Ramen DANBO Park Slope — Restaurant in New York

I hate writing bad reviews, but I feel obligated to do so when restaurants grossly under deliver. Came to Ramen Danbo on a cold, rainy Thursday night anticipating a warm environment and a hearty, nourishing bowl of ramen. God, was I wrong.

Before arrival, we had already put our names down for table for 4, the waiting time was projected to be 30 minutes, of which we obliged. After waiting in their outdoor seating booths (which were NOT heated or enclosed), for around twenty minutes, my party noticed that the table we were waiting for had long finished their meal and paid. Noticing that they had finished paying for their meal, I went inside to inquire about our wait time.

I spoke to Rafeena, who had responded that we still had 10 more minutes and advised to wait outside until our table was ready. I briefly mentioned the table that had paid and requested that she remind them that there were other customers waiting. Rafeena flippantly responded "we don't kick our customers out, you wouldn't want that done to you, would you?" Her response felt very passive-aggressive and uncalled for, but I decided to overlook her verbal attack on me.

After waiting outside for 10 minutes, we saw that the table started getting ready to leave. Excited to escape the rain and harsh weather, we relocated to the warmer waiting area of the restaurant in hopes of being seated. To our dismay, Ethan, our waiter, told us that we would have wait outside until our table was ready--we would have to wait another 2-3 minutes in the cold. And thus, we waited again, outside, in the cold, December rain, for our table.

Finally we got seated and waited to order our food. We waited quite a bit because we managed to finish all of our water before even ordering. We had to ask multiple times for someone to refill our water. I was not happy with the lack of service and attention that our table received. After 2 rounds of water, we finally ordered. We got 4 bowls of ramen, 2 orders of gyoza, and 2 draft beers.

The chashu wasn’t good, as the fat was not rendered and the meat was tough. The ramen broth was extremely disappointing, it lacked flavor and richness, all I could taste was scallions and salt. The gyozas were okay, but they were very greasy and came with scrapings from the bottom of the pan. I'm not sure if they did this to be snarky on purpose, but my friends and I agreed that we felt as if something was off with their waitstaff.

At the end of the meal, Sam, another waiter, quickly presented our bill. What happened to not rushing your customers out the door? I almost wanted to ask for Rafeena, but I already knew that arguing with this staff would have been a waste of time, effort, and patience that I was quickly running out of (especially after waiting in the cold rain, waiting for water, waiting to order--after a full night of waiting).

After a night of being frustrated, neglected, and abused, we collectively decided that this restaurant did not deserve a tip. Tipping is meant to be a gesture that reflects upon the quality of the service that was offered to the customer and we decided that a tip was not something that Ramen Danbo earned that night because of the disrespectful way that staff (mis)treated us. After paying and skipping to tip, our waiter, Ethan, aggressively proclaimed "thanks!" and to that I responded "you're welcome." He continued to ignore us when we left and even glared at us through the window once we left.

The reason why my friends and I will not be returning to Ramen Danbo is not because the food is underwhelming, but because the service is absolutely unacceptable. Ramen Danbo is an establishment that serves average food, but employs indifferent, condescending, uncaring staff. I have never felt so ignored, unimportant, and disrespected at a restaurant in my life. To think that we paid for a meal where we were continuously told to wait outside in the rain and were repeatedly overlooked, is baffling. Save yourself the nuisance and go to a different ramen spot, steer clear from Ramen Danbo in Brooklyn and their...

Had a lovely time with friends tonight at this establishment. Sure, the food was good— but what made the experience unforgettable was the patient, meticulous, and familial service from the “charming recluse” AKA our waiter (we’ll call him C.R. for the remainder of this review). From the moment C.R. escorted us to our table we felt as though we knew this man… sorry… “person”😒. Whether from a dream, a memory, or a situation that occurred, his presence bathed us in a natural pool of comfort and love (with a side of extra noodles🍜). So rare was it to feel even a semblance of this love from mine own mother. Through our parade of stuttering inelegance, unable to get through more than a “like” or an “uh”— he extracted the sweet nectar of our desire and presented it to us on his iPad.

“One rekka miso ramen spicy?” …yes.

“A chashu-men with soft boiled eggs?” …I was known.

