Karai Ramen + Handroll — Restaurant in Springfield

It was an interesting experience for me to say the least. I ordered a plate of Gyoza, level 2 Old Skool Ramen with pork, and the Yellowtail sashimi. Out of these three things I spent nearly 40 usd (37.19, although I did provide a 5 dollar tip because my waitress was amazing) and the gyoza was the only dish I enjoyed. The broth regarding the Old Skool Ramen was disappointing for me. They stated a Tonkotsu ramen broth for it and I have had Tonkotsu ramens before, but that one tasted... wrong. I tasted more milky and cream-based rather than anything, but looking at the ingredient list on the back of one of the menus didn't explain this odd taste. I also, as stated, got level 2. The spice towards it was practically non-existent for me. I even ordered more spice which turns out to cost an additional 80 cents, yet adding in the entire additional order of spice did nothing much but make the broth taste a bit weird and make my mouth tingle just a hair, since according to my lovely waitress they make their spice in house. Not to mention the pork piece that were used in it, one was practically just fat with a sliver of meat on the very bottom, one was horrendously fatty, and the other was decent, yet still felt like it had a weird fat to meat ratio. And yes you (hopefully) read that correctly, three pieces of pork, which in truth I understand, as of 2023 meats are very very expensive. But to summarize, I did not enjoy the Old Skool Ramen, and based off spice levels and broth I wouldn't enjoy their other Tonkotsu broth ramens. The Yellowtail sashimi was just bad. It was bad and I will say that. It was a bit warmer then it usually should be which took my by surprise when eating it, and for some reason they top it with thin jalapeño slices and Sriracha sauce along with already soaked it what seemed to be soy sauce. I get garnish, yet that goes on the side. I would rather having just sashimi when I order sashimi. And as stated, the gyoza was the only thing I enjoyed there. You get about 5 or 6, can't recall, which is decent for the price and taste. It's paid with a black vinegar dipping sauce with chopped green onions in it and a lemon slice and piece of greenery ON THE SIDE for garnish. Although adding some of the lemon to the dipping sauce does help add a stronger punch to the sauce. Surprisingly enough however, the gyoza seemed to be spicy, much more than the ramen, as it legitimately made my mouth burn. It had plenty of umami flavor and came out fresh and hot.

If you do go, explore the menu a bit, don't quite get something with the Tonkotsu broth unless it sounds up your alley from my review, and avoid the sashimi altogether, but treat yourself to some gyoza, and...

I had read an article that made me believe this place was going to have some good ramen but sadly, I feel they have a lot to improve upon and there is better ramen to be eaten in Springfield.

ME: I've eaten ramen in Springfield and during my 6 months in Japan, so I do have "ramen" experience.

THE FOOD: Their yuzu lemonade is delicious, it was tangy sour lemonade and I loved it, sadly that feeling didn't carry over to the ramen.

I got the "Old Skool Ramen" which is tonkatsu ramen with mushrooms and bean sprouts and I chose pork for the meat. When we got there they told us they were out of noodles but the owner would arrive soon with more, we just had to wait, so we did. The sad thing was that the noodles could very well have come from Hy-Vee because they were extraordinarily similar to al-dente round spaghetti noodles, they certainly didn't taste or feel like handmade noodles. When I ordered pork I thought I would be getting a typical round slice of chashu pork but instead I got shredded pork so I didn't really get to taste it by itself. The broth was good, but not rich like I was hoping it would be since they say they make it from scratch using the bone.

They gave us free sushi and a free egg roll to account for the long wait, both of them were good quality, to be expected of the owner of Haruno. I will go back to try their rice bowls but I probably won't try their ramen again unless I hear they've changed it up.

THE SERVICE: This is their opening week and their service was good. I don't like to be interrupted a lot of times when I eat somewhere nice so the time between our server checking on us didn't bother me. They gave us free sushi and an egg roll because we had to wait a while for the ramen so that was considerate of them.

THE PLACE: I genuinely like the atmosphere and the look of the place, it looks cool and has a nice vibe to it. It was a bit hard to find since their sign is black with small text but I found it eventually. The 2-person tables were very close together making it a bit difficult for servers to maneuver but it didn't affect our dining experience.

OVERALL: I gave 3 stars because I was disappointed in the ramen(the reason I went) but the place has a great look and atmosphere and the service was good so I'll probably go back to try their rice bowls.

As my friend put it, "Just like there's Springfield Chinese Food, this is Springfield Ramen." When I try it again, I'll update my review but until then, I recommend Omo Japanese Soul Food if you are...

Everyone was so nice! We were greeted by the host as soon as we walked in. Before seating us, he briefly excused himself. While he was gone, the bartender - who didn't know we'd been greeted - took a moment to acknowledge us and gestured to the host to let us know he'd be right with us.

Our server was kind, and the woman who delivered our plates to the table was all smiles. She seemed genuinely excited to deliver our meals which made me all the more eager to dive in!

The atmosphere is so clean and chic. It's very date-like but not too intimate and therefore had a lot of casual folks including families. It was a good mixture for a Saturday night and no matter what everyone fit in.

Because we attended the Beer, Wine, Cheese, and Chocolate festival earlier today, we skipped out on drinks tonight; however, I have my eyes set on the Pomegranate Margarita the next time we dine in.

I ordered the vegetable ramen with a soft boiled egg added. I loved the flavor of the broth and I loved the different mushroom varieties! Good flavor and good texture!

The only downside - and this is 100% a personal preference and nothing that the restaurant did wrong - is that the noodles are thick. The only other place I've had real ramen is another restaurant in town which lets you choose between a thicker or thinner noodle. There, I prefer the thinner noodles. It's the first way I had ramen and to what I've become accustomed, so the texture tonight felt off for me. I reiterate that that's just a personal preference on texture and that the flavor was still great!

My fiancé had the chicken teriyaki bowl and was raving about it! I'm a vegetarian and even I thought his dinner looked delicious. He absolutely recommends this dish.

Our two entrees with tip came out to $25. We didn't realize how affordable the night was until after we paid so we left a little cash on the table too. The service was superb and it's the least we could have done.

This was our first visit to Karai but it certainly will not...