Ramen Kazama

Unlike any other ramen joint I’ve been to: order at the counter, food gets brought to your table, and outside seating available.
Edamame is a measly portion (15 – 20 pods) served overcooked and too hot. How do you mess this up?
Torishio is the BEST chicken broth that I’ve ever had, outdoes well-​known places in NYC. Noodles are perfectly chewy, egg was just a tad overdone, 3 pieces of fried chicken that comes with were too greasy for my taste. Bamboo shoot would be a nice touch but I didn’t know you had to add them in.
Hubby got the summer ramen which he enjoyed but I’d rather not the sesame dressing broth? Friends veggie curry and spicy miso broth were both satisfying.
I’m proud to say this place in my home state is on par with NYC ramen joints!

It’s the first ramen I’ve had in the US and all I can say is this is good but Japan has ruined me forever. I guess my expectations are too high.
I liked the Tonkotsu at first because I was just to excited but halfway through the ramen I realized the pork was bad and the broth was too salty for my liking.
My friend’s order came just I as I finished my ramen. The server apologized for being late he said he did not realized we were together as we sat on the bar.
All in all this is a good ramen place in the US. I will come back only because this seems to be the better among the few options.

Was super excited to try this place, and left feeling disappointed. We came on a Thursday night, and was surprised at how empty the place was since many reviews talked about how busy the place is, the wait, etc. There were maybe like 2 – 3 other parties there — maybe it had something to do with Cinco de Mayo. Anyhow, this is good because I don’t like waiting for food lol
Karrage | Japanese Fried Chicken
Thumbs up. Lightly coated breading and juicy inside. The Japanese mayo was good although it’s just like spicy mayo to me haha. Only complaint is how small the portion was for $ 6.50 — there were like 5 small pieces of chicken…
Shoyu Ramen | Pork and Chicken Broth
Broth kinda salty, 2 – 3 tiny pieces of meat, 1 egg, and no toppings aside from bamboo shoots and a piece of seaweed. Noodles were good. This did not make me full at all.
My friends had the Tonkotsu ramen, and they said it was really oily. I had a taste, and it was too salty as well. Overall, pricy for its portion, and the ramen was just okay but the chicken was pretty good. Not sure if I came here on an off night or not. May or may not come back for other dishes on the menu.

There are five places to get ramen in Minneapolis. I’ve been to four of them. Only one sucked (Haiku), and it was far and away the worst. Not even close.
What’s close is the three I’ve been to: Zen Box Izakaya, Moto-​i and now Ramen Kazama make spectacular ramen. If you can’t clearly state one place is the best, there is no dishonor in asserting that a place is in the top three.
Ramen is all these guys do, though, so all the attention goes into crafting diverse, interesting dishes that take chances and thrill your palate. It’s annoying that they’re closed Mondays and don’t open till 5 p.m. the other days, but if you can adjust your thinking to dinner with friends some evening later in the week, you’re golden.
You check out the menu (their staff are universally friendly and helpful), place your order, pay up front, then go secure your seating. They’ve got some nice beers (medium and large sizes) and sake on hand and the food comes out pretty quickly.
I’ve had the bone broth ramen, the vegan curry and the «magma». They’re all fantastic, and now it’s a personal goal of mine to check out every single bowl they serve.

I can tell you what NOT to order. #1 and #4 are not worth it. The broth lacked depth in both and tasted lackluster. I so wanted to like this place but it left me unfulfilled. I will say though the one true highlight was the fried chicken which I would consider coming back for. But as for the aforementioned ramen dishes, just skip. I’d be willing to try #2 since it’s bone broth but that’s about it.
Noodles were decent. Eggs cooked just right. Fried chicken good. Those are the positive remarks I can make.

