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| - I would take Republic Ramen for what it is- fast food ramen priced inexpensively, located in the heart of a college town.
There is, unfortunately, a huge dearth of good ramen places here in Phoenix. When my girlfriend told me about this, I was keen on checking it out. I love Cherry Blossom, but it gets a bit boring to have that be the only joint in town I enjoy ramen at! Also, nothing helps clear blocked allergies like hot ramen and a steaming cup of green tea!
I got the tonkatsu ramen, whilst the boyfriend got the miso ramen. I had no complaints about mine. It wasn't rocking my proverbial world, but it was good decent food. It tasted like tonkatsu broth, and I liked the fresh spinach, bean sprouts and the egg I paid extra for.
His miso ramen, however, was very disappointing. A friend had warned me that this was 'white people ramen', and his ramen lived up to that warning. It tasted like bland, straight up soy sauce broth. No trace of miso at all. I actually forgot he had miso stock and not the soy sauce before he reminded me about it.
The gyoza were also nicely edible, but nothing to go home talking about.
As I said, take it for what it is. Fast food ramen in a college town. It's good to satisfy your cravings, but not something that will rock your world. Not everything can be 5 stars. My suspicion is that you'll find just such mediocre ramen places even in Japan.
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