JINYA Ramen Bar - Arlington — Restaurant in Arlington

I bring my mother here on occasions. We were greeted at the door after about 1-2 minutes standing. It was 9:30pm. We were seated. I went to the bathroom to wash my hands. When I came back another table was being sat next to us. A few moments later, the table next to us was approached by who would be our server, Daniel. The manager came up behind him and audibly said, "they were here first." So Daniel evidently, obviously, and very noticeably seemed a bit off. I didn't care at first. I've been in the restaurant business for 30 years, since 1996. My mom loves the crispy rice with spicy tuna and the pork gyoza. To make her happy, I ordered 2 crispy rice, a pork gyoza and the creamy shrimp tempura as well as the chicken "cashu." I decided to order a double pour of Johnny Walker black label. I placed my drink order first and after a little while was brought my drink. Then we placed our order and Daniel repeated it back missing the gyoza. I repeated it back and he said the order back again, missing the gyoza. Our food came and was tasty. We looked for our server and he was behind the bar which is where he seemed to be every time we looked up. My mother walked up to the bar and cancelled my second Johnny Walker I ordered. My extra egg was not soft boiled but the white was runny and clear inside. I told the other server, Jordan, that I didn't want it and he said he'd take care of it. The manager, who was Asian, I didn't get his name, came back with another egg. He said, "our seasoned egg has a runny yolk!" I replied that I knew but the white was runny and clear. I thanked him and bit into it and saw that it was good. As he walked away I called him back and suggested to him that Daniel was noticably intoxicated. He replied, "no he's not." Instead of saying thank you or I'll follow up with him, he not only rejected that notion which was apparent and obvious, he didn't choose to acknowledge our feedback. HE DIDN'T EVEN ASK, "WHAT MAKES YOU SAY THAT, OR WHY DO YOU THINK THAT." It's ok. Jordan came and was polite and helpful. My bill was $75.71 at table 93 at 10:14pm, check #10123. I tipped Daniel 19% with $14.29. I also gave Jordan $15 cash just because. As the owner of a restaurant evaluation company, I believe it is imperative for the success of your restaurant to use discretion as a manager and be able to sense a genuine suggestion vs complaint. I do not think I will bring my mother or my family back. If I do I will ask for Jordan. If he's not available I am not sure. The manager gets zero stars and God bless Daniel. Maybe he needs help. I'm not sure. Shout out to Jordan!!! Customer service is easy for him but apparently not for...

I decided to try this place for Arlington Restaurant Week (ARW), and this was my first time in Ballston. I must say, I was so intrigued; this area was amazing! I'm definitely coming back to explore. Luckily, I found a spot across the street from the restaurant. After parking, I got turned around and could not find the location. I finally saw the restaurant signage but did not know it was on the lower level. After finally locating the entrance, I joined my dining companion. The advertised meal for ARW was overpriced and not a very good deal. $55 for an appetizer, choice of preset entree, and dessert... absolutely not!! We spent much less w/ordering an appetizer, entree, and cocktail. I peeped the menu earlier in the day and had already settled on the spicy chicken ramen bowl with the crispy chicken as an app. They were crunchy and seasoned very well. I ordered the medium spice level for my ramen, and there was absolutely no spiciness whatsoever. Very disappointing! I probably should have tried the highest spice level, and then I may have felt some type of kick. The bowls of hot steamy broth and noodles were HUGE!! The broth was delicious, a bit creamy, and had a yummy chicken flavor. The noodles were fresh, had a nice chew, and were perfect for slurping, plus tender juicy pieces of chicken chashu rounded out all of the flavors. I was so full but couldn't stop eating. The down side... this is the only establishment that I've visited that nickels and dimes for anything extra... veggies, sauce, etc. $1.50 for about a teaspoon or two of additional sauce... ridiculous! Fresh jalapeños would have complimented this dish perfectly, but I digress. It would be nice if there were more chicken broth options, but most ramen shops I've frequented typically cater to pork and beef eating crowds. Try this place out, especially...

I was so excited to try Jinya Ramen for the first time because I kept seeing adverts about them opening up a new location at Ballston Quarter. I love trying new ramen places, especially if they have a good Tonkotsu broth.

I came last September with my boyfriend on a Saturday during dinner hours. The first thing I noticed was that it was practically empty. For a weekend dinner hour in Ballston, that's not a good sign. There were a lot of servers standing around and we were seated at a table near the bar area. Throughout the meal it seemed like we had 3 different servers tending to us- even the guy who was working behind the bar refilled our waters for us.

We got the Tonkotsu Original 2010 and the Tonkotsu Black. Overall I think the ramen was okay. It wasn't very filling though because I was still hungry by the end of the meal despite finishing all of the broth.

I think the prices for their ramen is too expensive. It's about $20 per bowl. USD. As a Canadian, I normally pay around $15 CAD for a bowl of good ramen so I definitely don't think $20 USD was worth it.

At the time of our visit, they were offering $25 off your meal if you paid through their InKind app. The app was having difficulty paying for the transaction, despite trying on 2 separate phones, although it had no problem with loading money onto the app. The waiters and the manager were of no help, even though we were showing them what was happening on the phones. They didn't even offer to call InKind customer service to help work through it. We gave up and just ended up paying directly by card. If you're going to advertise using an app for your restaurant, at minimum, the front staff should know how to navigate and walk through the steps for your customers, so you can honour what you're...