One of my favorite ramen places in the Twin Cities! I ordered the Karamiso Ramen but I definitely want to go back and try their other bowls.
Here, you order first at the front of the restaurant and then go towards the back where a host seats you, if there are spots open. The restaurant is quite small so I wouldn’t recommend going in a large group. It also gets quite busy as the night goes on. We got there at opening and there was already a line forming out the door.
Other than that, I would say It was a good experience! The atmosphere was chill, the wooden décor was awesome, and the ramen was delicious.

This is my first official Ramen experience so my rating might have been different if I had something to compare it to.
I went with the Torishio. Ramen with Chicken. It was not spicy at all. Not a lot of flavor but was perfect for me being I was feeling a bit run down and chicken based broth fit the bill for comfort food.
The chicken pieces in it had great flavor but were really chewy & bit rubber like.
I was expecting something more like Udon or Soba noodles. The noodles looked just like spaghetti noodles. Not sure if that’s the norm or not.
I did ask if there was MSG, and yes was the answer. I usually tend to skip it if that’s the case but was determined to try the food being it was a recommended/​favorite place of a friends.
They did have an awesome, local made Kombucha I haven’t seen anywhere else though that I really enjoyed.

Got a tip to try this place from an Instagrammer.
I had the traditional ramen. It was delicious but it only had two bites of pork in it which I found rather disappointing. Next time I will order it with extra meat. The broth was flavorful however and the service was great even though they had a line that nearly went out the door. On a week night! I

I’m totally surprised at the iffy reviews on this place! I think RK is umami at its best… layers and layers of flavor. I’ve had both the Shoyu and Tonkatsu and both were amazing. If you are going to compare flavors to other ramen in the cities — I think that is where some may have marked RK as lower… because other ramen here in the cities… is simpler in flavor if that makes sense. Ramen Kazama’s bowls are definitely a lot more dense in flavor, a lot more savory and rich and I love love love it.
Both times I’ve been I’ve gone after 9 and not had a problem sitting down, so I haven’t experienced service during packed hours.

SO excited to find a ramen place in my hood!
So… I’m really sad to write a less than stellar review… but it is what it is… the restaurant was way too packed… I mean it was packed to the nines… and really, really busy… with the servers running around with the ramen… and people lined up pass the door into the store and then waiting for seats around the counter… we were felt really rushed to eat and it was not comfortable at all, let alone eat.
Oh then the food … the ramen broth was really, really salty and very oily… it was awful.
, was REALLY disappointed…

3-​stars, but if I could, I’d give it 3.75 for several reasons.
+ awesome space, well decorated, love the seating and the overall feel
— I don’t think the ordering system works very well… I understand what they’re trying to do — in Japan, when you order ramen, you typically go up to a machine that has all of the options, choose what you want, pay for it, then pass the ticket to the restaurant staff and sit down. They’re going for that same effect, but instead of a machine, there’s a person at the register. However, given how popular Ramen Kazama is right now, I don’t know if that’s the best way of going about it, especially since there aren’t really any free seats and there’s not much space to stand either
+ lots of street parking
+ the shoyu ramen is really good. My friend ordered it, I got to try it… will definitely be ordering it next time I go.
+/​-​the tonkotsu ramen was good, but lacked… something. Depth? Truthfully however, that specific broth (pork bone marrow) is a tricky one to get right, and I have yet to really eaten any tonkotsu ramen in this city that’s been truly *great*. Scale of 1 – 10, I’d give it a respectable 7.
+ the chashu pork, shoyu tamago, and other condiments in the ramen were excellent! Very tender chasu, the shoyu tamago was perfectly cooked… no issue there whatsoever.
+ good sake selection! well priced too!
— service was… meh. When we finally got seated, we did not have any napkins, spoons, or chopsticks. We had to ask our server a couple times for each of those things since he only brought one at a time. Then he forgot about us for a bit just after we got our ramen, so that was kind of a bummer… no chopsticks, no eating.
— No shichimi togarashi? Blasphemous! Or maybe it was just our server who was clueless.
So yeah, 3.75 is a fair score to give. I will DEFINITELY be back.

