Momotaro Ramen — Restaurant in Paso Robles

I was driving through Paso Robles and I’m always on the lookout for a good ramen place. I ordered the Momotaro Ramen and Kara age chicken. I have to agree with the all negative reviews about the tonkotsu ramen. I’ve been to several ramen places and my favorites (just to give you a comparison) are Daikaya in DC, Orenchi and Ramen Nagi in Santa Clara, and Ramen Tatsunoya in Pasadena. All others have fallen below these places. I only get tonkotsu ramen and recently started ordering Kara age chicken. Sorry, Momotaro! The tonkotsu ramen was the worst. So bad in fact I couldn’t finish 1/3 of the ramen because it started to leave a bad taste in my mouth. The broth is as people have said. Bland, lacking any flavor and body. I liked the thin-ness of the noodles but they were firm and lacked any flavor since the broth was bland. On first look, the presentation of the ramen is nice, but the broth barely covered the abundant noodles and gave the noodles a “nobiru” look and feel. The seasoned bean sprouts did not go well with the ramen. The chashu, another important part of a tonkotsu ramen was charred on the outside (probably with a torch) was dry and tasteless and the char gave it a burnt flavor that when paired with the bland broth made for a terrible combination. The egg was descent, firm but I like it more runny. Not much flavor on the egg too. This tonkotsu ramen is waaay overpriced ($20) for the quality. Hate to say it, but this was the worst tonkotsu ramen I have had so far. On the plus side, the service was great, and I loved the location and atmosphere as well as the bar seating. The one saving grace was the Kara-age chicken! It’s so far the best Kara-age chicken that I have had! I give the chicken 5 stars. The ramen zero if I could, so overall the food I gave 2 stars, since it’s called “Momotaro Ramen” and the ramen should stand out. The chicken came out hot and crunchy (maybe a tad more salt) and the cabbage was thinly sliced and smooth. It looks like they have fans that enjoy their ramen, so that’s good to see. I for one...

Quick Summary Excellent food with a small countertop bar dining area. There are tables upstairs if you want to mix and match restaurants (they're pretty stern about not allowing other foods there; and you would have to use a to-go bowl to use the different table areas). Service was a hit or miss though, but food was fantastic.

Food- 5 stars

Gyoza- I was pretty impressed with the gyoza. They added the crispy bottom that really added a nice crunch texture to the gyoza. Would recommend trying it

Momotaro ramen- the Tonkatsu broth was fantastic. The pork chashu was very good as well. The noodles did taste packaged and not house-made; it was good but not great. Overall, it was a splendid ramen bowl

Service- 3 stars This was a hit or miss. The owner/manager was really helpful throughout. But some of the staff weren't the best. There was an egg missing in 1 of our ramen orders, and one of our friends had their order completely messed up. It is relatively new, so giving them some benefit, but it was a bit of a mess at times

Bottom Line Excellent ramen spot. Definitely...

Tried to give 3.5 stars but couldn’t figure out how to do it. Had the tonkotsu ramen - first, I eat LOTS of ramen all over the world. The tonkotsu here is creamier than most ramens - not creamy, but creamy-er. I can’t tell what makes it creamy. The ramen noodles themselves - meh - nothing special and quite ordinary. Has some shredded lettuce/cabbage and sliced green onions - definitely adds to the flavor profile. A few bits of bean sprout add to the crunch. The chashu pork was only ok - not super fatty or super lean - somewhere in the middle. But the flavor wasn’t a “I’m ready to go on a chashu pork diet this minute!” kind of moment. And honestly, the broth wasn’t a slurp it til its empty even tho I’m so full type of broth either. So maybe a 3 star is deserved. Broth is not salty - some places add too much salt to offset the fact the broth lacks flavor. Not salty here, but flavor isn’t super complex. Oh, you order inside a little food court, then can eat inside or outside. Nice little seating area outside along a...