It helps that the lacklustre reviews I have read ahead of time on Yelp and heard from my friends made my expectations pretty low therefore I was pleasantly surprised.
- Wait: Yes, we did wait for over an hour outside in the heat. We went to go get bbtea from tenren (but kinton wont let you consume outside drinks inside) and waited on the bench.
- Restaurant: it's a Ramen BAR, not a restaurant. Open Kitchen concept is nice, but we were seated by the drinks bar rather than the kitchen bar.
-Gyoza: the dumplings were $4 and came in four. They were DELICIOUS! I dont regret getting them at all.
- Spicy Garlic Ramen in rich broth with pork shoulder: The soup base was fantastic (rich but not heavy). A giant wad of minced garlic is placed on the top that you can stir in. If you don't want the garlic, tell them to hold it or simply pick it out. The noodles were fantastically del dente. The shoulder, however, was subpar. Too dry and chewy. The belly is the better choice. You can also choose light or reg soup base too.
- Price and value: $10 for a giant bowl of ramen you can barely finish is not bad at all.
Is it worth the wait though? I don't think so. The food is fantastic, but ,unlike guu, i will not wait for an hour for it ever again.