Ramen Setagaya - Review

Intro
Ramen Setagaya - Slightly Recommended
141 1st Ave
New York, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 529-2740

There was a buzz in the NY food scene when it was announced Ramen Setagaya would make it's way to NYC. Supposedly, this place is a pretty good ramen chain in Japan, but after some research I decided against trying the ramen. Almost every single critic was bashing the ramen as too salty, but our resident Japanese expert Porthos convinced me to pass on the ramen. The place is OK if you're in the area, but I think there's better places to get this style of food. Overall, I give the restaurant an 71/100.

My Menu

1) Oshinko - Recommended
2) Tsukemen – Recommneded
3) Oyako-don - Average

Dish Comments
1) Oshinko are pickled vegetables. These were nice and crunchy and depending on the vegetable, it was either sweet or sour. Good start.
2) Tsukemen is basically noodles with a side dipping cold broth and topped with bbq pork. The noodles were al dente and had a nice texture being close to being undercooked. The side broth was very rich and had complex flavors consisting of dried scallops, garlic, ginger, a bunch of other ingredients. The pork on top was basically the chinese style bbq pork - tiny pieces but good stuff. Very flavorful and very fun to eat.
3) Oyako-don is chicken, rice, and egg. This dish was a tad to salty and a tad to sweet. Also the texture of the chicken was too crumbly. Pretty picky, but I've had this dishes multiple times and Porthos makes a phenomenal Oyako-don.

Overall Restaurant Experience (71/100)

• Food 7.2/10 – Good noodles, but everything else is average.
  
• Service 6.8/10 – Waiteresses are nice, but it takes a while to get the food. About 10-15 minutes for the first item to come out.
  
• Atmosphere 7.5/10 – Looks like a nicer noodle house with faux marble counter. Very tiny place, which maybe seats around 20 people. Lots of Japanese business people and single eaters. Seems like a good place to eat solo if you're in the area.
  
• Price 7.5/10 – Price was decent. $30 for all three items including a nice beer.
  

Closing Comments
If you're in the area, it might be worth it stop in for a quick tsukemen and Japanese beer. However, you'd do better at Rai Rai Ken.