Mei Japanese Restaurant — Restaurant in Montgomery

My husband traveled to Japan last year, and has said Mei Japanese is the most authentic Japanese restaurant he's found in the US. The place feels both comfortable and upscale. There is a little pond outside with lily pads and koi fish that you can see if you are seated in the booths. The service is excellent and the food is always delicious.

The hiya yakko is unbelievable fresh tasting. I believe they prepare their tofu in-house for it. Onigiri is served with two slices of pickled daikon or parsnip. Their ramen is a favorite of mine. The soft boiled eggs are well marinated. The bone broth of the tonkotsu flavor is very rich and so opaque it could be described as creamy. The shoyu broth is clear and equally delicious. Ramen bowls are served with traditional fresh crop chili spice shakers.

The "Japanese sweet rice dessert" offered in the menu is matcha mochi with sweet red bean paste filling presented wrapped in a lovely leaf package. The bean paste is prepared a little too sweet for my liking but that is the nature of...

My husband and I love this place. They have devoted a lot of time and expense into updates and the restaurant looks lovely. The prices are fair and still one of the cheapest places to have hot pot meals. As you can see in the pictures, try getting a booth by the window. You get a view of the lovely pond. It is serene and quiet, and pretty even frozen over. The staff are incredibly friendly and good-natured, and are happy to help you. I want to address the elephant in the room, and it is the snobbery about non-Japanese staff. I have traveled to Japan, Hong Kong, China and Malaysia and I can assure, staff at eateries around the world often vary by ethnicities. That people would be critical of a place for this reason is beyond ridiculous. The food here is well prepared and it is hard to find hot pot meals in the United States under $25 per person, unless you make it yourself. I genuinely love this place, as does my husband, and he is very hard to please. Reserve the middle booth by the window. It is the best spot...

I'm hoping it was an one-time thing, but this visit wasn't up to expectations especially for the reputation.

It was decently busy (80% full up front) when we walked in. Service was pretty quick and friendly.

We ordered the duck and eel appetizer with hot sake, udon and spicy ramen. Eel appetizer was OK; we ordered to see what it was about. Grilled duck was definitely not the best because you could taste that it was reheated from microwave. Sake was also already lukewarm when it came out, and the first couple glasses we poured had cool center.

Udon was alright, but from my understanding Japanese noodles are known for their flavors coming from deep broth. The broth from both dishes we had were flavorless, and all I could taste from my broth was sriracha from the "spicy" ramen. Disappointing to say, the most flavorful part of the ramen was the egg.

Like I said, I'm going to give it another shot in the future because everyone can have one of those days but I'm hoping that it's better than what I've...