Food was great! don't order curbside or take out almost an hour of circling the block because they just wanted us to wait outside the restaurant in the street's bus lane... I mean, we could've paid for parking in downtown walked to the restaurant and waited for our take out that should have already been ready but all things considered, would recommend for dine-in only. read more

Worst service ever. Awkward greeting when my boyfriend and walked in Waiter came with menus shortly after and came back 10 minutes later to take order Never came back to table and we left after 45 minutes due to an expiring parking meter and we had no more change Couldn't flag down our waiter even through we walked by a few times and he never checked on us My boyfriend has more patience then I do and was frustrated also. He called to let them know we left and to cancel our food. He got attitude from whatever female server answered the phone. "All the tables are full". Apparently not since the call was made as soon as we walked out the door Also would like to point out that if the servers have friends come in after you, you get to watch them get the same food you ordered before you Seeing other reviews, looks like the owners love horrible service since it's not getting fixe read more

My boyfriend introduced me to this place and I was so excited cause I love ramen and I had never been to a place that served real ramen before and let me tell you it was so delicious. The real thing that I unexpectedly fell in love with was their Katsudon. I've never had anything like it it's so amazingly tasty especially with their mushrooms (and i don't even like mushrooms but theirs are to die for)! I always beg my bf to go lol. The place itself is super cool. It's small but very cozy and they play good music too. My favorite place to eat downtown for sure! read more

Kimura - Katsudon with amazing mushrooms - Ramen Near Me - San Antonio, Texas

This place has terrible customer service. I walked into their establishment, and was never greeted. Finally, after 5 minutes of waiting the waitress asked if I wanted to order. Of course I said yes, why would I just be standing there. She asked the guy behind the bar, who seemed to have an attitude, to take my order. He meandered around to giving me a menu, and that's the last I heard from him. I stood there deliberately for another 7-10 minutes to see if he would ask if I was ready to order, to no avail; he never asked, so I politely put the menu on the counter and walked out. If I patronize a business to spend my hard earned money, and I can't get basic customer service or even an acknowledgement that I'm standing in front of an emp, that's an establishment I will never visit again, and one I would definitely not recommend! If they can be that negligent with respect to their customers, how much more ... when handling and preparing food! read more

the food was good but i gave it 3 stars because the waitress was so rude. It was our first time there and we were kind of confused on the menu so we asked questions to the waitress and it looked like she was annoyed by us asking her questions. She wasnt friendly and she didnt come to check if we needed anything but one time and she looked mad because she had to do it. Didnt even ask us what we wanted to drink just brought us water. The rest of the staff looked friendly and smiled and asked if we needed anything, just not our waitress. read more

FOLLOW UP: This place is consistently slow. Each time I return it seems like I have to wait longer and longer for my food. Today I had to get up and walk out and leave after 45 minutes had elapsed from the time I placed my lunch order. Other diners had been served who came in after I did, and there was still no estimated time of arrival for my meal. They did give me a cooler than lukewarm cup of chicken broth while I was waiting. It's a shame because I brought a friend who had never been to the location before, and he might have turned into a regular customer but now neither he nor I will ever return. Good food when you can get it, but you can never get it because they're so damn slow. Did I mention they're slow? read more

If I could give 0 I would. While the appetizers were good, the ramen was tasteless. They were small and the server was less than pleasant and treated our table like we were less than welcome. However, what brings them down completely is the fact that they added a tip to the charge they submitted to the bank. We tipped in cash and yet an additional $8 was added to our bill. I know that I signed off with 0 on the tip line because we left a $20 bill on the table. I am disgusted by their choice to do this. Avoid at all costs. Give your money to an honest business instead. read more

Unpolished and horrible ramen. I ended up sick for two days on that stuff, and we had to wait for about an hour with only 12 other guests there to get it; and with about 12 employees. read more

This is the best ramen spot in San Antonio the ramen is always top notch but the one thing I did not like is the pork bone ramen Was not as flavorful as the other ramen choices there but overall 4 stars read more

