Ramen Joe RATO — Restaurant in Lisbon

Update: Was in a couple more times and still loved it. Tried the karage chicken, the veggie ramen, and the miso ramen. Loved the karage and veggie ramen, they were perfect as is. I enjoyed the miso ramen. I found the garlic paste addition to be an interesting twist.

On further reflection: the miso ramen was the saltiest dish I've tried so far. While it was interestingly spicy, the amount of raw garlic paste overwhelmed the delicacy of the broth and clashed with the sweetness of the corn and the subtle notes of the miso.

Since the chef is still refining this recipe, if I may humbly make a suggestion: perhaps using black garlic or roasted garlic for the paste with some chilli, placing it in the middle of the toppings, rather than at the bottom of the noodles, and striving for balance with the quantity of miso to reduce the salt would help push the recipe further. Looking forward to being back soon!

_---------- Original review: The Joe's Special ramen is impeccable: perfectly balanced, layered, flavorful broth. The salt level is spot on. The chashu pork is nicely caramelized on the outside and melts in your mouth. The veggies and bamboo shoots are crunchy and add a pleasant texture to the whole. The soft boiled seasoned egg makes the broth even richer. The nori is of great quality and gives a last bit of umami to an already delightful dish. Oh, and the homemade chilli oil is a great way of getting even more layers of flavor once you've savored the original dish. Just - yum. It's like a comforting hug on a rainy day. Best ramen I've had in Europe.

The service is so wonderful - the restaurant staff is kind, attentive, and proud of the food they share. And the japanese pop- rock in the background was a lovely soundtrack to a wonderful meal. Share the playlist, will you ;)?

And -- they also have lunch specials (karage chicken bento). I can't wait to try it.

Selfishly, I wish I could keep this gem all to myself (and the other 50 people who gave it 5 stars already) but, alas, I will share. Will...

I guess we were super unlucky with our waiter or they never considered to use a table number system for their orders.

Everything started well and we ordered the Edamame, Kimchi and Gyozas. The taste was good - kimchi not great (but to be fair, it's not a Japanese dish). But when the main dish arrived, they brought only my ramen, my partner had to wait for 15 minutes and we had to ask for. My guess is, the lady next to us got our Ramen dish instead of us, because she arrived after us and just ordered some minutes before it already arrived.

It's awful if you go to the restaurant and the main dishes do not arrive at the same time (we were only 2, and a Ramen dish is not super difficult to arrange, since everything is prepared beforehand and they usually have only to boil quickly the noodles and arrange it with the broth and the toppings in the bowl). Since I went to the restaurant to eat with my friend together I was waiting with my ramen until we both had our dish. These 10-15 minutes was not beneficial for the texture of my noodles and the whole experience.

The ingredients of the Ramen were good. Especially the Chashu was great (super tender).

Because of this experience I would not come back (unless I want to eat alone).

Our waiter was not good and had a hard time to get the order right. We were not sure which language he speaks, because we tried it in Portuguese and English and he had issues with...

I really want to love this place since I followed their instagram over a year ago. I was finally able to visit from Porto (a couple of weeks ago). I had a very high expectation when I came in.

We came on Sunday evening at around 6 pm, and we ordered a few items: Vegetable tempura. The tempura itself was good, they use the right batter. It’s crispy but not greasy. Unfortunately, the sauce was lack in flavor. Kimchi fried rice. It was good. But I don’t quite remember the flavor. So… I guess it was ok? Tonkotsu ramen. I appreciate the homemade noodles. It has great consistency. The broth is good, but not amazing. I see that they are using a combination of chicken and pork broth. I wish it was a full pork bone broth for creamier and richer flavor. The chashu was great, it melts I. Your mouth. Ajitama was also cooked and marinated properly. So far, it’s not the best ramen I’ve had. I would love to see improvement. Chicken karaage - now this is a reason to go to this place. Love the chicken karaage. I would definitely come back to this place when I’m in Lisbon again.

I wish you have togarashi (chili powder). We asked for it, but the server said you didn’t have it. The service was also a bit slow. It might be slightly understaffed. The space was tight and a bit too warm.

I was a bit disappointed when I left because of the high expectation. I hope you can keep growing and...