Kamado Ramen — Restaurant in Huntsville

preface: im a local born here in Huntsville. ive lived here all my life. i spoke with Chao (sp?), one of the owners, during this visit and he did give me a gift card because of the poor experience but i have yet to return there

i have been going to Stovehouse since they opened following El Cazador. i decided to give Kamado Ramen a try and liked it. theres usually the same Asian lady taking my order and she is very respectful. she even anticipates my order sometimes cause i tend to get the same thing every time.

this post isn’t about her. this particular day there was a younger Caucasian girl with red streaks in her hair working the register. initially, i start ordering the same thing i always get and in the middle of taking my order she takes her attention away from me and asks some other guy standing at the counter if he needs something, forcing me to discontinue with the transaction. it was annoying to say the least. this is my time. the other customer that youve already served can wait.

rude and inconsiderate considering that this food is not cheap. i spend about $35 every time i visit. i would expect a little more attention than this passive, nonchalant, careless attitude she has but it gets worse.

as im sitting there waiting for my food i start doing some paperwork. i hear someone sharply yell my number. we’ve already gotten on the wrong foot and theres a way to talk to ppl instead of barking at them.

at that point, i’d already identified the owner cause he was there tidying up some things around the restaurant.

i asked the owner to speak with me outside about the attitude of this cashier cause at $40 a visit, she’s definitely not going to speak to me like she lost her damn mind. we had a long talk about customer service and i explained to him that im a regular customer and this cashier has no clue how to interact with ppl.

you dont ignore the customer for another customer when the customer in front of you is in the middle of telling you their order and you certainly dont BARK at a customer to get their attention!

ive worked in food from 15-23yo and ive never even considered being rude like that to anyone walking through our doors whether i was working at Dairy Queen (cashier, 1yr), Backyard Burgers (grill/foodrunner, 1yr) or Rosies Mexican Cantina (host, 3yrs).

i dont know whats wrong with ppl these days but these kinds of interactions make me want to just stay home and forego eating out. i work a TON so eating out is necessary sometimes but as an engineer im not so willing to eat out if it means having some bad attitude, hot-headed, little girl take her life’s frustrations out on customers, barking and yelling at them cause she’s unhappy about life.

if this girl at Kamado is so adverse to working in her low-demand role as cashier, maybe she should find another job. im sure im not the only engineering professional that comes through that door and it’s feckless to have a mountain of tasks at work just to try to leave the office for food just to have your day ruined by some girl who thinks it’s ok to bark at customers who are paying $40 for their meal. makes me want to never go there again

comparatively, ive been going to El Cazador for about 8yrs and i have NEVER had anywhere near the same experience. one time i went to their drive-thru in Madison and there was an older guy at the window who was being terribly rude but i told the guys on Governors about it and they reassured me that he was new to the area and that they would take care of it. but thats still ONE bad review in 8yrs and at the time of the bad experience i was already a loyal customer 5yrs in.

i havent been going to Kamado for 4months and ive already had an experience bad enough to stay away for a while while they work on their obvious...

I almost reviewed Kamado several months ago when I visited and got only appetizers because it was too hot outside for ramen. I'm glad I waited till I'd experienced their main offering to form a total judgment, because I liked their ramen far better than the apps!

Like other Stovehouse joints, this Kamado (not to be confused with their new location at MidCity) is a tiny order at the counter restaurant. Unlike other Stovehouse restaurants, during non-Covid times some people are allowed to sit and eat at the bar. Seating was limited even then, though, and now they respectfully ask that you enjoy your meal outside or in Stovehouse's dedicated indoor dining area.

Their main deal is ramen, but they also have some other popular Japanese street food like karaage, gyoza, and takoyaki. Their ramen selection is fairly diverse.

They run a robust carryout business and have it operating like a well-oiled machine. I appreciate how carefully the ramen noodles and toppings are packaged so they don't get soggy riding in the broth on the way home. The bowls also come wrapped in a neat carrying case. Very cool.

In the past, when I just got apps, I tried the gyoza and the karaage. These were both...not amazing. The gyoza was okay, but didn't have a ton of flavor, not even the dipping sauce. I really didn't like the karaage. It was rubbery, not super crispy, and had a ton of dark meat chicken pieces, which I didn't like.

On my next visit, last weekend, it was cold enough to try out the ramen. I got spicy miso ramen, and I really enjoyed it! Toppings and noodles were abundant, and the broth was rich, flavorful, and definitely spicy. I would get this dish again and I look forward to trying different flavors, like the kimchi ramen, in the future. I'm no ramen connoisseur as options have been pretty much limited to the instant variety in Huntsville until only recently, but I'm definitely happy they're here to help me expand my knowledge and understanding...

I've tried the tonkotsu and the spicy miso ramen as well as the pork bun. Now, I am a humble rural Virginian, but I know enough to know a good bowl of ramen. I can't attest to its accuracy to what you'd find in the land of its origin but these folks make an absolute treat of a bowl of noodles. Perfectly textured noodles cooked to perfection, a delicious broth with a rich, almost creamy mouthfeel, and all the toppings you'd expect with a traditional bowl. The pork buns are wonderful as well! The pork is a little bit chewy for my tastes, I think owing just to the big fat cap on the side of the cut, but that's personal preference more than speaking on the quality. The dough of the buns is pillowy and has a lovely flavor and texture and even have a cute little logo branded on the side of them. The whole ordeal is coated in a fantastic savory sauce bursting with umami. I was blown away by this place each time I've gone. Not what I was expecting when I came to visit a town in...