I don't know what the hell happend to this place, but it used to be my favorite ramen shop. I ordered the Tonkotsu and it didn't look like tonkotsu at all. They're using a blender for their broths or something? I dunno what the hell is going on behind the scenes but the changes they made have really affected the quality of the product. Business is still good though so people are just ignorant of these things I suppose. It's really just sad. It was such a good place. read more

This place is A-May-Zingggggg... I had a horrible work day, saw this place and decided to try something new vs typical fast food. My bartender Gabby was PERFECT... friendly, attentive, knowledgeable, and recommend an amazing drink, appetizer, and meal... all exceeded my expectations. And my water is charcoal filtered. This place is a gem. read more

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Cool atmosphere, food was ok. Nothing special. Our waiter was rude towards the end, i felt rushed to leave the place. I'd try another ramen place before returning here. read more

Tried this place 2 mths ago & absolutely fell in love w/their food! Couldn't wait to come back & when I did make it back to SA this was my 1st stop! It is soooo delicious, flavorful & hearty! They definitely don't skimp on their ingredients & if it's not enough you can order extra. The pork shoulder is super tender & falls apart easily. I really wish we had something like this in the Rio Grande Valley! The downsides are parking, very limited seating, no sodas or regular tea & since my last visit everything went up $2-$3 (and they didn't update their prices on the menu or warn us so caught us a bit off guard). I'll definitely be back though on my next trip! read more

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I came here and ordered a miso soup. No appetizer since the wait was already long. The miso was pretty lukewarm. The broth did not taste good at all. A little on the Salty side. The menu could be a little more kid friendly. The staff was great though! read more

First time here and instantly fell in love! As soon as we walked in, Samantha greeted us with laughs and smiles and made us feel at home! She answered any and all questions we had and was so friendly, you just don't find that kind of customer service a lot these days. The Chefs don't play around Food was phenomenal. Staff were all friendly and the Establishment was very clean and cozy. Definitely a new spot whenever I'm in town. read more

The service was phenomenal and so was the food.I am speechless...the restaurant was small but exploding with potential.We had a conversation with the manager who came up to us too see how we were doing and you can tell they have a genuine passion for what they do. A wonderful way to experience trying something new. My time was well spent and i did not wait long at all. I would describe the whole thing as beautiful,bold and absurd. This was one for the books. read more

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If you're downtown this is worth the stop. It's always busy, even during the week, however, we were able to get seated pretty quickly. The ramen is a balance of savory flavors coming from the broth recipe and other standard ingredients that include mushroom and egg. The serving size is reasonable and was filling. My only complaint is that there were no desserts! Also, the gohan rice was a little al dente. read more

Kimura - Ramen Near Me - San Antonio, Texas

Love this place. We always go here before a play at the majestic. We get apps and drinks.

This place here is horrible to eat at, the cook wasn't wearing any gloves while handing the food the customer service was the worst our waitress didn't seem to excited to greet us she also brought us the wrong order we left immediately and the food was taking to long would not recommend. read more

When you call in a order, and advised it will take 20 mins you show up 30 mins later and they don't even have the order.. they have reviews but the service along with the bartender sucks! Will not return! read more

I've been here about 4 or 5 times now, so I think I know how things go around here. The ramen has been pretty solid each time I've been. Bowls are small (less soup, but plenty of substance). I've tried the tonkotsu and shoyu and both have been good, flavorful, and full of extras which I like. Gyoza is subpar, which is sad. They're typically more soggy than crispy. I like the open kitchen concept so you can see everything that's going on. Cooks are usually focused and less talkative, but there's one guy that tries to engage you which is good. Overall atmosphere is nice. My biggest issue with Kimura is the speed of service. It's VERY slow here. They don't turn tables very fast, and since it's a small restaurant, there's almost always a wait unless you come by yourself and sit at the bar. The last two times I've been here, I've waited 5-7 minutes just to get water. There doesn't seem to be any method to the madness or ownership of tables. It usually takes me about 1+ hours to eat here, even though I'm by myself. I think it'd speed up a lot if you just had one dedicated person cleaning tables while the other servers focus on taking orders and delivering food. I'll be back, mainly because 1) there's no other ramen shop closeby and I stay downtown for work, 2) the ramen is pretty good here, and 3) I'm usually not in a hurry. read more

ramen- absolutely delicious! good variety, perfect broth & noodles. portions are generous. good options for ingredients. wish they had corn. there's a spicy paste for the ramen that has the best flavor of any spice ever, but also has a pretty powerful punch. service- have eaten here several times and i've never had anything but amazing service. cozy setting. great location. love this place and can't wait to go back. read more

