Dohatsuten Ramen & Tapas — Restaurant in Palo Alto

In the Bay Area, when you sell Japanese ramen and izakaya style tapas, you really can't go wrong... or at least that's what we thought. Dohatsuten pushes the boundaries of what is acceptable, especially when competition is abound and the high mark is set at places like Ramen Nagi.

The menu looks straight forward. They have all the regular stuff. But now, let's talk about the ramen. First of all, EVERY single ramen offered comes with some weird spicy oil on top, whether it was due to spicy bamboo shoots or spicy chashu. That is the default. No Japanese ramen ever comes with spicy as the default. Not only were we caught off guard but also just how much chili oil was present. In addition, it didn't enhance the ramen at all. It just made it spicy.

We have no idea what prompted this place to add chili oil by default to all their ramen - perhaps Chinese influence?

Let's talk about the broth. I had the pork broth but it wasn't deep or meaningful. Perhaps slightly better than instant ramen soup. But what was more troubling was that you could choose whatever broth you wanted (shio, miso, etc.) and mix and match with whatever ramen you wanted. Nothing wrong with pick and choose your own journey. But no chef that cares about true perfection will let this be. There is a certain combination that works and you want to deliver that to the customer.

Now the appetizers and the tapas weren't as bad and compared to the price, they give you a lot. Same goes for the mini donburis. But the issue here is perfect and high bar in the craft of the taste. Everything feels like it was made in a rush and a bit "off". Yes, the roots are Japanese but each had its own slight quirk. On the positive note, the croquettes were fried to perfection. Just that the innards weren't as tasty and you do not want to be serving this with the regular tonkatsu sauce but rather something with a bit more sweet tint.

I am not convinced that Dohatsuten is authentic Japanese. They may have started that way, but absolutely they've drifted. I feel like there's a bit of Southern Chinese influence here and there. Perhaps the folks behind the kitchen are as such. Again, nothing wrong with diverse origins. Its just that I went to a Japanese ramen and tapas place, not some fusion restaurant.

We won't be returning but hope they make others...

Psst. Don't travel far to come here. It's not that good. I was getting off work like 10 mins away and didn't want to wait in line at Ramen Nagi. Luckily Dohatsuten is open until 8pm. There was a 10 min wait for an indoor table at 7:30pm. If you have tasted good ramen in Japan, the broth here is acceptable, not great. I came here later in day hoping to get the best of the tonkotsu broth, the sediments. Instead, I gotten a watered down version. (The chef might have decided to make the broth last longer for today's meal service.) The meats however, were good. The Dohatsuten ramen $13.75 came with a scoop of sweet minced pork, chashu and braised pork. Those pieces of meat saved this ramen from being mediocre. I'm not sure why they added carrots and cabbage in ramen. It doesn't belong there. My appetizer was calamari $8.75. It included both rings and tentacles. This would have been bad if they didn't include that aioli sauce. The batter was bland. I asked for a lemon wedge but they were out. I was really hoping they served it with some dried green seaweed flakes or even shichimi togarashi (Japanese 7 spice blend) to give it some flavor. Even boring salt and pepper would...

This is a tiny kind of a hole in the wall place even though it's its own building, don't expect a fancy decor or a super clean dining room. Even the parking lot here is tiny, and kind of awkward. I've been here numerous times and so far I have had inconsistently good ramen that ranges from pretty okay to not bad. Their other dishes and appetizers are not bad, and the karaage is actually pretty good. As for the service even when it's kind of busy here the wait isn't too long, in fact I was just here today and I was able to be seated during lunch time with no wait. However after that wait a few minutes before you'll be handed a menu, and even if you order right away it may be a half hour before your appetizer arrives. It seems to be pretty slow getting the food out even if I'm able to order as soon as I sit down, I've had it take as long as almost 45 minutes. While the ramen's good enough it's not the best, but at least the prices are reasonable. I'll probably continue to come here not because it's my favorite but because of proximity and out of convenience. It's the only ramen spot within a 5-minute drive...