Ramen Kabukiya — Restaurant in Plano

This is an excellent ramen shop. I've been to Japan many times. I've eaten at award winning shops in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara. This Tonkatsu is excellent. The owner is the perfect embodiment of perfectionist high energy Japanese business owner. His food is excellent, he cares deeply, and he is extremely attentive. I'm going to say this again very bluntly: I have had Ramen in Japan all over.

This is authentic. This is what you get in Japan, exactly. The Menma, the Beni shōga, the Tonkatsu, all of it is exactly what you would have in Tokyo in the afternoon any day.

Some may complain because they're not from Japan and they want to haggle or want something else maybe more for less... But this is REAL, this is authentic as it gets.

If you don't want to spend 13 hours flying to Tokyo, I promise this is literally what it tastes like. This man is a saint. You should thank him and eat here.

Thank you for the...

3.3 stars.

Stopped in during lunch while in the area. The flavors of my childhood were calling especially for the wonderful dish - mapo tofu. Spicy Sichuan tofu and minced meat in a hot, oily, and aromatic sauce just sounded amazing. Ramen Kabukiya had it on the menu so I decided to try it.

I ordered via the self serve kiosk and waited patiently. No less than 5 minutes later, it was ready. Visually, it was anemic in color as I was accustomed to seeing a deeper, fiery red mix of peppercorn, chili flakes with green scallions sprinkled on top. As expected, the flavor was not intense nor spicy. Portion size was fair and in line with the price charged.

Employee was very friendly and upbeat. Surroundings were nothing special as it is a food court inside a Japanese grocery store.

Maybe this was a one-off for Ramen Kabukiya… maybe another visit is necessary to reassess....

I went and got the Spicy Umami ramen about an hour ago from writing this, and it was the best! It only tingled in my mouth, which I didn't think would make the perfect amount of spicy! The guy at the front is very friendly & chatty, too!

By the way, I forgot to ask a question for Saka (I hope I got that name right!). What noodles did you use for your Spicy Umami? I assume it's udon, but I wanna be extra sure! I have leftovers, and I wanna make more noodles...