Was excited to try some ramen since I haven't had any legit ramen or close to legit since 2015 and.. well I was Thoroughly disappointed, one of the miso soups we ordered came room temperature this place was terribly overpriced as I paid for a whiskey with a splash of coke that apparently came the other way around, and extra salty flavor in the main dish they claim to specialize in. so save your Pallet and stay way from this high in sodium Lukewarm soup establishment claiming to be ramen. Portion; small. Flavor; salty. Price; not worth it. Ambiance; ..it was cozy loved the shop the servers were nice but I came for good food and only left with an expensive bill. Will not go again, would not recommend. read more

Extremely disappointed. As many of the reviews have pointed out, very overpriced and underwhelming. I would not recommend the gyōza and honestly wouldn't recommend the ramen either. I ordered the shoyu ramen and it was probably the worst ramen I've had (I would of enjoyed an instant ramen more). The quality of their ingredients seemed great, just the combination didn't work. I also waited over 30 minutes for my ramen (sitting alone at the bar) watching everyone else receive their orders. On a good note, the wait staff was very kind and friendly. read more

The best ramen joint in San Antonio. I try every ramen place I can this is by far the best since moving from Houston. I wanted to drink the broth straight from the bowl. I had the tonkostu with braised pork belly 10/10 read more

Kimura - Ramen Near Me - San Antonio, Texas

I visited Kimura a few times when it was in the downtown area and I don't think I ever had a bad experience and always left saying that I enjoyed the food and service. I visited the new location today and it is definitely not the same. We ordered spicy charred edamame and Gyoza as an appetizer. The edamame was extremely spicy to the point where my tongue felt numb after having 4. We ordered The tantamen and tonksu and both barely had any meat in them and noodles were over cooked in clumps. The mushrooms in them were good. It took probably over 30 min for our ramen to be brought out as there was only 2 cooks, seems like they weren't able to keep up with to go orders and the evening rush. We noticed that our gyoza still hadn't been brought out after we got our ramen. I asked our server about it and she said oh ya it's coming and walked away. Another server then brought out our gyoza midway finishing up our ramen. A big pet peeve of mine is for my appetizers to be brought out with or after my entree, so we nicely turned them away. The service was also not the best, in total we saw our server about 3 times in the hour that we were there. The runner brought our food out and another server was more attentive and apologetic than ours. For 2 people we spent $50 which I felt was a bit pricey for the food we got. Parking is also another issue, their parking lot fits probably 5 cars and the rest have to park in the street or across the street is available if it's after 5:30pm. Will I go back, probably not. read more

A classic favorite. Quality and care is put into everything in the menu here. The tonkotsu is my personal favorite and the best in the city. The place is small so get there early for dinner service. Lunch is a great hit for in and out dining. A definite recommendation and must try if you haven't. read more

Super busy and tiny place If you go at peak time and they ask your phone number for wait list, just find another place. Because they will NEVER call you. read more

I loved everything I had here. It's authentic ramen and Japanese fare in San Antonio, in the old Sandbar location. Tips: -Make a reservation. This place seats about 35 people tops. -Order some fishy appetizers - the marinated tuna was excellent. -Try the ramen - some people balk at the idea of paying upwards of $10 for ramen. This isn't Top Ramen, guys. It's high quality noodles and meats and vegetables. You wouldn't bat an eye at paying that much for quality Italian food. -Order a drink - most of them are gin-based. -Go for lunch or late night. I'm psyched to try the late night menu one boozy Friday. I really enjoyed my meal here and will be back. For what it is, I feel like it's reasonably priced. It's cheaper than most meals I eat out. It's delicious. And it's something different for this town. read more