This place rocked!
I had the bone marrow ramen and it did not disappoint! It can be intimidating because of the line at the door, but it seemed to move pretty quickly. Grabbed a beer as we ordered and sipped on that and chatted until a table was ready for us. Its a little crowded at the tables by the windows, but that’s really just a credit to how good the food is and how many people want to be in there eating all the time.
The one piece of advice I can give is that it may not be the best place for a first date (see photo). But hey, maybe if you do try it for a first date and end up getting a second date, you may have a keeper!
Great addition to the neighborhood!

Ramen Kazama is a satisfying and affordable way to treat yo’self. I just packed and unloaded a bunch of boxes for a big event — that deserves some ramen. I just ran so many errands in the freezing cold — ramen time. I didn’t drive someone off the road during rush hour — extra ramen!
The team at RK concoct the best ramen I’ve ever had, which is why I find it so rewarding and soul-​soothing. I’ve had both the Karamiso and Tonkotsu, and I get conflicted with not being able to fit both into my stomach in the same sitting. They are both rich, flavorful, savory, meaty, and hearty as hell. The Karamiso has a little heat to make your mouth water, but not too much. The creaminess of the miso balances it as well. The Tonkotsu is out of this world and is what I would recommend everyone try during their first visit to really hook them hard. The broth alone is so deep, rich, and satisfying that I think I make disgusting nsfw noises when I’m eating it. And regardless of which bowl you order, you will receive perfectly chewy but not starchy noodles. I had no idea they could be this good! And the gyoza, karaage, and wakame are superb sides!
The few times I’ve been since they’ve been opened, there’s been a line awaiting their 5 o’clock opening. But that line dies down once the first rush is cleared after 5:30pm. I might have lucked out the few times I’ve been, but regardless, it is worth any wait. All of the crew are attentive, friendly, and people I wish I was friends with. Oh, and they play rad music. A++

I was hoping to give this review a 5 or 4 star at least, but unfortunately my dining experience wasn’t up to par. I waited for about 20 – 25 minutes for my bowl of ramen while my friend and other customers who arrived after me got theirs right away. I understand that maybe they had forgotten but it is still unfortunate especially when you notice the waiters are staring at you while watching your friend eat his bowl and you’re impatiently waiting for yours. I had to go up and ask someone about it and the lady was like «Oh! No wonder there was a confusion. We’ll get your order right away.» Ummm, really?! What was there to be confused about??? I just don’t understand. By then, I really wanted to just leave the restaurant already…
My #3 Karamiso ramen came out on in 5 minutes. Then a few minutes later, the waiter (who could also seemed like he could’ve been the owner) came by gave me a free side bowl of ready-​made steamed ramen noodles. Although I appreciate the kind & apologetic gesture, I really didn’t need more noodles. Free appetizer would’ve been nice.
Although my dining experience wasn’t the best, the ramen I had ordered was very delicious & flavorful. I like that it as spicy kick to it so if spicy is your route, I’d recommend this bowl (Karamiso #3). The portion was decent and there is good amount of protein provided (ground beef).

