Y Noodle & Bar — Restaurant in Providence

Verdict: SKIP IT

With other better Japanese and Asian restaurants available at very similar pricing and much better quality it begs the question:

'Why waste your time here?'

I really wanted to like this place as we simply do not have a comparable Asian scene in Providence compared to the likes of Boston, and NYC so any new Asian business is very much a welcome sight to see. As many people know the owners also run Y Shabu Shabu on the same street and Y Maru Maru on Broadway within the same block.

BUT this place is the definition of MID and overpriced food.

It's not that the food is necessarily bad tasting, its just well-plated and overpriced.

I ordered the Shrimp Soup Dumplings - 'Pink Marble' and the 'Japanese Fried Rice' which comes with a side of Miso. The fried rice is desribed on the menu as including Bok Choy, Mushroom and Tomato, which you should take with a grain of salt.

I found maybe 3 tomato skins, and what little mushroom is present it is diced so finally and so rarely found it might as well not be an ingredient. Seriously, I challenge you to find it.

Similarly the Bok Choy was only 3 leaves along with some mixed greens lining around the outside of the bowl flipped portion of rice. There is sadly not even Bok Choy stem present within the dish. The dish is about 91% Rice, 3% Onion, 3% Whole Mixed Greens, 2% Edamame, 0.5% Finely Shaved, and 0.5% Nori. I would speculate with a squeeze of Yuzu.

It also is freshly made with moist rice. There is no browning or crispyness present apart from sauces used in preparation. The dish end result is fine at best in taste but fails to meet even the most vague of expectations of what it is advertised and at a price of $16. I've had better sides of bulk fried rice in Chinese Takeout that are always included with entrees.

The Miso soup that accompanied came without its own soup spoon and was so salty it was actually unconsumable. I will take it that this is specifically just a one off with the kitchen making a bad batch this day.

This place gets some credit for a decently extensive drink menu. The papercard menus present, which while stylish, are a bit stained and gross. I would like to just see a santiary QR code sticker on the table to scan these days.The Atmosphere, pop radio music, and Service are all nothing special.

Just to forewarn any vegetarians, while I myself am not one and I just try to balance out my meals with vegetables, there is a very limited...

Y Noodle & Bar has some incredible ramen, dumplings, appetizers, and drinks. However, every time I've come here, the tables are WAY too close to each other, and the music is WAY too loud for comfortable conversation. Tonight, my dining partner and I spent the entire time yelling over the table to one another as well as trying to out yell the people next to us so that we could hear each other over the music and the people yelling 1 foot away. Don't misunderstand me, though. I will continue to suffer this annoyance because the food here is just that good. I just wish they weren't trying so hard to be a trendy night club. Nobody is coming here for their choice of music. I've also noticed that the bowls of ramen have gotten noticeably smaller from the last 2 times we were here. update Oh boy! Tonight was BAD! It was so bad, in fact, that my friend and I both agreed that this would be the last time we patronized Y Noodle & Bar. I always try to give the benefit of the doubt in most cases, but this is the 3rd time we've come where things have steadily gone downhill across the board. The food is NOT what it used to be. The service is not what it used to be, and somehow, the environment has become much less tolerable. Tonight, there was a DJ (really?!) adding to the already incredibly loud ambiance. So much so that the server couldn't hear our order, so my dining partner received his order, but I had to order again and wait for mine because he didn't hear it the first time. Once the DJ started, all conversations had to stop. I'm also not the kind to send food back unless there's a safety concern, but tonight I had had enough, I sent our soup dumplings back when they fell to pieces in the steamer, yet again, rending our soup dumplings soup less. The replacement dumpling came out the exact same way, and no effort was made to remedy the problem, nor were we checked on after the replacement dumpling arrived. Which to me indicates a known issue. As someone who enjoys making dumplings, I know that the only reason a dumpling would behave like that is over steaming, which renders them gummy and unable to support their own weight. We've given Y Noodle & Bar more than a far shake, but enough is enough. Our search for a good ramen bar...

4.8 stars isn’t nearly enough! Truly a wonderful experience! The gentlemen serving us was absolutely amazing! Gave us great recommendations and described some menu options to us with great detail! The vibe in the place was just great. Very nice atmosphere with little candles on each table very nice cushioned chairs. A very modern design with some fun details like the wall of y’s and the other wall have steam basket lids. Now the food was absolutely delicious! I got the passion fruit black tea iced. If your a fan of Starbucks black teas you will like their options as well. Very refreshing very sweet as well. Before we got any food they brought us some complimentary kimchi samples which was great because we had never tried it before! It wasn’t for me but I enjoyed it enough. We got the pork buns which were very delightful had cucumber and almost a ranch sauce. Lots of different textures going on just amazing. Got the waygu sushi($60) which is one of the most expensive items on the menu was a little disappointing, very large prices for sushi but not as flavorful as I expected very tender but it does come with caviar which was a fun texture add on as well, not my favorite but not bad at all. We also got the pork soup dumplings which I was absolutely excited for as I’ve been craving some for about two years and finally found some! Hit the spot for sure. Very fresh and very delicious! I got the pork ramen, very delicious! Always love the soft boiled egg in my ramen so I was happy it had that along with the normal fixings of nori, and fish cake. My boyfriend got the pork cutlet which had this amazing ginger sauce. Not spicy ginger very sweet like a gingerbread cookie. Was a delightful combo! He loved it and I tried a few bites as well. And amazing. Lots of crunch too! Lastly I got a mooncakes! Was not disappointed at all. So very flaky and the bean paste was so smooth. The raspberry sauce was an nice touch for some tartness. Just a beautiful presentation as well for all our food! Highly suggest y noodle! Our total except for the waygu sushi which I paid for separately was under $70! Very budget friendly for such a great...