Really, really excellent ramen. It's all about the quality and perfection of the ingredients; not quantity. I eat here whenever I am craving good ramen and there's plenty of wanna-be ramen places in town that don't even place compared to this. They've actually gotten a little cheaper as I think they reduce their portion sizes. I always get the Tonkotsu (pork) broth ramen with pork belly. I've tried the Shoyu (chicken and soy) broth a few times and it's a little too creamy/milky for my taste. But this is an excellent place to eat on a cold, stormy day. P.S. Don't go there; order sushi; then complain about it. That's like getting tacos from Burger King then complaining about why they don't do tacos good. Lesson: order what they are known for. But they'll serve you sushi if you really want it and are willing to pay their prices for it. read more

I walked out of lunch at Kimura $15 poorer, underwhelmed and still kind of hungry. Which sucks. I had never tried "high quality" ramen and was expecting a flavor punch to the mouth and well.. let's start from the beginning. Kimura is tiny and smoky. Which is probably why the door was swung wide open when I stopped by for lunch. Luckily, it was beautiful outside but I was wondering what's going to happen when the temp dips below 60. The seating is way cramped and even if you're rail thin, you're still going to have to do some scooching to make way to your seat. For an app, we went with the gyoza and they were amazing. Perfect texture on the outside with a savory pork filling, I wish we'd ordered double. On the ramen menu was miso and shoyu and I decided on shoyu. Now, I'm not sure how exactly "authentic" ramen is supposed to taste but the shoyu ramen was.. well it was boring. I love ethnic food which shocks my taste buds like the first time I had biryani or the very first time I experienced Thai. This experience was on a level much lower. Maybe ramen focuses on subtle flavors but who in the world goes to a restaurant for subtle food? Not this girl. I found myself eyeing the kitchen for some sriracha to (in the words of Elzar) take it up a couple notches. Honestly, chances of me going back to Kimura are slim. It's not worth the parking, the scooching and the smokiness for watery broth with some packaged noodles. read more

I am so so sorry for any of the not awesome things I have thought about this restaurant. The first time I stopped in for a meal (lunch) was early on after opening and it just didn't click with me. As it turns out, that's my fault. I waited a while and went back and I have no idea why I wasn't enamored the very first time. The happy hour is amazing. I'd be so happy to eat nothing more than the grilled bok choy and gyoza. The bok choy makes my mouth so happy. Then you have the ramen. I haven't been able to break myself away from the ramen to try the plates, but soon! The tonkatsu with pork belly and tantanmen are my favorites. Generally made with no modifications (because what am I, a princess?) but sometimes extra mushrooms. The signature cocktails are great. The Ginger Geisha is one of my favorites, but sometimes I just want a carafe of sake. You can't really go wrong with any of the options. Make sure you get a ramen stamp card when you're there, too. I think it gets you a freebie? I can't remember, but I'm sure it'll be awesome. The only thing I'd change? An option to order a smaller portion of ramen (I know, I know.) because I'm a punk ass and can't eat even half of my bowl. read more

Did not like it at all. And found a piece of foil in my saba. 2 stars because the manager was nice enough to come over and apologized and waived my dish. But the waitress was mad for some reason? ‍ gave me attitude when I told her about the foil and gave me that longgg face until I leave. I still tipped her 18% because I know it's not her fault but no "thank you", just all mad face. She probably just doesn't like her job all that much. didn't like ramen here too. It was bland. Will not come back. read more

