Wagamama - Don't Bring Your Mama

Wagamama
Faneuil Hall
Quincy Market Building, near Victoria's Secret and Crate & Barrel
(617) 742-9242
Open Mon-Sat 11:30 AM - 11 PM; Sun noon - 10 PM

For many months, I had been eagerly awaiting the opening of internationally heralded noodle bar Wagamama in the US - first in Quincy Market and later this year in Harvard Square. I recently journeyed on a Thursday night to the newly opened Quincy Market location. Needless to say, I was disappointed by just about every aspect of my experience.


First, the wait. Everyone knows that Quincy Market is a huge tourist destination, but on a sweltering Thursday night, it still took my group of four an hour to be seated. We were not given any buzzer that would allow us to leave the immediate area.

Second, the seating. Instead of individual tables, the restaurant is set up with long cafeteria-style seating. So be prepared to rub elbows with giggly high school girls and sweaty fraternity boys, and to be churned out as soon as you're done with your meal. This is not a place to linger.

Third, the menu. While I commend Wagamama for its sensitivity to various types of allergies, the statement that the restaurant "is modelled on the ramen bars which have been popular in japan for hundreds of years" is totally a piece of crock. Not a single ramen item comes with sliced roasted pork, the staple of traditional ramen, or a shoyu broth. Instead, Wagamama offers toppings like grilled chicken breast, grilled salmon, steak, and shrimp in soups of pork and chicken broth accompanied by non-traditional garnishes like lime and carrots.

Fourth, the service. If Wagamama is high-tech enough to give its waiters wireless handheld devices, do they really need to draw all over my paper placemat? In addition, since Wagamama prides itself on making everything "fresh," the dishes are brought out to individuals one at a time. This means that one person in your party can sit and watch his/her food getting cold while the others wait for their meals to arrive at various times. My server was very nice and did everything she was supposed to - the problem was in the conception, not the execution. Well, at least you get free green tea.


Last but not least, the food. I ordered the chili beef ramen, which is described as "noodles in a spicy pork and chicken soup topped with a marinated and grilled sirloin steak, fresh chillis, sliced red onions, beansprouts, coriander, spring onions and a wedge of lime." The dish was so overseasoned that the broth was completely inedible and the rest of the dish almost so. Every bite was dripping with sauce and oil. The steak itself was pretty good, but did not belong in a bowl of ramen. Generally, the flavors were so strong that it was hard to find any texture or subtleties. The portion size was disappointing and left me hungry to order Wagamama's overpriced and underwhelming desserts (which include such hundred year Japanese staples like chocolate fudge cake).

I would like to note that this review was written about Wagamama's ramen specifically, and not the other noodle options available. In fact, some people in my group did enjoy their rice noodles. You might enjoy places like Wagamama if you're the type of person who thinks that PF Chang's is the epitome of Chinese food. But as far as ramen goes, for a more authentic experience, head straight to Ken's Ramen in Allston or Sapporo Ramen in Porter Square instead.

Ken's Ramen - the Deliciousness is in the Details

Ken's Ramen (Ken's Noodle House)
1 Brighton Ave
inside the super88 building
Allston, MA 02134
Closed Wednesdays


Nothing beats a chilly Boston evening than eating a hot bowl of noodles. On a recent Saturday night, we had no trouble getting a table at Ken's Ramen. The menu is pretty much unchanged from when I visited earlier this year. There are four or five standard ramens with a clear (salty), soy sauce, or miso broth for around $7. Extra toppings and noodles are available for a few dollars more.

On this trip, we ordered the two specialty ramens. The noodles in the specialty ramens are supposedly imported from Japan, hence the higher cost. The Sapporo specialty ramen is a miso-based broth with egg, roast pork, scallions, corn, bean sprouts, and seaweed.


The other specialty ramen is a clear (salty) broth with similar toppings.


Although the specialty ramens are more expensive than the standard ramens, there are many more toppings to partially justify the additional cost. The ramens are beautifully presented, which heightens the overall experience. The variety of toppings, the intense and fragrant broth, and the texture of the noodles were all very satisfying. We did not taste anything particularly special about the imported noodles, but perhaps we needed a standard ramen for comparison. I would have liked for the meal, particularly the toppings, to be served at a slightly higher temperature.

How does Ken's Ramen compare to Sapporo Ramen in Porter Square? The standard portion size at Ken's, while still a satisfying meal for one person, is significantly less than the gut-busting bowls one gets at Sapporo. However, the quality of the broth and toppings at Ken's far outmatches the run-of-the-mill fare at Sapporo. The artful presentation of the meal at Ken's helps complete a balanced and harmonious ramen experience.

Sapporo Ramen - Clear Moyashi Flavor

Sapporo Ramen
Porter Exchange Building

Sapporo Ramen, located in the food court at the Porter Exchange Building, has three types of broths - soy sauce, miso, and clear. Since I have never had the clear (salty) flavor there before, I decided to try the clear moyashi over the weekend. The moyashi comes with ground park and heaps of Chinese vegetables, including bean sprouts and Chinese broccoli, for around $8.

