12-30-2019, 10:55 PM
(12-10-2019, 10:47 AM)PhilippAchtel Wrote: I had dinner at Crafty Ramen recently. It was okay, but I wouldn't recommend it very highly. App quality is good but the quantity is very small for price. The kid's ramen is just noodles and the plainest broth you can imagine. I know it's kid's ramen and what do you expect for four dollars, but it's actually something of a pet peeve of mine when kid's meals are low quality. Add some naruto or an egg or something and put it in some decent broth. The noodles themselves don't have quite the right texture.
The broth for the two bowls we had was nice, especially the vegan option. If you have vegan friends in town and are looking for a place to take them, Crafty would be an interesting option. But having been there once was enough for me.
OK, so we finally ate there. We had a dandan and a vegan salaryman. Of the two, I think the salaryman was better, with sesame-encrusted tofu and a nicer broth. Neither one is "authentic" as such, but, rather, ramen adjusted to Canadian expectations. It was pretty good, I was not disappointed, but then I'm not a huge ramen fan to start with so maybe my bar was low.
Total was about $40, though, with just the two bowls and a plate of gyoza (which I did approve of!) and no drinks. Definitely it's not the cheap salaryman dinner that you might find in Tokyo. And, as Philipp said, the portions are not very big: we both finish our bowls, which is rare enough, and that was after eating a couple of gyoza each.
On the other hand ... they have a decent beer selection, so as a place to sit and have some drinks after work with friends or colleagues, snacking on some appetizers, it makes for a much better izakaya than Kinkaku. I might try this approach sometime soon.