I've hesitated to write this review as I feel my experience with Japanese food and in particular Kimura's namesake ramen, Tonkotsu ramen, will deter others from going and trying the food here. However, I have decided to give my honest opinion for one reason - when you advertise yourself as "authentic" and say things like, "we don't change the taste for American palates," you open yourself up to criticism if you fall short. Having spent nearly a decade in Fukuoka, Japan where Tonkotsu ramen originates, and having eaten the real deal literally hundreds of times in various stages of sobriety, I can say unequivocally that this is not proper Tonkotsu ramen. Notice I didn't say that it was bad ramen because it isn't as I enjoyed my bowl of ramen greatly. But when you go around claiming authenticity, you're eventually going to have someone call your bluff. The one defining factor that virtually every traveler has of authentic Tonkotsu ramen is the smell. When prepared properly, it smells... Bad. Like boiling the basketball team's socks after a double over-time. In fact, often you can smell Tonkotsu ramen blocks away. But this revulsion soon turns into a method of discerning the potential tastiness of the ramen. Prior to our ramen arriving we ate the cucumber sunomono. This wasn't bad. It looked the part and tasted fairly accurate to the real deal. We both remarked that it was a bit on the sweet side but this is within the scope of a chef's artistic license. In Japan I have had slightly sweet sunomomo but ordinarily it is not. The ramen at Kimura is the best bowl of ramen I have had in San Antonio. You can tell that the chef and staff put a lot of time and effort into their product. The broth was rich and rather deep in texture although on our visit a number of patrons were complaining that the broth was too salty, for which the server apologized. The noodles were probably the most authentic part of this dish. They were spot on in size and shape although they were a tad tough probably from the broth not being hot enough. Additionally, they were a tad sticky. This, in my expert opinion, is more than likely due to dropping in the ball of noodles without fanning them out. Also, the cooks need to make sure to use their saibashi (long cooking chopsticks) to separate the noodles as they cook. Oh, I forgot to mention that serving miso soup with ramen is a bit redundant and very uncommon in Japan. That being said, my wife and I enjoyed the miso soup very much. The ramen was esthetically pleasing. The various elements were there such as the chashu (pork), scallions, and nori (seaweed). In Japan, nori is never shredded in ramen but it is when put on top of zaru (cold) soba. Often the chef will just put a big old sheet of nori along the side of the bowl and extending out and up. Also, the fish cake, kamaboko, is never eaten in ramen in Japan but is eaten hot soba and udon. My Japanese wife said that while the kamaboko tasted good, presenting it in ramen is strange. Lastly, with regards to the Tonkotsu ramen I ate, the broth had a very strong bacon taste which seems to have come from the chashu which was not prepared in the traditional Japanese chashu method. It sure tasted good but authentic it was not. My wife, who is 100% Japanese, ate the miso ramen. She enjoyed the noodles, although they were a bit sticky like mine, but was taken aback by the shredded nori and komoboko in her ramen. Additionally, she stated that she could hardly taste any miso in her miso ramen. One other thing that we both agreed was not authentic is the boiled egg (ajitama). The egg in our ramen was just a plain old boiled egg with just a slightly cooked inner yoke, the way it should be. However, proper ajitama is prepared in the normal manner of boiling, but is then taken from its shell and placed in a bath of soy sauce, sugar, and mirin where it soaks up flavor for at least 24 hours. This also colors the outside and some of the inside a caramel color. Honestly, I'm split. On one hand, with no prior knowledge of ramen, I'd say this ramen was great. On the other hand, having eaten ramen multiple times each week for nearly a decade, I must address the claims of authenticity and say that it isn't authentic. As I've stated, I enjoyed the ramen personally and I think most others will as well; but when you get a Japanese customer in your shop you might not want to brag about authenticity. The Japanese are very proud of their food culture and have a difficult time acknowledging, for example, that a bowl of ramen is delicious if it isn't authentically Japanese. Another thought is that this ramen is over-engineered. Ramen is a simple food not meant to be froo-frooed too much. Great chefs seem compelled to mess with what is tried and true. This so often leads to a lack of authenticity and higher prices, the latter being one of the biggest complaints of Kimura. So, if you want a great bowl of noodles and do not care about au read more

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Smokey. Why? Happy hour pricing was good. Would not recommend the SUNOMONO Would not recommend the wings. Would not recommend the yakitori. Would not recommend the Ramen TONKOTSU WOULD recommend the Yakisoba w/beef WOULD recommend the gyoza. WOULD only slightly recommend the edamame if during happy hour. Service was amazing. The items taste almost like the sauce is old or burned or not switched out between items. Not sure. Would not return. read more

