RESTAURANT REVIEW: ZEN RAMEN & SUSHI
There have been a lot of things going on recently and whenever this happens I take some time to myself. Typically I go to a restaurant where ever I am and sit at the bar or a table by myself to decompress. I catch up on non-work emails, listen to a podcast or don’t do anything at all and just sit in silence and do a little people watching.
Recently right before I went on vacation I needed some alone time, so I simply started walking after I got off of work one evening. For some reason sushi is my “alone time go to”, so I Googled “sushi near me” and saw a place that was 2 minutes away so I followed the map and arrived at Zen Ramen & Sushi.
There was a crowd of people outside this tiny place but I didn’t think anything of it but boy was I wrong. If you were walking with your head down you would totally miss this restaurant. There’s no awning, no chalkboard out front. The crowd of people were definitely waiting to get inside Zen ramen. One of the things I love about living in NYC is, aside from us having some of the best food in the world, no matter the location, time, day or night, you can randomly just start walking and find some really incredible restaurants.
Once I got inside, there was only one empty seat at a high top counter and a 40 minute wait for anything else. I sat upfront at the counter but looking towards the back of this linear restaurant there are high bar counter seats and small tables around it as well. After reviewing the menu, I was about to order some sushi, but I saw that this place is known for their ramen. I have this rule where when you dine out at a new restaurant you should go with the flow of the restaurant and don’t modify the dishes. Chefs spend months creating menus and dishes and sometimes modifying them to your own tastes ruins everything. (Please modify if you have allergies of course)
Here’s What I Ordered:
Tempura Rock Shrimp x Spicy Mayo
Tonkotsu Shoyu x Pork Broth, Roasted Pork Belly, Iceberg Lettuce, Kikurage, Menma Bamboo,Spinach, Arugula, Scallion, Black Garlic Oil
Plum Wine
For some reason rock shrimp is still so underrated in other cuisines but I order it every time I see them on a Japanese menu. They are smaller, rounder and plumper shrimp and are just always too good to pass up. The rock shrimp were tempura style so there was a crunch there but the spicy mayo was more of a silky texture than creamy, but in a good way. I ate all of them!
I saw these ginormous bowls of ramen on everyones table as diners were slurping noodles everywhere I looked. I knew I had made the right choice ordering ramen. When you're reading through the menu Zen has a great selection of ramen to choose from. You can even choose your type of noodle and any extra sides you prefer. I tend to keep it pretty simple when it comes to ramen so I chose the tonkotsu ramen with extra pork belly.
My ramen arrived and I was ready to see what everyone was waiting in line for. This ramen was INCREDIBLE. It was piping hot with this deeply rich pork broth that had some really great flavor that coated your entire palette. The ramen noodles were spongy when you bit into them and the charred pork belly was tender enough to stand up to this soup but sliced thick enough to chew on it's own. I've never slurped ramen so fast in my life... even if that meant burning my mouth a few times. I was committed.
After I finally picked my face up from my ramen, I exhaled and remembered that this is why I love NYC. After paying my bill and drinking the last of my plum wine, I locked Zen Ramen & Sushi in my memory. I can not wait to go back again for more ramen and let's not forget sushi as this will be my staple in the Herald Square area moving forward.
150 W 36th St,
New York, NY 10018,