Karé Bar — Restaurant in Chantilly

okay long review: i just wanted to start off by saying that this is my review i'd like to share and other people may have a better experience c: i am going to be 100% honest. the aesthetic + atmosphere of this place is so pleasing to look at and just overall cute! however, i was extremely disappointed in the food. nothing was tasty or authentic at all, it's almost as if a nonasian person who had no clue how to make asian cuisine, came up with these recipes 😅 i feel really bad to say it but everything tasted extremely bland and terrible.. i actually wanted to throw up after. i took maybe 3 bites of my chicken katsu and then i was done because i couldn't force myself to eat my meal due to how bad it tasted. i'm somebody that loves japanese food and has tried a lot of different kinds. i love asian food as a whole, being asian myself, which is why i was so surprised as to how bad everything tasted. i ordered the chicken katsu plate with the takoyaki appetizer. the chicken katsu tasted like really low quality chicken, almost having a fake taste if that makes sense. the bread crumbs they used for the chicken katsu was really light and flakey, having very little crunch to it. when i took a bite, all i could taste was oil + yucky chicken. the salad it came with, was just shredded cabbage or something really similar with nothing else, and didn't come with any bit of dressing. the miso soup that also came with the entree i ordered was made with red miso paste, and was way too salty and overpowering. the white rice tasted fine though, can't go wrong with that tbh. the takoyaki was not the worst, it was alright i'd say, but not worth paying $8 for 4 mediocre pieces. how i can describe it is like really liquidy on the inside but it tastes like dough almost idk lol that's how i'd explain the taste, the sauce was okay tho. overall, it was just a really disappointing experience, especially because it was a bit pricey. i went with my parents and my brother. my mom ordered some chicken bowl (forgot the name) while my dad ordered the katsu curry. so my dad pretty much got the same thing as me plus curry, which tasted like water mixed with a bit of curry powder. it just tasted gross.. my mom's chicken bowl she got was at least more bearable. it was not disgusting like what me and my dad ordered. but it still was meh.. mediocre. my brother ordered some noodles that he seemed to enjoy but i didn't try, so i think the noodles are at least a bit better. we also ordered this raw octopus appetizer and it wasn't the worst but not too good either. we got their tofu appetizer aswell and the sauce for it was alright, again, if any of their food was good, it's like super average/mediocre but on the lower end. i really hope that they can change their menu and adjust these recipes, because for a place that looks so cute, the food was really awful. for the atmosphere + aesthetic of the restaurant i'd give it a 9/10. the presentation of the food i'd give it a 6/10. the taste of the food itself i'd give it 1/10. the service i'd give would be an 8/10, everybody was really nice! and just to give some reference, my parents are both in the restaurant industry and my dad is a chef. so if my dad (being asian) thought their food was disgusting, that really does say a lot .

My husband and I have been to Japan a few times, and we love the culture and the food! We were very excited to try out this place!

I came on a weekday during lunch to celebrate my husband’s birthday, and it wasn’t crowded at all. There were about 3-4 other groups of people dining, and about 3 or so folks coming in to pickup their food to go. We really liked the ambience! We sat at one of the higher tables for two, which was nice. The hangers on the wall near every table for bags and coats is a nice touch too. I will say, I did get a little cold from the draft every time someone opened the door. Next time, I would opt to sit a little further from the door if I can.

We ordered takoyaki, chicken karaage, donkatsu curry, and tan tan ramen. They include a condiments tray (or you can ask), which I really enjoyed. I loved the curry powder so much, I went on a hunt to find it at Lotte across the street after our meal. They offer both water and hot tea. Food was quick to arrive! The people attending to the tables listen for a bell from the kitchen to know to grab the food right when it’s ready. The takoyaki was piping hot, which is PERFECT! The karaage was deliciously simple and paired well with the various condiments we got to try. My only suggestion is maybe a wedge of lemon with it for guests who want it. The tan tan ramen was deceptively more food than I expected (or maybe I filled up on appetizers), so I struggled to finish it but the broth was rich and flavorful. The thoughtful side dishes paired really well as plate cleansers too. Lastly, the donkastu curry was the STAR of the meal. The breaded and fried cutlet was perfectly cooked, and the gravy bowl of curry was amazing. The curry had so much depth and good flavor, that I’m afraid I’ll never look at my own home-cooked Japanese curry the same way again.

The owner (or perhaps manager or head chef) came out to check on us during our meal and even surprised us with an extra piece of beautifully plated donkatsu, saying he noticed our first piece was a little small. He asked us for feedback about the meal, and seemed to genuinely care about his customers.

I read some of the negative reviews and I’m so glad we gave it a try anyway. As expected with new restaurants, there will be ups and downs as they find their groove. I hope they’re able to successfully navigate any of those early bumps, and stick around. We’ll be sure to come back, and bring along our daughter too!

P.S. sorry for missing food in the pics! We...

Atmosphere: The music is awful and doesn't correlate to the interior décor, style of food, or the clientele of the business. Service: I thought the service was decent for a weeknight and a not-so-crowded restaurant. I would like to point out that our appetizer came at the same time our meal did and that caused some table space frustration. Food: Right off the bat, I thought the green tea (Sencha) was tasteless and a waste of 8 dollars (tea for two). The tea was well presented but not savory. The miso soup, although decent, was not worth the 7 dollars as it was just seasoned broth with a few pieces of tofu. The fan-fried seafood dumplings were very good with or without any soy sauce and the peanut sauce drizzle was very good. Now the rice bowls. We got the Donkatsu Don and the Shrimp Katsu Don. The menu could have been a bit more detailed as they left out a lot of ingredients they put in these bowls and that kind of got me irritated. The bowls are of thick metal, maybe cast iron, but they are so hot and the food is so hot, it will take a long time for the food to cool (at least 10-15 minutes). Having this food arrive hot is much better than being served cold, but it's hot to the point where you can't eat for a while. They should have let the food chill in the kitchen while we were eating our appetizer because having the tea, soups, dumplings, and rice bowls (served in a box) is quite a bit to have on the table at one time. Very cluttered. I thought the Donkatsu Don was good. Not over the top but ok. The pork was cooked well but the bowl was bland and needed sauce. While I was not a fan of the Don sauce, all we had was soy sauce so I had to make due. Our bill was 60 dollars for two but next time, I will not get the tea or the miso soup, and that will cut 15 dollars of the total. In hindsight, the bowls are large enough to share (we both had leftovers). If two people get an appetizer and share a bowl, that will be sufficient for a meal. Will I eat hear again? Yeah, I would. For the most part, I enjoyed the food. I would just order less. Hopefully, they will change the style of...