Overall, I found the flavor to be fairly bland and in most respects inferior to the soy sauce and miso broths. One positive point to the clear flavor is that since it is so light, one is able to taste the flavors of pork and vegetable in the soup when you are drinking it, as opposed to an overwhelming soy sauce or miso taste. The noodles, meat, and vegetables were standard - I especially like the generous portions of vegetables that come with the moyashi selection. The serving size is large enough to comfortably feed two people for lunch. In summary, a nice ramen, but only if you are looking for a light subtle flavor.

Ken's Ramen (Ken's Noodle House)

Ken's Ramen
Inside the Super 88 building between the supermarket and food court
One Brighton Ave
Allston, MA 02134

The Ramen Lovers were pleasantly surprised on a trip to Super 88 to find a new ramen restaurant! We did not have our digital camera with us, so no pictures unfortunately. Ken's Ramen is located between Super 88's food court and supermarket, near the exit to the parking lot. The decor is rather spartan and reminded us of a pizza joint with its green vinyl chairs and pressboard tables.

The menu is simple. There are about five standard and two specialty ramens. The standard ramens consist of clear (salty), miso, or soy sauce broth with various combinations of meat and veggies. We liked that the standard ramens come with a decent array of meat and veggies already included in the price ($6-$7). Add extra toppings or extra noodles for a couple bucks more. The two specialty ramens are subject to availability because they supposedly use better noodles ($9-10). The specialty clear ramen was not available on the night that we went. We did order the other specialty Sapporo Ramen, which was a miso broth with roast pork and veggies. There are also a few other items available on the menu like rice bowls.

The soy sauce broth was a little disappointing because it tasted like soy sauce added to a clear broth. Not much richness or flavor to this thin liquid. The miso broth, however, was quite excellent and hearty. We didn't think the specialty Sapporo ramen was worth the additional cost, since it is essentially the same as the miso ramen. The large and extra-large sizes arrive looking the same as the normal size, but there are many more noodles hiding underneath the surface. That being said, the normal size is ample for a single person.

The sliced pork was pretty good - it was roasted, not simply boiled, and quite tender. However, it was cold, and it would have been nice if it was warmed up at least a little. The veggie helpings are generous and of high quality - freshly chopped scallions, nori, and corn. The noodles are of the yellow variety and are soft and chewy, but not especially outstanding. But, Ken's Ramen differentiates itself from Sapporo Ramen in Porter Square simply on the basis of its toppings. The best ramen so far in the Boston area.

Sapporo Ramen - Miso Moyashi

I've previously blogged about Sapporo Ramen's soy sauce ramen. On our latest trip, we ordered Jon's favorite, the miso moyashi ($8.75) with extra noodles ($1.75). We forgot the digital camera, so no pictures, sorry!

The miso moyashi comes with ground pork and heaps of Chinese vegetables, including bean sprouts and Chinese broccoli. The ratio of meat to veggies to noodles is quite good, although the extra noodles are so absorbent that the broth can run out quickly. It is probably okay without the extra noodles. The broth is miso-flavored, which has a very light taste and is good if you are looking for something subtle. The chewy noodles are a better accompaniment to the miso flavor than the soy sauce flavor because the noodles are also light and somewhat tasteless. But the noodle texture does provide some nice heft to the soup. Jon adds garlic, chili paste, and vinegar to his soup, which gives it more flavor. I like to stay true to the purity of the ramen.

With the extra noodles, we both ate our fill for dinner and had two servings leftover for lunch the next day. A great deal and a nice bowl of noodles!

Sapporo Ramen - Acceptable and Convenient

1815 Mass Ave.
Porter Square, Cambridge
617-876-4805
Hours: Mon. - Sat. noon-9 p.m.; Sun. noon-8 p.m.

Unlike California, Boston has very few restaurants that serve ramen. One of the few in the area is Sapporo Ramen, located in the Porter Exchange Building food court. It's a decent bowl of ramen but nothing spectacular.

Be prepared to fight for your seat - there are only three picnic-style tables with about six seats each. You'll have a decent chance on weekdays, but forget about it on Friday or Saturday night. Once you're seated, you have the choice of three different broths - soy sauce, miso, or clear (which I presume is the base stock. Either that, or steroids). Each of these broths has five or so versions with different meats and veggies. Jon usually gets the miso moyashi with ground pork and veggies. Last night, we decided to try the "normal" flavor of soy sauce standard, which comes with roast pork, bamboo, bean sprouts, scallions, and nori for $7.25.



The broth was very tasty and I liked the presentation, with heaps of scallions and an artfully placed seaweed strip. The service was excellent and fast, considering there's just one waitress. However, the noodles were nothing special and the "roast pork" was really just boiled pork slices. The bean sprouts provided a nice crunch, but the bamboo appeared to be rehydrated when I was expecting fresh or canned. Also, the serving size is ample for one person, but not enough for two. Next time if you're sharing, get the extra noodles for $1.75, and you'll have enough for about four servings.

In summary, it's a nice bowl of noodles and easy to get to, but nothing really amazing or delicious. I suppose that we in Boston have to take any ramen we can get.