3 for food, 4.5 for service.
Synopsis: a filling warm meal on a chilly autumn evening, though flavor-wise not what you'd necessarily expect from Japanese-style ramen.
Positives:
- around 8pm the restaurant was about 60% full, no wait.
- staff was very courteous and attentive, I was greeted within a minute of entering and shown to a seat, I saw the same behavior toward each party that arrived. With only short waits while tables were reconfigured to accommodate parties of different sizes. Also came by to ask how food was and easy to flag down for the check.
- the restaurant overall looked quite clean, I saw staff clearing up and wiping down tables as guests left.
- food was generously portioned and I was very full with the many chunks of tender, juicy teriyaki chicken provided.
- the ramen noodles were hearty and springy, cooked to the right texture.
- the soft-boiled ramen egg was tasty, perfectly cooked.
Negatives:
- advertised as Japanese ramen, the flavor profile of the soup wasn't quite like any Japanese ramen I've had before, not that I've eaten that much in Japan, more so the flavors leaned more towards Chinese.
- the main note in the soup tasted like salt, and it was quite salty.
- aside from the meat and egg, the rest of the vegetables were essentially unflavored. Which I guess is ok if you eat together with the proteins and soup, though I usually expect some level of flavor from these accompaniments.
- the sprinkling of chili oil on top added a kick, I enjoyed it though it was certainly not mala (麻辣) in any way. That is a specific numbing peppercorn used in Chinese Szechuan (Sichuan) cooking.
- leading to...a pet peeve of mine is when names of food are used to describe things they clearly aren't--the dan dan* ramen I ordered was described to have teriyaki chicken in it, which is a completely separate dish (so yes, I kinda knew the murky waters I was wading into, and ordered it anyways). It just rubs me the wrong way when the hot names of the hour are slapped on for marketing.
At the end of the meal, I was glad for a warm bowl of Asian noodle soup, to satisfy my craving for the same, though I don't know that I'd necessarily recommend this spot to others as exemplary Japanese ramen.
*dandan noodles are a savory, spicy Szechuan (Sichuan) dish, traditionally using a saucy ground pork and toppings like green onions and peanuts. The Japanese version tantanmen is after using similar ingredients though with different savory notes. read more