Nara Ramen and Izakaya - Bismarck — Restaurant in Bismarck

Personally, best ramen in Bismarck. Simply put. My daughter and I arrived around 5pm and we were the only people in there. The woman working, I would assume the owner, but perhaps I am wrong; was so friendly and welcoming. She made us feel as if we were “at home” which I personally LOVED. She was so attentive to my daughter. She had a beaming smile and bright personality. I have ate at Nara numerous times, but this experience blew me out of the water. The food was also exceptional. Their “Honey Pickahu” aka cheese rangoons/wontons were absolutely delicious. Best I have ever had. Crispy, sweet, tangy, cheesy, delicious. Daughter approved too! Also, had the marinated chicken for an appetizer which was yum. The STAR of the show (aside from the amazing service) was hand down the Spicy Tantanmen Ramen! So bomb. Bursting with flavors, spices fragrant and delectable, the marinated eggs, so delicious- probably one of my favorite parts about ramen! This was the best dish I have tried here. I also really enjoy the ShabuShabu or Hot Pot that they offer! I tried it during their Valentines Day special and it was tasty. I’d love to try their new mini hot pot! I’ll definitely be back.. ramen is such a warm, yummy, feel good meal and Nara provides just the environment for it. (My only complaint is I wish their music was more lively, perhaps like a light house or something along those lines.. but that’s personal preference and understand it is ND after all lol!!) LOVED that their tv was playing Victortious a great family show.. Great to see!! Loved it actually, better than politics and truly felt like I was “home”!...

Not impressed! The one bright spot of our visit for lunch was that the spring rolls and jalapeno poppers were quite tasty. After that however, everything went south. We ordered two entrees. We then sat for at least 45 minutes during which time no one checked on us and other patrons who had arrived 10-20 minutes after we did had been seated, ordered and received their food. When I went up and asked, I was told there had been a mix-up in the kitchen and that our food was being prepared as a top priority. If this was true, no one had let us know this! Two entrees were then brought to our table, neither of which were what we had ordered. We clarified our order again and received one of our entrees. Shortly after a second entree was brought...but it was the same as the first entree. We had to ask AGAIN for our other entree as they had prepared two of the same thing. During this confusion the waiter and owner/cook were arguing and accusing one another of being the reason for the mixup. Honestly, it was a complete mess. And we still had to pay over $50 for our food. We were comped the entrees that were made in error, but rather than offering a discount or something to attempt to salvage the experience we received a small piece of cake for 3 of us to share. The food was ok but not great and not even close to making up for the lack of communication and poor ownership of the multiple mistakes. We will not be going back. Bummer...was excited to see a new dining opportunity...

If you're a restaurant proprietor, don't ever try to shame a customer for giving you less than 5 stars. I hope that the person who did this to me last weekend (Amy Xu) can grow up, and accept that their food really wasn't very good at my table. She even made a post on Facebook about me. Wow.

My service was not particularly friendly, the time of day that you can order certain things was quite restrictive, the restaurant was dark and depressing. The booths weren't comfortable. My sushi was thrown together, and not pleasing to the senses. I didn't even finish it. I didn't take it with me. The shrimp "tempura" that I ordered was not traditional and it was lathered in sweet sauce that was rather excessive, and I did wait a long time for my check with my card in hand even after we made eye contact.

You don't fire back at a less than perfect review with a 6 paragraph response about how YOU are a victim because someone doesn't like your restaurant. That makes you appear ridiculously immature, for all the world to see on google. You're also not entitled to huge tips on relatively small orders from a customer you weren't engaging with.

I've eaten Japanese all over the United States of America, and this place was mediocre at best, just the way I originally described. Shame on you for going on the offense over this, you're unprofessional and pitiful. If your ego is this fragile, you're in the...