Hakata Exton Ramen & Sushi — Restaurant in West Whiteland Township

Overall, we had a great dining experience. I have no complaints about the customer service. Our food came fairly fast as well.

We went on a Monday at 5pm and it was fairly empty. At first glance at the menu, it looked to be reasonably priced for the area and for the food.

Not pictured in my review are the pork buns which were $7. We got two of them. The buns were very fluffy, sweet/neutral taste and had a nice hoisin flavor to the meat. For the price I wish there was more meat, but the flavor was delicious; for two buns though I guess the price is fair. The ratio of bun to meat and veggie just was a little disappointing.

For our main course we got the Shaki Shiaki Ramen (photo 2) and Hakata Beef Ramen (photo 1). I have no complaints With the flavor of the Ramen and meat and toppings for both dishes. I was surprised to see reviews about a watery broth. My brothe was very lovely and I added some additional sauce and chili to the soup to enhance the flavor. it wasn’t as spicy as I thought it was going to be, which was surprising, but pleasant. honestly the only thing that would give these dishes a better rating would be the meat to ramen ratio. However, that aside, the quality of the meat and toppings were quite delicious.

I’d definitely try out this place if you haven’t been to a ramen place before. If you are going for more traditional experience and have high expectations then I would lower them a little. The atmosphere isn’t as LUX as I thought it would be for the pricing and photos on their website (also the radio station had advertisements but I’m picky lol) but it is BYOB so that’s a plus. Lol anyway….no major complaints. Can’t wait to try the sushi.

Update on second trip: I recently had the opportunity to revisit a restaurant that I enjoyed during my first visit. While I was hoping for another great experience, there were a few areas that fell short of my expectations.

Firstly, the service was a bit slow, despite the restaurant not being too crowded. However, the staff and manager were responsive and attentive, and we were eventually able to get the assistance we needed.

Secondly, the food was not as good as I remembered. Although my usual bowl of ramen was still tasty, it had less meat and more noodles this time, and the Brussels sprouts were not as warm as they could have been. Nevertheless, the kimchi was a standout dish that provided a nice burst of flavor to my meal.

While my friend's Naruto Ramen Chicken and another friend's Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen were not as flavorful as expected, we were still able to enjoy our meals. Additionally, my other friend found the ramen to be overall good and tasty, although he did note that it was not as spicy as he had hoped.

Overall, while there were a few areas that could be improved upon, I did appreciate the responsive staff and the tasty kimchi. I hope that the restaurant can address the areas that fell short during my visit, as I would be happy to return and give them another chance...

I am very disappointed. One thing I hate more than watching the sixers so far this season, is the service that I encounter every time my girlfriend comes here. Every time she comes here, shes gets nothing special, nothing crazy - shrimp tempura with extra eel sauce. This time, she ordered, by phone, for pick up and the young worker said “No problem, should be up shortly”. We leave in 5 minutes since he said “— should be up shortly”, thinking it might not be that busy. We stop by Saladworks, first, and get my crispy chicken caesar salad. We walk over to Hakata and enter a moderately busy restaurant with more than half their tables filled. This is where I encounter the same issue over and over again for now, a 3rd time. We stand for a couple moments before being greeted and told that my girlfriend’s order is being worked on. We notice other customers standing around looking irritated, as if, they had been waiting for a while. 15 minutes pass and my girlfriend, myself, and others are still standing around waiting. 30 minutes pass and I am happy that I got a salad because any hot foods would be colder than bare. 45 minutes pass and after one person waiting, when we first arrived, just now getting their food, the rest of us are standing around now irritated with how long we have been waiting. I will cut to the chase - we ordered our food at 6:10 and didn’t get her shrimp tempura roll until 7:05. We weren’t approached once, reassuring her food was coming. I had to ask where her order was to be given no response as I watched the worker turn around and go searching for her order. They have one person working the sushi station. That one person is responsible for all in house orders, as well as the plentiful amount of online and phone orders. I have never ran, nor worked in, a restaurant and I think its obvious that having one man working the sushi station with the responsibility of preparing everyone’s (in restaurant and online/phone) order is the dumbest ** ever. This type of service won’t keep the lights on forever. Suggestion: teach someone or hire another sushi roller because waiting an hour for one shrimp tempura roll is pitiful. Do better! I am never coming back and...

The food is great, but there are major issues with allergen safety/communication here. I have a dairy and a gluten allergy and have been served gluten 2/3 times I've eaten here.

The first time I ordered from this restaurant I was delighted to find out they offer a gluten free broth and gluten free ramen noodles - normally a good sign they are aware of allergy issues, and a treat to see gluten free ramen noodles!! They are hard to find. I ordered the Spicy Umami Miso Ramen with pork soboro. I placed the order online for delivery, so I called to confirm the dish could be prepared safely for me. She told me they'd need to use another broth, but otherwise it'd be fine.

I did have a reaction that weekend, but I couldn't be sure it was from this restaurant.

A few weeks later I ordered again, and tried to order the same dish. That's when I was told the pork is cooked with soy sauce, and thus can't be safe for me. I'm confident the dish I ended up with this night was safe for me, but it was disappointing to learn the first time I'd been exposed.

Tonight I ordered for a third time. Tonight I tried a different bowl - I called to confirm and instead of asking any questions or reviewing my dish with me the woman simply told me I was all set.

When the bowl arrived, it was topped with imitation crab meat, which almost always has gluten in it. When I called to ask, the woman who had answered the phone didn't put me on hold, but just took the phone away from her face, so I was able to hear the back and forth confusion when she was asking about the inquiry. Ultimately I heard a voice say "just say it's okay." It didn't sound like anyone really knew for sure, and when I asked if they could check the packaging they said they didn't have it anymore since they unpacked it upon delivery.

I will say - all of the staff has always been pleasant to talk to and the food is great. But I won't be dining there again myself out of concern for...