Soup Shack JP — Restaurant in Boston

First off, I would like to clarify that the review I’m submitting is not about the food quality here. The food here is good, and if that’s all you care to know about, there you have it.

However, I believe there’s a lot more that goes into making a restaurant experience truly “good” - and this is not something I can vouch for in terms of services received here last night. I will no longer be giving Soup Shack my money for these reasons:

My partner and I went to dinner around 6:30p with our 2 dogs seeking to sit at their outside patio. Mind you, there was already 1 dog observable on the patio when we arrived. The host proceeds to come out and ask us if we wouldn’t mind tying up our dogs outside of the exterior perimeter of their designated patio-area while we ate, which as responsible dog-owners needing to guard and guide your dog while with them in any outside space, we stated we would not do. Besides, the intent of our evening was to have dinner together as a family, which includes our dogs. The host then goes on to tell us that we cannot be seated because our dogs are not service dogs. I believe that if this were truly the case, the host should have led with this (and asked vs. assumed), at which point I could have also clarified the working nature of both my dogs. Instead, this was not how the interaction went down last night, and my partner and I simply opted to leave with take-out, which I regret, because frankly a place like this didn’t deserve our money after the treatment we received. I would like to further highlight that both of my well-behaved dogs, who remained in a down-position this entire discussion, are rescue pit-bulls; Meanwhile the dog we viewed on their patio was clearly some kind of doodle-breed. I recognize that there is a lot of discrimination towards the breed of dogs I possess, and it is this exact stigma I attempt to fight daily when my dogs and I work together and go on outings or visit restaurants together. We have never had a single incident anywhere, but that doesn’t protect us from judgment and exclusion it seems.

All in all, I wanted to provide this feedback and summary of my experience to this restaurant and to any other customers who seek to listen. I will not be returning to Soup Shack moving forward given what occurred last night; I regret giving this restaurant my money even for take-out thereafter, so will not be settling with my values this way again in the future, especially now having given this experience further reflection and recognizing the inherent discrimination that likely...

A ramen spot in Jamaica Plain? Yes, please! But don't go calling this a ramen-only joint, because they serve all kinds of noodz over there, from Japanese ramen bowls to Thai noodle soups, rice bowls, and plenty of other Asian-inspired dishes.

Being cold and famished, I went with a roasted pork steamed bun ($4) and one of their Tan Tan Men bowls ($12) and proceeded to sit down and look outside their large, front-of-the-store window for my food to get prepped up and arrive.

My pork steamed bun was pretty good but what they don't tell you, is that it's not your typical chashu pork - they use a pork-belly cut which is much, much fattier. They used it in my appetizer as well as in my ramen. I don't mind a lil fat here and there but this proved too much for me. It was good but not as good as the more traditional cuts you get which have more meat.

But it was all decent and the bowl of Tan Tan Men was pretty damn tasty outside of those super fatty pork slides. The broth had great depth of flavor and I slurped it all up in minutes.

The price is about right and the service was great. The place is cute but all they have is counter-style seating which means that groups of more than two will probably not have the best time hanging out there and trying to...

We ate here for the first time not long ago. The first impression was that the place was very small. They used the space very efficiently by avoiding any table and just going for bar style bench top. It was not a problem for me but if you are on the taller side you may want to try to be by the windows as I believe the have more leg space. The menu has a good selection of Ramen, Pho, and some starters. The server was very nice and prompt, which I always think it makes the food taste better. I was amazed by how quickly they served us. We didn't have at all the feeling they wanted us to get done as quickly as possible so they can have turnover. It was more "I don't want you to have to wait for your food". And the food was good. Nothing fancy but a nice homey feeling of a good bowl of ramen. This may not be the place you go for a fancy dinner out, but I know for sure I'm going back there in these winter evenings when I'm feeling like I want the comfort of some hot ramen. And by the way, they probably do more take outs than dine in. So you can go for that if that's what you prefer. If you like ramen and pho, try it out. I'm sure it'll become one of your regular...