The Bowl Ramen & Izakaya

I'm delighted to have dined at The Bowl Ramen & Izakaya. It's my second time here and it's great!! The waitress, Kelly was so attentive and went above and beyond. We came here for a birthday and had a great time. Music was a vibe. But let's get to the point! The food was delicious. The chashu burger was so good! It melts perfectly and was a hit among our table!!As for the rest of the fantastic food.. check out the pictures attached. 10 out of 10. I can't wait to come back!

Let me start by saying that I was super excited for this place to open so we finally had some good ramen on this side of town. Unfortunately this is far from that... I'll start with my most recent visit. The amount of grease/oil turned my stomach just looking at it. I scooped off as much as I possibly could before I ate but apparently it wasn't enough because I still felt sick all day. It was a literal pool of grease. On top of that, the broth is just ok. It really lacks the rich flavor that all my favorite spots have. This tasted like oily dishwater to be honest. The service was pretty good, and the price of the lunch special was pretty good, but the food was basically inedible. My gf and I came once before the week they opened. We understood that they were brand new and maybe needed some time to settle into their rhythm etc. but the first time was just as bad unfortunately. The flavor was incredibly lacking compared to some of our favorites like Harumama, Ryoma, Menya etc. On top of that, the profes here were $5 more per bowl than the places mentioned (to The Bowl's credit, they took some feedback from the community and lowered their prices $2-$3 per bowl so now their bowls are only $2-$3 more than the other spots). Really bummed because I love ramen and would be a serious regular here if the food was better.Also I'd like to add this:Any bar/restaurant that gives you the iPad to tip and the options are 20% 25% or 30% instantly turns me off. Seems like they're trying to trick people to pay an extra high tip. Probably get lots of people buzzed that are accidentally pushing 25% tip. Kind of sketchy if I'm being honest.

I should have trusted the low star ratings as obviously all the 5* ratings were written by the staff. The food is simply not good. Period. Appetizers and ramen all tasted like packaged stuff and served luke warm and water glass had a greasy film all over it...The decor is creepy with at least a hundred cats looking at you :|Ramen noodles are a little undercooked and the broth is clear, but super oily and yet they claimed no MSG is used. I had to drink a lot of water on my way home to wash it down. Go figure.* I understand that the owner is new to business but they need to learn to take negative feedback from customers and not just say that every negative dining experience is hate or fake. There is no need to spend money to eat at a place just to hate it lol

Happy hour was bomb !!! $2.50 Sapporo? Count me in!!! The veggie gyozas were quite flavorful, very gingery. Service was great and it's so nice inside!!

This place is awesome. Love the blue resin on the bars. The bowl smashie burger was phenomenal (better than Hodads), cucumbers were great if you like spicy pickled things. Great tap list. $5 drafts on happy hour (12-6 erryday and Wednesday all day) and $2 off burgers, apps, ramen and sake. Same owners as the joint I think so no wonder it's bomb will be back to try more.

I have been wanting to try this place since it opened, and finally had the chance today. Unfortunately, it was just ok for me. Ordered The Bowl of ramen - with Yokohama style broth, pork chashu, and sprouts. Broth was a little thin, and didn't love the flavor. Generous portion; plenty for the two of us. But the pork chashu was about 99% fat, with just the tiniest sliver of pork. They do have a good happy hour every day 12-6 - got a $2.50 Sopporo and $4 small sake. Place was really LOUD, and ambiance and vibe felt kind of sterile. On plus side, bathrooms are very nice, and the vibe on quaint back patio was cozy and peaceful - would be great if they could replicate that feel in the main dining room!

Not a very intuitive name, but The Bowl is a new ramen shop and izakaya that has opened in the former space of an OB sushi restaurant. The owners are the same as The Joint which is at the end of the block but on the opposite corner. What struck me when you walked in was the inordinate number of maneki-neko (beckoning cats) that adorned the interior. Not only were these Japanese figurines lined up at the bar, but they were also present on a giant plaque along the right wall and above the bar near the ceiling. Their presence is supposed to bring good luck to the owner, however this felt like overkill as there were more than 100 of these cat statues with a raised left arm.The menu featured five styles of ramen and four rice bowls on the first page. The other page listed the cold and hot izakaya items and desserts. The bone broth for the ramen contained pork and chicken which was cooked in-house for 16 hours. I chose the Chicken Gyoza to start my meal. The pan fried dumplings came as six pieces filled with minced chicken and veggies. A spicy dipping sauce was provided in the middle of the dish. They had a decent crunch to them.The House Ramen with extra noodles was my entree choice. Pork chashu, aji tama (1/2 soft-boiled marinated egg), menma (marinated bamboo shoots), bean sprouts, and negi (green onions) were the other components in the bowl. Despite the long preparation time, the broth lacked umami and needed more seasoning. The four chashu pieces were chewy and not as tender as I have eaten elsewhere.Even without the additional noodles, the price was expensive. Three of the five ramen (including the veggie version) cost more than $20 which is above the local market standard. Maybe the price was higher because there is less competition in OB. The service was decent although I felt that more attention was paid if you sat at the bar versus one of the tables. I moved over to an empty bar stool after initially picking one of the four-top tables.

I would say this was an average meal. My daughter had the Ramen which was good and I had the poke bowl with salmon and the wasabi kale Caesar. The poke bowl used plain white rice and not sushi rice and the fish was a bit bland. The kale Caesar had decent flavor but the kale was too tough. Anyone who eats raw kaleKnows it needs to be massaged to make it palatable.

Really glad to have a place like this on Newport now. The ramen was solid and the karaage was excellent. Everyone was nice and the restaurant was very clean. Bowls were a little on the pricier side but I would still be happy to go again sometime. The happy hour deals looks solid and their beer and sake menu were very much above average in terms of craft beers

I had their house bowl. Broth tasted like french onion soup in a way, but if it had real fatty bacon cooked in the crock, but retaining much of the grease. I wish I had known they had some in house made hot sauces. That would have really spruced it up some. I was so hungry I didn't care to ask. Their chicken karaage is OK. Not exactly what I was expecting (I was expecting a whole cutlet in the bowl). Wish I took a photo - it was basically a 4 piece nugget meal from chik fil a for six bucks. Still good Chicken though. The aesthetic of the spot is pretty clean. Really nice bar tables. Well decorated with classic Ob vibes mixed with some Japanese feng shui. Good fusion. Overall I would say this place has a lot of potential but man that house bowl was just too greasy and bland - esp if they're asking for $20. A little hot sauce next time would be awesome or maybe a spicy chicken karaage bowl. Side note: beer selection is pretty good. Can't complain there.