I've visited for dinner quite a few times however this recent experience left me agreeing that it's time to never go back ever again. Seems like every time we visit for a table of 2, we're placed in a spot that is way too close to another party or the waitresses just don't care to help you when you arrive. There was a waitress eating her food at the same time she was handling customers food and taking their dishes to their tables, which is pretty unsanitary and gross to me. You can also see their empty chip bags and trash around where they keep some plates/glasses by their kitchen which was weird and also gross to see. Regardless if they're going to wash all those dishes, put the trash where it belongs. Most of the waitresses will stand around and twiddle their thumbs while you're trying to get their attention for more water or something. They will also stand super close to you while you're eating and just stare at the guys in the kitchen laughing and talking it up. It's like they don't respect personal space in any shape or form. Also since they stand so close to you you can hear all of the restaurant drama they have to say and it's unprofessional/uncomfortable. I like the tantanmen ramen they have but it's for sure not worth going for. The experience brings the food quality down in my opinion and also appetizers come out cold all the time. Whoever the owner is of this place, please consider more training for your waitresses or hiring some that won't make your customers feel neglected or uncomfortable. Also please stick to one recipe and stop having chefs or cooks cook things the way they want it to be cooked and not at the customers request. read more

I am writing this review as neither a Ramen Nazi nor as someone who even really craves Ramen that much. I mean, I like it, don't get me wrong, but I would never make a dedicated trip or anything to have it, as many would. So, with that preamble, I think Kimura is good. I went there for a quick business lunch and I wasn't disappointed at all. The ambiance was nice, the servers were attentive, and I enjoyed my tonkatsu ramen (off menu item that day). In my ramen, the shitaki mushrooms were particularly memorable and the egg was clearly a free range egg judging by the color of the yolk. The miso soup they served us ahead of time underwhelmed, however. My colleague's rice dish with eel looked pleasant and he enjoyed it. Also, for downtown, this place is a godsend as there are so few good options down there still. Overall, I'll be back, probably somewhat frequently. read more

Is it me, or is the service in this city getting worse? It's a shame because even if the food is good, bad service can cast a long shadow of disappointment over the dining experience. Such as it was with Kimura. Now, I understand it's a new joint. But, I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that most of the staff there has some sort of kitchen experience. In other words, this isn't their first rodeo. So, waiting 10 minutes between being shown the table and getting a drink order placed is a little unacceptable. Kimura is a small, cozy spot (hot as the dickens when we visited but they were having issues with the AC). There are maybe 8-10 tables. This place isn't so big that patrons could be forgotten about. If it hadn't been for my husband flagging down a server, we might not have ever gotten a chance to try the noodles. Once drink orders (barley tea for two, a cocktail for one, water for me) and appetizers (gyoza, edamame) were placed, we waited some more before we finally asked if we could place our food order. All four of us ordered the shoyu. They were out of the tonkotsu. Let's talk about the appetizers for a minute. They're a little pricey and a little on the small side. I mean, I know they're listed under the "Little Things" portion of the menu but it was kind of a rip. We paid $4 for a tiny cup of edamame. I didn't try the gyoza so I can't speak for it, though there did appear to be some trouble with the middle parts (I'll let my friend write the review on that one). The edamame was good but then, how can you dick up edamame? Wait, don't answer that. When the bowls of shoyu arrived we quickly forgot about the previous disappointments (including the wait time between the arrival of the first two bowls and the last two bowls). The bowls were in a word, beautiful. Seriously, the food just looked amazing. When I dug in, I was happy to find that the egg was tasty, the nori & bean sprouts crunchy, the broth salty, the noodles slurpy goodness if just a tad chewy. However, the slice of pork was hard to manage (I had to take it out and cut it up with a knife - I feared I'd end up wearing ramen if I tried any other way to cut it) and the mushrooms were meh. Still, I ate the hell out of my noodles. All four of us did, in fact. As we left, I asked my (half Japanese) husband his thoughts. He is slightly biased obviously, having lived in Japan for 13 years. His thoughts were that the focus was too much on the pork not enough on the ramen. Noodles are an art form in Japan and these were sorely lacking in his opinion. He wasn't very happy. Overall, I thought it was a decent meal despite all the waiting. To be fair, the staff was never rude. On the contrary, they were very nice. I'm hoping that they're paid a living wage because we paid $40 for two bowls of ramen, a cup of edamame and some barley tea again. It's hard to justify spending $$$ on store bought noodles. Still, I wouldn't say not to give Kimura a try. Just wait a few months before checking it out. Maybe then they'll have the kinks (and the AC) worked out. read more

