Address: | 70 Kenmare St, New York, NY 10012, USA |
Phone: | +1 646-613-7522 |
Site: | ramen-lab.com |
Rating: | 4.6 |
Working: | Closed 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM 5–10PM Closed |
PI
Pinky Chan
Hype is just a hype. I would give it a 3.75 if I could. The place is super tiny as many others have said. 10 seats and for a party of 2 on a Friday night we waited about 2 hours. That feels much longer... In the freezing cold. My friend and I were already so hungry that we went next door to defrost a bit and have our "first dinner". There is no room to even stand inside. The staff was accommodating and did their best to keep their customers happy, so seriously dont give them crap when you miss your name being called. When she says "about 30 min" dont come back 30 min expecting your name still there, you never know with these things so its best to be there. Since the 2 hour wait is really a wait, do NOT come around 9 and expect them to seat you or even put you on the list. They started turning away people around 9pm because they have to close around 10. Be respectful, dont be selfish. They are people too! When you finally go in, she asks you to look at the menu before you sit down. Theres basically two choices. One thats with the pork meat in chicken broth thats $13. The other one miso with just veggies. If you want to add an egg its $2... ! $1 for each 0.5 of the egg. But dang that egg is GOOD. My pork ramen was ssuuuuppppperrr salty. Its almost like eating air because I gobbled that thing fast. However, my tongue is destroyed by the amount of salt in it... Almost like drinking a light soysauce. I tried a bit of my friends veggie ramen. That one is also really salty but with some butter and hot paste added to it. It has a strong black bean taste and its thicker broth. Id get the miso one if I were to come back..... Maybe when its not 2 hour wait though.... All in all, go try it because of the authentic experience but definitely drink lots of water to remove that salt from your tastebuds! And 100% definitely get that EGG. Thanks, chef ! Also a fun fact: they serve their ice water in beakers !!!! Hehe.. Ramen... Lab... Lab.. Hah! OK Im good. Had to get that out there. Cash only !!!! Restroom in the back so you have to squirm through the 8 seats in the small area against the wall. There are hooks behind your seats along the wall for your bags and such. But dont be like me and bring a big bag to put against the wall that people get stuck along the way.... Hah! Dont even bother taking off your coat. Aint nobody got room for that.....! Youll probably still need to defrost from the cold regardless.....!!! Promise me you wont get frostbite waiting to eat this ramen. Please. Please.
JI
Jin Yoshikawa
Ramen Lab is Sun Noodles test kitchen. Every month, a different guest chef occupies the space to try their hand at the NYC ramen scene. The chefs come from all across the US, Japan, and even Europe. In the past, there have been traditional chuka soba ramen-yas, Jiro-kei ramen-yas, iekei ramen-yas, American fusion ramen-yas, vegetarian ramen-yas, and many other unique and creative ramen-yas. While theyre here to see if they can purchase the ingredients they want, provide the same price and flavor in NYC as in their home towns, and confirm other logistical questions, they are primarily testing NYers tastes. So, whether youll actually like the menu when you visit will depend on the guest chef of the month. Pricing also varies, but expect prices to start from $14 and go up to $18 or more depending on how much extra toppings you order. As for the experience, theres only about 12-15 standing counter spaces available. On the one hand, you may have to wait as long as thirty minutes or more, on the other, you get a very intimate and authentic ramen experience. They also have the Okinawa beer, Orion, regardless of the chef of the month. I try to go every month because its always fun to try the restaurants, which are trying to decide whether to come to NYC or not, and to talk to the chefs!
YU
yu new
I have to agree with the reviewer below who said its not really fair to give this place a rating as the chef changes frequently. HOWEVER, here I am leaving a review for my experience on 10/8 with Chef Menya Musashi from Tokyo. We arrived before the line grew quite long. With seating for six people (!), I imagine the wait can get to be pretty painful. We waited for about 20 minutes before being seated when we arrived at 5:30. Our party was initially four people, but two decided to dine elsewhere when they were told that they couldnt split a bowl. Odd policy, in my opinion, but whatever. Ill play by the rules. Im glad I did, because this was the best ramen I have ever had. The star removed was for the sharing policy and for the possible variability of the experience. The pork belly was tender with a good crisp on the outside and melted in my mouth. The noodles were perfectly chewy. The portion size was generous. The broth was incredibly rich, creamy, and flavorful with just the right amount of salt. The boiled egg was a touch overdone for my taste, but still enough yolk to add to the broth. Who knows what the next chef will bring, but if its anything like my experience, its worth the trip.
PR
Priscilla Yuen
Ramen Lab is a pretty cool concept. It is a pop-up kitchen in which each month a different well-known chef showcases their ramen creations. Therefore, it is difficult to give it a star rating since the menu changes every month. For this particular visit, Id give it a 3.5 stars. I went here during Chef Naoka Miuras month (August 2016). Her ramen theme was HiyaChu, which is short for Hiyashi Chuka, a cold ramen dish typically eaten during the summer. I went with the Green Sauce Hiyachu. It is green onions minced into a pesto-like sauce. The sauce had good flavor and the noodles were cooked just right. I didnt care for the sliced pork or the minced tuna. It was flavorless and didnt add much to the dish. I prefer ramen in broth. Its a really small place. Theres a counter and you basically stand while eating the ramen. They have stools in front of the store if you really have to sit, but then the place would be even more cramped. Not a good place for big groups or families with young children.
JO
Joanne Wong
This place is just down the street from me. Every time I pass by, theres a HUGE line-up, no matter what the weather. I went a while ago when KENS RAMEN was in town (around November or so). LOVED IT. My cousin and I went quite early (basically right when they opened). We quickly got seated (or... standed?). There are too many standing locations -- I think 8-10. We were the 5th or 6th person; so it took a bit longer for them to make our ramen. The first few people quickly got their ramen. My cousin and I both ordered the paitan ramen, but they messed up my order by giving me the hell paitan. Thats fine with me. I kinda regretted not ordering the spicy one after I saw other people eating it. Despite it being SUPER spicy though, it was pretty amazing. Not only this, they were playing some bad ass beats the entire time. We also ordered the bun, but that couldve been skipped. Definitely will have to come back in the future to try more ramen from the different places.