Yaaas to Ramen Kazama!!! I’m so pumped to have a place to call my go-​to ramen joint in the Twin Cities. It feels like I’ve waited an eternity for Ramen Kazama to open and it did not disappoint during my first visit. I went here with Dawn G. and her family and we got there about 15 minutes before it opened and there was already a line forming. The staff were kind enough to let us in a little early to wait inside cause it was cold as hail outside – they were so cute taking selfies with the crowd, you could tell they were super excited to have ramen fanatics in the house.
The menu mounted on the wall has crazy small font so I suggest taking a look at the menu online prior to your visit if you can. When you order, you go up to the front counter and they’ll give you a number. The dining area is cozy, cute, and clean. It doesn’t take too long for the ramen to come out and the staff bring it to your table. Here’s a breakdown of what we had:
Karage chicken:
, flavorful, crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. Five stars for this fried chicken.
Kimchi: not spicy, kind of random, but tastes like what you would expect out of kimchi.
Rice roll: I am blanking on the name on this but I feel like there was salted plum rolled into this — it was crazy sour/​tart/​too much for me, but if you’re into that kind of thing, you might like it.
Tonkotsu Ramen: SUPER flavorful. I had a really bad cold when I tried this so it really hit the spot. The only thing I would do differently about my order is get extra pork belly because there are only a few pieces that come with the ramen automatically. Their pork belly is GOOD.
Overall, I would recommend this place to any eastcoast/​westcoast people who are used to ²⁴⁄₇ access to good ramen… and also ramen noobs who want to start their ramen journey out right. Parking seems to be plentiful but get there early cause they line never stopped the entire time we were there.

I am a chubby Asian man. And thanks to a year and a half of consuming Matthew Kazama’s sexy, steaming, and savory ramen (in 2014 and half of 2015) every Wednesday at Fuji-​Ya Minneapolis, my pants fit sort-​of-​tight. (Evidence of my first bowl:
.) Or really, I’m just sort of lazy.
Let’s be honest — and I know a grip-​load of Asian-​American transplants would concur — the TC prior to Kazama couldn’t hold it down like the ramen sanctuaries of Seattle, SF, SD, Chi-​Town, Honolulu or NYC. (All cities I’ve eaten awesome ramen in.) Then I learned about Matthew’s — thanks to homies Calvin Son and DJ Espada — and it was like learning that Glenn, from The Walking Dead, was actually alive aka PURE. AWESOMENESS. BIZNATCHESS.
So if you’re reading this review and you’re like «what the f*** is this chubby Asian dude trying to get at?» let me be clear: Ramen Kazama serves the best bowl of ramen in the Twin Cities, and it’s not even debatable. For that alone, it gets all the stars. (Insert praying hands emoji.)
*****
I. FOOD & DRINK
Ramen, snacks, and beer — all you need, really. What you need to know:
A) RAMEN
Five basic ramens exist, and each can be slightly altered with the addition or subtraction of various sides. Don’t know what to get? My suggestions:
–Want fatty and savory? Go with their Tonkotsu.
–Want slightly salty with a bit more umami? Get their Shoyu.
–Want spicy? Duh, get their Spicy Miso.
Regarding their Tonkotsu (my favorite), here’s why I think the bowl tastes so great:
*Broth: Matthew slow cooks the be-​jesus out of the pork bones to get that marrow. And in order to get the beautiful fat shimmer on the top, it takes at least five plus hours of cookin’. That’s a lot of love that he’s willing to put in that other restaurants don’t.
*Noodles: Slightly al dente and with a nice bounce (which indicates freshness). I watched the kitchen and saw Matthew make sure all the noodles were cooked for the same duration of time. He also shakes the noodles hard to make sure that all the water is out.
*Egg: Runny. Not poached, like how I it should be, but better than most places that overcook it.
*Bamboo shoots: Solid.
*Chasu: Pork belly is succulent and sexy. Oink oink, me likes.
*Scallions: What great soup doesn’t have scallions? Seriously.
All these ingredients together to get a great bowl of ramen.
B) SNACKS
Karaage: Perfectly fried and it comes with a Sriracha mayo sauce. I think that the batter could’ve had some lemon grass in there, but it’s still awesome.
Edamame: Nice amount of salt, soft, and not overcooked. Thank you.
C) DRINKS
They have Saparro, Ichiban, and Surly Hell on tap. YASYASYASYASYAS.
II. SERVICE
They have some kinks to work out, but they just opened so be nice, y’all. The people that work there are cool, too, so don’t expect any pretentiousness there.
III. ATMOSPHERE/​DÉCOR
It’s laid back. I would totally go there after a stressful day of work to decompress. Seating is tight, but they’re making due with what they have. (Look for a possible expansion in the future.)
Lines form around peak hours, so if you want to make a visit, consider going on a weekday around 9pm. Don’t worry, broth should still be available for you.
IV. PRICES
Ramens range from $ 9 to $ 14 and practically all snacks fall under $ 7. Beers are pretty affordable, ranging from $ 4 to 16 for a pint or pitcher, respectively. Did I mention that they serve the best ramen in the TC? And did you know that their prices are the same, if not cheaper than their competition? Yeah. This is more than affordable.
V. OVERALL
Again, it’s the best ramen in the Twin Cities.

