Bokujō Ramen — Restaurant in Rapid City

At the risk of sounding pretentious, I feel compelled to wrote a thorough review of my experience with Bokujo Ramen. I really really wanted to love this and had very high expectations, especially after reading that the owners were basically food celebrities. That said, I regret to report that I feel they could use some more tweaking to their recipes as most of what I ordered missed the mark. I didn't hate the ordering system online. The space is dark but modern. I found the staff to be friendly, although one worker moved incredibly slow. I like to think he was tenderly tending to his tasks but im about 90% certain he was high. The prep area seemed clean and well tended and looks like there is a lot of potential in terms of seating and atmosphere. Portion sizes were decent. Neither my husband or myself could finish their bowl. I ordered 4 dishes, which is about half the menu. Only 1 item I would consider reordering and that is the Mushroom Miso. The menu is pretty small and missing some basic things I expect to see in a Ramen House: Shoyu Ramen, more toppings like bamboo, nori, fish cake, togarashi, Bonito and the like, more Japanese or Korean beer options. Again, I realize these things are hard to come by but I know for certain some of these items are available. Chicken Bacon Wasabi Ranch bun - this didn't do it for me as far Asian fusion goes. The Wasabi wasn't particularly prominent and I felt the chicken was way under seasoned. The bun was nice and fluffy but since the filling was so lackluster it just didn't hit the spot. I'd like to see more variety for buns and more Asian inspired flavors to shine through. Beef ramen: the color was very promising. I love a milky looking broth, which is from slowly simmering bones for so long the marrow is pulled from the bones and creates a creamy broth that is usually bursting with umami and feels like silk on your tongue. And yet, somehow this didn't have much umami to it. I found it had very little salt. I'm wondering of they even used a Tare, which is usually what makes or break a good ramen. In fact, the flavor was so mild I could have sworn it was chicken but it definitely smelled beefy when I opened the broth container. The picture on the website depicts nori served with this dish and mine didn't have any. I suspect the nori would have added a nice level of salt and umami that possibly would have made the dish a bit more palatable. Some furikake or togarashi would have been welcome as well. The beef Chislic was cooked well, but it was seasoned only with garlic powder (I watched them season it). Something soy and ginger or even miso would have been a better choice in my opinion. The soy egg was decent, wasn't super hard boiled and had a softer yolk that oozed a little into the broth, which I enjoy. The noodles were a decent texture and springy as intended. Gyoza - I love dumplings. I mean I LOVE dumplings of any kind of any cuisine. I love them so much I tried to recreate Mandu dumpling. The wrappers were pretty on par for a gyoza, but the filling was just ok. I feel like it really could have tasted more interesting with garlic chives or shrimp or some other typical gyoza fillings. Pork and cabbage is a popular one that carries a lot of flavor with only a few ingredients. The oxtail was wasted on a gyoza in my opinion. by far the best of the 4 items was the miso ramen. Miso is typically salty anyways which is the main reason I suspect this Ramen was as good as it was. The broth was flavorful and slightly rich with a hint of sesame oil. The wood ear mushrooms were so delicious and absorbed the broth well. Not overly salty, plenty umami but not overpowering. A great balance of savory that the beef broth totally missed. All in all, I hope that they are able to develop better flavors and incorporate more items to their menu over time. Rapid City doesn't have a plethora of good restaurants and this one has potential for sure. That said, I don't plan on returning for some time to see if they are able to work...

Wow. W.O.W. No need to pan for gold on your next trip to Rapid City. Bokujo Ramen is the Black Hills gem you didn’t know you needed! We had dinner for 8 in the party room, and everyone loved it.

The Bokujo team was welcoming, friendly, helpful and attentive. Chef Justin Warner greeted us at the door and showed us some of the fun features of the party room, and the entire team echoed his warm, welcoming vibe. No surprise: every person we talked to seemed to love working at Bokujo (and most have been there for much longer than the average foodservice gig). Happy team = happy diners!!

And they nailed all the details: waters were refilled well before they could go dry, every piece of advice was spot-on, and they took the time to search for additional sizes when we wanted to buy shirts (well after close) on our way out.

The food was exceptional. Every ingredient played a part in elevating Bokujo’s ramen dishes instantly into the category of favorites usually reserved for lifelong comfort foods. Bokujo navigated food sensitivities with ease and charmed even pickier eaters (and teens whose preferences change faster than the weather.)

The only disappointment? Bokujo is too far away from our home for frequent visits, but it’s well worth the 8-hour drive!

A few recos: Book the party room even if you weren’t planning a party! Instant impromptu celebration!

Don’t miss the @RSVLTS shirts on your way out. The cool retro designs are tons of fun. We also love the Bokujo Ramen mug and tshirts we picked up there.

Visit the winebar next door on your way out for amazing natural vino, and stock up on honey and tasty fancy salames. We picked up everything we needed to stock our AirBnB, and got fun foodie gifts for our doggie sitter...

I can not say enough about the food at Bokujo Ramen. My husband and I have worked through the menu and we haven't found something we don't like. (OK, lies, I haven't tried the salad yet but with RAMEN as an option, it's hard to choose the salad.)

The broth is amazing and you can tell it have been building flavor for days. The basic of basic ramen takes 6 hours, Justin gives these babies 48 hours to truly develop the intense, amazing flavors. The soy eggs are perfectly soft boiled and marinated beautifully, the fresh ramen is springy as true ramen should be, and the various meats or mushrooms are also flavorful.

The mushroom foil from local Black Hills Mushrooms is amazing and one of our personal favorite sides. The Oxtail Gyoza have a delicious fresh wrapper, amazing oxtail filling, and honestly the most delicious dipping sauce I wish he'd bottle it and I could put it on everything. I even add leftover sauce into my ramen so I don't waste a single drop. The CBR bun is tasty, the bun in spongy as a steamed bun should be and, as someone who isn't a spicy fan, I worried something called WASABI mayo would be too strong but it is mellowed perfectly so you're not crying, "Wasabi. Help!"

We look forward to seeing the menu expand and seating opening as the pandemic subsides(hopefully, fingers crossed). Brooke is friendly and helpful and I saw a helper to keep those orders flying so I'm optimistic that this place is going to be here not only for awhile but a #1 place to visit to eat in Rapid City.

*AND Justin signed my bowl for my birthday! I fan girled a little, he's in my top 5 celebrity chefs after Alton Brown...