Starting this review off with a confession: I watch television shows about food. Not necessarily cooking shows, but just shows about people eating food. After watching shows where Chefs David Chang, Anthony Bourdain, and Ivan Orkin describe Ramen like it was the best most complex dish in the world, and that Chefs in Japan can study for up to ten years to make the perfect Bowl of Ramen, I was like I'm going to Japan and I'm eating Ramen for lunch and dinner. Needless to say I was super excited to learn that there is a Ramen Restaurant right here in San Antonio. Before coming here, I was enjoying a conversation with some of the kitchen staff from Cured, and one of the best bartenders in San Antonio who asked me if I had been to Kimura, and after saying no I was told that the Chef Michael Sohocki is an artist and his attention to detail is unmatched by the other places around town serving up bowls of Ramen. After that conversation I made an excuse to leave and headed over Kimura. I was greeted by my waiter, and brought a bottle of tap water with a piece of burnt wood in it. I tasted the water and didn't notice any certain flavor, so I asked whats the deal with the burnt wood in the water, and it was explained to me that burnt wood can be used to filter water, so I essentially had a Britta filter without the big jug at my table. After doing a little googling I found that yes its true burnt wood can be used to filter water, but not by simply placing it in the water. So I guess its just there to look cool. All my questions about the menu were answered to great detail, everything from the source of the fish, to the off menu special. I felt confident ordering my first bowl of Ramen and was ready to have the experience. I started off with Unagi Nigiri, because I couldn't resist. It was served as an order of two pieces on a little plank of wood, (I guess they like to serve things with wood here) and was paired with a dipping sauce that the Chef made for me it was soy sauce and a mixture of other spices, the sauce itself was wonderful. It was two intense bites of an exciting explosion of flavors, I was actually taken aback and said, "What just happened?" "Should I order more?" I ordered the Miso Ramen with Pork. My server used a laser pointer to show me every component of my dish there were quite a few. As described on the TV shows I watched about Ramen, the noodles and the broth are the stars of the dish, and the rest are just the to compliment them. The Broth was great the noodles where the same texture that Ivan Orkin told me they had to be, I slurped them up, not caring who saw! Man it was good. What I really liked though were the little prizes in the bowl you get to enjoy along the way, the pork melted in my mouth and tasted amazing. A-MAZ-ING! The soft boiled egg was such a treat. The Miso broth really gave it a little something extra. And the slices of Shiitake Mushrooms... Oh Lawd another explosion of flavor that really turned up the rest of the dish. Picked the bowl up and drank the broth and everything. All said and done it was too much food to finish, I left some noodles and a little bit of the seaweed garnish behind. On the way out Chef Michael Sohocki asked me how everything was, I explained that it was great, but my only previous Ramen experience involved a package of instant noodles. He laughed and went on to explain, the different broths that he uses. I'm excited to try the one he described as advanced with pork bone. I think I'll just ask him to cook me what he would like next time. I'm sure it will be great. This is a small place that would be great for a date. You may want to call ahead though, being that there is limited seating. Go give this place a try, I'm happy I did. read more

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OKAY! I've been here 3x now, so here is my take on Kimura: Price: Expensive for ramen. It's a decent ramen shop, but remember it is downtown so it will be pricey. The average dinner for 2 people will be roughly $50 or a little more. A 20% Gratuity is added to parties more than 5 I do believe...? Food: it's a decent bowl of ramen, not yet consistent, but still pretty good. I love the chashu but the broth has some work needed...miso ramen can be a little too concentrated(?), tonkotsu should be a little more creamier, and the shoyu ramen should be a little oily rather than creamy...and the noodles get a little clumped up... But other than that, it's good! Gyoza and yakitori is good too! Bottom line: Go during happy hour (5-7), but be warned...sometimes they won't charge happy hour prices. Happy hour, some beers are half off and the appetizers are a little cheaper. Park at Pecan and St. Mary's at the St. Mark's church parking lot or the PAZ(?) parking lot...it's down the street and it's $3-5 compared to the garage across the shop. read more