Haruki Ramen & Izakaya — Restaurant in Norwalk

Trying to branch out with more delivery during the quarantine I tried out Haruki Ramen & Izakaya. Hopefully I'll be able to try their sit down service when this all ends but for now I will rate their delivery food.

I ordered a variety of dishes: their Tonkotsu ramen, takoyaki, miso stew, tori kamo tsukune.

The tonkotsu ramen was loaded with lots of ingredients all which kept nicely for delivery in a two segmented container. The brother was nice and flavourful but the real star of the dish was the pork which was cooked beautifully and practically melted in my mouth.

The takoyaki provided 5 balls and were garnished well. They were all still hot by the time they got to my house and were also delicious.

I've never had tori kamo tsukune before. Apparently is is a mixture of chicken and duck in a meatball form with a poached egg, peppers, and a savory sauce. I'm not a big fan of peppers but the dish worked for me and was a savoury treat for each bite.

The only thing that didn't work for me was the miso stew. I'm a big fan of miso soup, been drinking it since I was a toddler so I was intrigued by a beef miso stew. The portion size I received was certainly not worth the price tag for this dish. It had been reduced far too much to almost having the consistency of mashed potatoes. It also was far spicier than I had been anticipating. That umami of the miso was missing in the dish leaving me frustrated.

Overall a great experience today. The only thing I would advise is to stear clear...

Being Japanese myself, I’ve been having a bit of a frustrating time finding good sushi in Fairfield County. Haruki seemed slightly more authentic than many other local spots so we gave it a shot. We ordered edamame, pork gyoza, karaage chicken, negitoro temaki, Wagyu nigiri, and the nigiri sushi set.

The edamame had some sort of sauce and garlic all over it, which I found tasty but inconvenient, as edamame is usually eaten by hand. Sometimes less is more, and I would have appreciated no sauce/garlic and just some salt.

Karaage chicken was a highlight! Super tender and also crunchy on the outside.

Pork gyoza were a dud. Lacked flavor and the gyoza wrap was an odd texture.

Negitoro temaki were good however I would hardly call them temaki. Temaki literally means “hand roll” and usually comes in a cone-shaped nori roll. What we got was cubes of rice and negitoro and small pieces of nori that you could eat them with. Again, it was good, but I wouldn’t call it temaki.

Wagyu nigiri was delicious! It was $11 for only two pieces but that’s Wagyu for you.

Nigiri sushi set was yummy, large pieces of fish, good sushi rice. The unagi was a highlight.

Beer on tap wasn’t working which was a bit disappointing. Got the “Momo” cocktail which was surprisingly large, strong, and tasty.

The space was very cute and cozy and wasn’t crowded on a Friday night. Overall a good time and...

If ever it were appropriate to say "It looks good enough to eat," that expression applies here. The vegan dishes are as aesthetically pleasing as they are delicious and nutritious. Take a look at my photo for proof.

I was surprised by the appearance of the venue: It just looks like a bar in a downtown mall. Also the decibel level of music when I entered was absurd. But as soon as I was seated at a table and remarked about the loudness, my server had it lowered to an acceptable level and I could relax and enjoy the culinary experience to follow.

The service is excellent to excess. No fewer than three very friendly people kept asking me if I needed anything. But of course it was the food most of all that made this place stand out. My main dish was the vegan ramen, which was truly comfort food for the soul. And what a stroke of genius to include a tomato! (See photo.)

The only vegan disappointment was the lack of a dessert. This is a bizarrely common experience in vegan-friendly establishments. A simple piece of fruit, like mango pieces, would have just hit the spot after the salty dishes. I made the suggestion. Let's see if they...