjoyable. I had a reservation for 5:00 pm, and the hostess let me know they would need the table back by 6:00 pm. That was completely fine. My party arrived at 4:30 pm and asked if we could be seated early if a table was available. Since the restaurant wasn't busy, we were seated right away. We ordered appetizers, drinks, and two main courses to share. Everything seemed to be going smoothly, and our appetizers came out around 5:00. Our table was cleared around 5:30 after we finished the apps, but then we waited...and waited...for our main dishes. By 5:45, our waitress came over to ask if we wanted to see the dessert menu -- which confused us because we still hadn't received our main courses. That's when we realized they may have forgotten about our order. After mentioning it, we waited another 15-20 minutes before the mains finally arrived. During this time, one of the hosts approached our table to tell us that our reservation was only for an hour and that it was already past 6:00 pm. We explained that we were still waiting for our entrees, which was the only reason we were still there. We finally received our food and ended up leaving around 6:35 pm. Overall, the food was excellent, but the service and timing made the experience disappointing for us. I hope this feedback helps improve future visits, because the food truly was very good. read more

Just had an amazing saki skewer tasting here!! Would totally recommend any tasting they host. This is the first. Connect with Ben who is absolutely fabulous to ask about future tasting. Japanese hibachi?? Hell yes !! read more

This is a cute spot for Japanese fusion food. Parking can be a challenge so give yourself ample time. We started off with sake and had the following: Bang bang chicken bao- delicious Lamb Dan Dan noodle- generous portion, great for sharing Gyoza- great Chicken karaage: delicious Everything served here is family style so order a bunch of dishes to share! read more

Kawa Ni - CHICKEN KARAAGE - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

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Time: September 2024 Place: the exterior and interior is gorgeous! I almost felt like I was transported back to Japan. The interior has a clean wooden design, with pretty posters and greenery interspersed. There is also a parking lot in front, but space may be limited. Service was friendly and quick! Food: overall, the taste of all the dishes were yummy-- with an emphasis on the umami flavor of each dish. - pork and garlic ramen: generous portion sizing and ample ingredients (I made it into two meals). The broth had a great color, and was creamy and salty. However, it did lack some depth of flavor, making it filling quickly. The pork belly was thick sliced, but overall still tender (a tad stringy). The runny egg was perfect though! Noodle texture was good, but shape was similar to thicker angel hair pasta. Overall, it was a warming bowl of ramen, but not one of my top places for ramen - Szechuan dumplings: my favorite dish for sure! The sauce it came in was a perfectly complex mix of tangy, salty, and umami. The dumplings were cooked well, but the sauce was ultimately what elevated the dish. I will say that it was only mildly spicy - tuna temaki: the rice was seasoned to be slightly tart and savory, which paired well with the fresh tuna. The seaweed was like regular seaweed, but the presentation was cute Overall, this place is a nice place to go but it is on the more expensive side. It would be a good date or special occasion spot. read more

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Looking forward to lunch here. Arrived at 12:00 and by 12:45 only had sesame noodles. Ask about the rest of the order. It will be coming they said waited 10 minutes more. Asked for our check and they charged us a service fee. This is not how you keep your customers? Service was terrible read more

Five star dining experience at Kawa Ni.. casual, unique, but laid back and homey dining experience. We loved the ambiance and presentation of our meals. Kawa Ni puts a special twist on Japanese pub styled dining unlike any other eateries in the area. The crab fried rice was loaded with crab and the sauce in the kaarage don bowl was unforgettably tasty. The creamy spicy tuna nigiri lived up to its name. We can't wait to go back again. read more

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The food is sensational. No doubt about it. But the place is very small and the service is meh.

I've been going to Kawa Ni for a few years now and used to LOVE every single thing on the menu. I truly thought it was the best restaurant around. Now, as of probably 6 months ago, less or more, I consider them average. The menu has definitely changed but some of the staples, like Kimchi Carbonara doesn't even taste like carbonara, no bacon, no flavor, just tastes like soup. I wished they'd go back to their old recipes and menu, if it's more broke don't fix it! read more

Second time here it was just as great as the first time. Came for a small bite to eat. The expansion looks great also. We ordered the chicken baos, and drink . Happy specials . Service was pleasant. Will return . read more

Kawa Ni - Bar area - Asian Fusion Near Me - Westport, Connecticut

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Absolutely amazing food. Elevated, with a fun spin. The flavor is elevated but the ambiance is casual. The chicken wings were very crunchy with a rice crispy coating and a sweet tangy sauce. The dumplings were fresh and spicy. The udon had such a unique flavor profile. we came for happy hour on Friday and it was packed at 430. I would say you need a reservation or you may end up sitting at the bar. I can't wait to return. Some people dislike the 20% included service fee but I love it. It ensure waitstaff are compensated and every table has a good experience. read more

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Kawa Ni serves the coziest, most satisfying ramen I've had in Connecticut in a long time. The shaved broccoli salad was a standout--unique and packed with flavor. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, perfect for a relaxed meal. read more

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We came to Kawa Ni for my birthday celebration. We did the sake bomb with the manager and it was so fun! I wanted a low key bday lunch and ordered pretty much everything on the menu. Food is great and company is the best. read more