My boyfriend and I love ramen so you can imagine our growing anticipation and excitement for this restaurant when it was first announced over months ago. We’ve been patiently waiting for it’s arrival and yes, we came on its grand opening!
It’s a pretty small place, but has plenty of windows, a few booths, tables, and a large communal table. It also has an open kitchen and if you happen to get one of the seats surrounding the kitchen, you might be able to see all the cooking and goodness of the ramen-​making process.
Right when you walk in, the cash register is directly in front of you. You can take a look at their huge menu on top, a small menu on the cash register table, or some take-​out menus on the side. My boyfriend and I ordered the tonkotsu ramen, the karamiso ramen (spicy miso soup base), and karaage, also known as Japanese fried chicken. They hand you a letter and you’re off on your way to find your own table. Although they bring your ramen out to you, this is essentially a «self-​serve» type of restaurant. A bowl full of chopsticks and soup spoons exist at both the water table, and the large communal table. The water table is where you’ll find cups to fill your own water.
Upon sitting down, my boyfriend and I went up and grabbed our soup spoons. To our dismay, the two we grabbed were dirty with specks of red pepper and leftover residue of ramen broth on them. We grabbed another two, and another two, and finally discovered that the whole bowl of soup spoons were dirty. We notified the waiter and he glanced at a few and took the whole bowl to the back, not offering us new spoons so we were left to wipe down two of the spoons we had already grabbed.
The wait was pretty long. We were there about 30 minutes or so before our appetizer came out and I didn’t find that the restaurant was that busy yet. Finally, our karaage came out. It looked good, but quite small for its price ($ 6.50 for 5 tiny pieces). It came with some sort of sauce to the side which was pretty good. The chicken itself was pretty fatty and wasn’t that crispy. A little crunch here and there, but most of it was very gentle unlike the real crisp and crunch you get with American fried chicken. It was okay.
Another 10 or 15 minutes later, our ramen finally came out. My boyfriend and I were starving and so excited, quickly taking pictures before digging in. One thing we noticed with his tonkotsu ramen is that there was a large spoonful of oil located on one side of the ramen (which is visible in my picture). It wasn’t well mixed with the broth and didn’t look as appetizing. Another thing that I was a little disappointed at was that the spicy miso soup which is typically my favorite didn’t include any toppings besides the ground beef which all seemed to settle to the bottom (no bamboo shoots, boiled egg, seaweed, mushrooms, etc.) for the same price as the tonkotsu ramen ($ 12.50) which included all of it. Of course, you can opt in to buying some of these toppings on the side, but it’s quite pricey (about $ 1.50−2.50 additional).
Now, on to the actual ramen itself. my boyfriend’s broth was pretty good with a good mix of saltiness and other rich flavors. Not the best I’ve tasted, but not the worst. My boyfriend prefers very thick ramen broth and this one had more of a watery texture. The toppings added a good touch to it and the egg was not overcooked like I’ve seen at other ramen places, but just to perfection. Also to note, he only had 2 very, very small cuts of pork in his soup. My karamiso ramen (which appears extremely red, but don’t worry, it’s not actually that spicy.) was also just okay. I wasn’t extremely enthusiastic about anything, but I also wasn’t dissatisfied.
Overall, our experience was okay. It wasn’t the greatest, but wasn’t the worst. Nothing of notable excitement. My favorite ramen place in Minnesota still stands to be Zenbox. It was worth a try going though.

