In the District, homestyle Japanese cuisine is not always easy to find, but when it comes to ramen, D.C. has proven itself. Most make their noodles at home, however, a few actually get them directly from Japan. Here are the best noodle places for when you want to taste some of the best ramens in the city.
Jinya Ramen Bar
Despite being a national chain, Jinya takes its ramen seriously. Although the “flagship” of the restaurant is the Jinya №1 tonkotsu black, a traditional ramen mix of pork broth, chashu, nori, green onions, egg and garnishes, they sell a lot of variations. You should also try adding spicy ground chicken or pork. There are also plenty of other directions: the spicy chicken ramen will definitely be loved by heat seekers, and vegetarians also have a few choices to choose from. A wide list of rice and curry bowls and small plates for non-ramen outings are provided by the restaurant.
Hatoba
Hatoba , meaning “dock” in Japanese, is the Daikaya Group’s third (and newest) Sapporo-style ramen shop in DC. Dishes such as red miso with clam or spicy red miso with pork and seafood nod to the location of its Navy Yard and ship-inspired décor, including private booths and displays of artificial food that welcome visitors. A more delicate garlic shoyu and a vegan tomato curry soup do not skimp on the comforting vibes either. To complete the bowls, as always, you can load up on extra pork, vegetables, spices, and a soft egg. Sake, beer, wine, and cocktails are all available as well.
Oki Bowl
From the moment you reach the Dupont location of Oki Bowl, it is clear that this restaurant is a bit different from the usual ramen restaurant: the dining room is doused with ambient blue light and adorned with all sorts of furniture, from birdhouses to old computer components. The menu also breaks a little from the traditional mold — there’s also a spicy Tom Yum option ($12) with fried jumbo prawns, mushrooms, and bean sprouts alongside miso and kimchi ramen bowls. Pork belly, fried chicken, eggs, and vegetables are all available as add-ons (and you should probably take them when there is an opportunity to add pork belly to anything). Oki Bowl’s products are available in Wisconsin and Q Street NW in the Georgetown area, too.
Bantam King
At Bantam King, which is located in a transformed Burger King, chicken ramen is the star of the menu. The cloudy paitan stock is centered around many possible combinations of broths and flavors. The kick of the spicy miso ramen or the delicate flavors of the Chintan broth shoyu (soy) is hard to pass up on. Bowls have the option of adding things like a seasoned egg, maize, or extra meat to them. Also, it’s practically impossible to ignore the restaurant’s easily shareable fried chicken platter, which marries Chinese flavors to fiery Nashville hot chicken. It’s perfect for soaking up the quite strong Japanese drink list of Bantam King, including sake, beer, and Japanese whiskey (although the ramen does the job very solidly on its own).
Haikan
Haikan’s Sapporo-style ramen is a staple of Shaw’s hip Atlantic Plumbing building, and for good reason. It shares DNA with Daikaya, Bantam King, and Hatoba, both among Washington’s top ramen spots. The noodles are specially produced in Japan and married to the delicate Chintan stock in-house. In the narrow dining room, by the high-energy kitchen bar, or at a popular patio table, grab a table and slurp. A number of additional toppings from butter to bamboo to a seasoned “nitamago” egg can be personalized with bowls of shio, shoyu (soy), miso, or spicy shoyu soup. During the summer months, cold noodles make an appearance. Most of the ramen types are available in large and small portion sizes as an added bonus, leaving flexibility to pause for a snack or combine a bowl with other appetizers such as crab rangoon or poutine inspired by mapo tofu.
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