“One classic ramen with the works?” …How dare you read my mind.

And as soon as he came he was gone. Whisked away to some smoke filled speakeasy in the back, or maybe it was just the kitchen, who knows.

We had come to dinner to discuss something important. A friend of ours had returned to New York after a year looking to buy some property in the greater bushwick area. Considering the three of us are respected realtors, each with our own firms, you’d think we’d have a lot to talk about. But not tonight. Words seemed pitiful in the face of the awe inspiring force that is C.R. We spent most of the night in odd silence. I hadn’t even realized I was holding my breath until I saw him walking back down the hall holding our meals. That delicious food.

As soon as the plates touched down, the timer went off. We shoveled the ramen down our throats, as pig from trough. It was the first time I saw my friends relinquish all sense of propriety. Oil dribbling down their chins, staining their crisp button ups. It was perverse, but necessary, for though our hunger stemmed from a physical hunger, it was predicated almost entirely on a new construction: we needed to see him again. We had to see him again.

“Didn’t like it?” He said sarcastically. Christ, and he was funny too.

As quickly as before he jotted down our orders, unaware that what we wanted most was for him to take a seat at the table. How ironic, the dutiful servant had his patrons in the palm of his hands.

We went through tens of dozens of entrees, each better than the last. Each glance savored. Each noodle digested. Every moment ours.

“You guys have been great tonight.” C.R. said as he picked up the check. And for the first time in my life I believed I could be great. Suddenly, I watched my potential unfurl in front of my eyes. I’m go back to school. I’m a doctor🥼. I buy a house in Potomac🏡. I have a son👶. I make my son a bowl of noodles, his little chin barely making it over the table to lap up the miso. I show him love, real love, the kind my mother never gave me, the kind I found at Ramen Danbo Park Slope that night.

Oh yeah, and the gyoza was pretty good...

I previously reviewed Ramen Danbo as my favorite spot for authentic ramen in NYC. However, I went back recently for lunch and, to my and my husband's shock and disappointment, we saw that they now have a “C” health rating. That was hard to believe, especially since they had always maintained an “A.”

We had already spent time looking for parking, and since my husband was on his lunch break, we decided to take the risk and go in anyway. Thankfully, we didn’t get sick afterward. Still, we don’t plan on returning until their rating improves...if it ever does. One lucky experience doesn’t mean it’s safe.

We looked up their inspection report and saw the violation points. I’ll post screenshots for reference. The ramen was still tasty, and we were fine after eating, but some noticeable changes have happened.

First, there are no more physical menus. You have to scan a QR code at the bar or table, which I personally really dislike. Second, the tonkotsu pork belly portion has been reduced. It used to be a full circular cut, and during our visit in July 2025, it was just half a slice. That felt like a cheap move by the restaurant. If they’re trying to cut costs because of lost business from the health downgrade, shrinking portions won’t help bring customers back.

Ramen Danbo needs to do better. We’re genuinely disappointed and hope they return to proper health standards and full ingredient portions.

Also came across a recent review by 'A Z' ranting about how the "vegan" ramen is actually vegetarian and how it's apparently a moral, medical, and financial catastrophe. Laughed out loud reading that review because be so for real. Yes, they should know the distinction between vegan and vegetarian, but it's worth nothing that they're trying to cater to the neighborhood by even offering options outside of the traditional recipe. Authentic, traditional Japanese Ramen is NOT vegan.

Underpaid or not, expecting the staff to fully empathize, rewrite the menu, or take notes to pass along to corporate over the vegetarian-not-vegan issue is dramatic, to say the least. No one is trying to sabotage your lifestyle. They’re just out here making regular ramen.

They wrapped it up by saying, "I guess this neighborhood is just not the place for a good ramen restaurant.” Just because the vegan option wasn’t what you expected doesn’t mean the whole place is bad. Ramen Danbo is staying true to traditional Japanese ramen, and offering even a vegetarian option is already more than most authentic ramen spots would do. Fix your expectations about what a real ramen spot is supposed to be. I’ll say it louder — ramen is not vegan. It never was. So maybe don’t roll up to a tonkotsu shop and act scandalized when your noodles come with egg and broth that didn’t sprout...