We came, we sat, we conquered… a delicious bowl of ramen. Before I get technical about our ramen, let’s start with our app.
The karaage was fresh, lightly-​coated chicken, and fried to crisp perfection. It was served with a spicy Japanese mayo dipping sauce with some foliage on the side. It was juicy and made-​to-​order so we could not complain about a single thing other than we wanted more. Who doesn’t want more meat?
Now to the ramen. I opted for their shoyu ramen whereas my BF got their tonkotsu ramen. My broth was light and traditional but my issue with that was I could really taste that «process noodles» taste (that slight soapy taste you get from packaged ramen noodles, ammonia maybe?), and that bothered me quite a bit but needless to say I still finished my food with joy because the broth was good but it did not mask anything coming off from the noodles. The noodles texture was chewy and al dente and I wouldn’t expect anything less from them so I can’t really complain about that beyond that slight odd taste.
My BF broth, on the other hand, was delicious and flavorful and was worth every penny when it comes to ramen in MN (even though, 12.50 is pretty steep). I gladly traded bowls with him to sample his dish, and could barely taste anything coming off the noodles beyond delicious pork broth! Oh, did I mention that perfect soft boil egg with its gooey center? Delicious!!! Cook to perfection, where many places are not able to accomplish here in MN.
Overall, we were happy with the quality of our ramen and would be returning. I probably won’t get the shoyu again but I’m interesting in trying their spicy miso ramen. Until next time Ramen Kazama.

OMG, I think MSP finally has a legit ramen place!
Let’s break this down to the essentials and essence of ramen: broth and noodle.
Broth — YES. Layers and layers and freaking distinct layers of umami punch. The tonkatsu, staple of pork loving ramen lovers, is rich, creamy, mushroom-​y, and just the right amount of salty. The spicy miso has just the right amount of spicy (hot enough to feel but not enough to sweat), miso-​salty, and strong mirin.
Noodle — YES. The noodle is imported from Japan (from what I’ve read) and there are various noodle styles to fit the broth. Chef’s choices were exactly as I’d expect. My spicy miso came with thick and wavy noodles, and they were super bouncy, chew-​but-​not-​chewy, fresh tasting, and carbalicious. Also, kaedama (extra noodle if you have lots of left over broth in your bowl)!
Take note: the place is not big, the menu is small, and the prices are a bit high (12.50 per bowl), but all this makes the quality phenomenal.
Kazama is setting a new standard, and it’s a mouthwatering one.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. Raman Kazama wasn’t supposed to be open (officially opens Nov 1) and I wasn’t supposed to be in Minneapolis. Today the stars aligned and I enjoyed one of the best bowls of ramen in Minnesota without any lines. There is an upcoming Unilocal event here that will put this place on the map for authentic ramen. This is Chicago and New York-​level good.
Their menu is simple, heavily emphasizing their ramen selection — that already was a great sign. My go-​to ramen is and always will be tonkotsu. Kazama makes a simple but excellent tonkotsu broth that is rich, creamy, and sticks to your lips. The ramen noodles themselves were cooked well but otherwise typical. The soul of ramen is the broth and Kazama nailed it.
Service was reasonably fast, especially considering they haven’t even truly opened yet. You order, you take your letter, and they serve you. Remember to take your utensils before you sit as they aren’t brought out with the food. On that note, one suggestion I have is to upgrade the disposable chopsticks because the ones used have a tendency to splinter and aren’t very comfortable to use. Pricing is comparable to other ramen in town.
While small, the space fits around 40 people or so and more if you’re willing to stand. I love open kitchens designs because it allows you to appreciate the entire process — Kazama is designed in this fashion. Parking is street level only on Nicolette so plan ahead during dinner rush hour.