| rev:text
| - When Noodlecat opened, I was very excited that Cleveland was getting its first ramen restaurant. The Japanese restaurants around here primarily center around either sushi or hibachi. When their menus do have ramen on them, it is usually the frozen prepackaged type. There are plenty of Vietnamese restaurants serving pho close to downtown, but ramen is a completely different animal.
Having read the other reviews, my expectations were tempered. I didn't expect it to be the authentic hakata or sapporo style ramen that I had when I was in Las Vegas that cost $7 for a large bowl and inspired me to spend 2 months developing a recipe to satisfy my new obsession.
Here's a synopsis of what we had:
Takahachi Raman - If it wasn't for the garlic, this wouldn't have much of any taste. The shredded pork becomes a tangled mush in the soup.
Fried Chicken and Ramen - I didn't get any sense of fried chicken in the soup. Maple syrup and hot sauce on fried chicken is always a good combination, but the breading and the chicken itself was not seasoned. The leg piece is a a bad accompaniment with a dish that you eat with chopsticks and a spoon.
Ohio Beef Brisket and Matzo Ramen - This one was the most disappointing. The beef was good, but the broth had almost no taste. The matzo ball was flavorless, extremely dense, surprisingly cold and I had to spit it out. When I got home that night, I made my own matzo ball soup from scratch in the hopes of forgetting this travesty.
Pork Miso Ramen - They've revised their menu so this is no longer served in the downtown location. It was the only soup that had a strong flavor, but of soy sauce instead of miso. It's dark and thin which tells you that this is really lacking in miso.
Spicy Octopus Stir Fry Udon - It's reminiscent of the noodles that you might get at a Mongolian Barbeque restaurant. Lots of spice, but lacking in complexity.
Tempura Walleye Steam Bun - The small piece of fish had a thin soggy batter. The bun itself is the frozen Chinese type that cost a couple bucks for a package.
Overall, it is pricey even during happy hour and what you get is just passable. I'm still glad that there's more variety now in downtown rather than just another sandwich shop. There are several good ideas that need work and I hope that they hire a consultant to help with the recipes. The owner is friendly and the staff did a good job. I think this place could be a part of the food revolution happening here if it can adapt quickly to be more than just a niche place for hipsters.
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