Menya-Gumi

This restaurant has such an amazing vibe and feel. If you want to go to a restaurant and feel like they actually care about you check this spot out. I happened to come in when they were having a special Japanese Whiskey tasting event which was fantastic, I learned a lot about the products and could tell both the rep for the whiskey and the owner of the restaurant were quite passionate about the products. I have been wanting to go here for a while and glad I finally stopped by. I can’t wait to go back more often now and I can’t wait for some more tasting events! If you plan on stopping by try the carrot cake! It will blow your mind

Coming from a half-Japanese person who's been to Japan many times, this is really good! Tasted authentic and was very yummy. All the toppings were perfectly cooked and tasted wonderful, the meat was especially tender and fatty, and the egg was perfectly jammy and golden orange in the middle with great flavor. Noodles were a bit firm, but I actually like it that way and they had perfect texture and taste too. The only thing is that the shoyu broth was a bit lacking and could use more depth in my opinion, but still plenty satisfying. Not too oily/greasy too. I found the portions and $16 price to be fair too. I would definitely recommend this place to someone who wants to try good Japanese ramen! I also got $8 hot sake which was so perfectly smooth and hot during my meal. Perfect for a cold & rainy day. The sake cups and chopsticks were nice quality too. My husband got the $24 duck ramen (limited time special, didn't get a picture) which I think was a bit overpriced. But it was quality, and we both liked it. The toppings and flavors were fantastic there too. I just prefer the classics due to my nostalgia. The service was fantastic though! Got our waters right away, the order, the bill, etc. all at the perfect time with good attention from the waitress. The ramen came very fast too actually. I just think all the random passive-aggressive signs in the restaurant are off-putting. Like "staring at the kitchen won't make your food come out faster!" or "do NOT sit in these chairs!" ... Okay? Then why are the chairs there? Just weird. Makes the customers feel like they're a nuisance when that kind of hostile stuff is everywhere. Otherwise, the atmosphere & setting is nice.

The food was NOT worth what i paid. The noodles tasted from scratch and that’s the only part i liked about everything i ate. No way did i pay that much for some mediocre food. We got the truffle dumplings and two different kinds of ramen. The broth did not have good flavor. Tons of umami but like not the good kind. Pretty bland. Same thjng w the dumplings. I would’ve never known they were supposed to be truffle if you didn’t tell me. I was so excited but so disappointed

I stopped by to try their ramen and ended up liking the Tebasaki wings appetizer more. The Tebasaki chicken wings were fried just right and had a tasty sweet and savory crunchy coating. The ramen was good too. The chintan shio broth was clean and light with a Hong Kong-influenced flavor. The marinated egg is a nice bonus. Based on the quality of what I had here, I’ll definitely check out their dim sum menu next time.

Nice place. Delicious food. Great service. Small cozy place. Reasonably priced. Accepts credit cards.

Visiting from out of state, the Tonkatsu was super yummy! The Chicken soup dumplings were yummy as well as the Ramen! The Taro boba tea was my favorite I ordered 2! We enjoyed & it seemed super authentic. Definitely would recommend and come back!

This was a random find for an out-of-town couple, and it turned out to be a wonderful discovery. The atmosphere was warm, and the server welcomed us to seat ourselves before quickly providing menus, water, and taking the first part of our order. We sampled a few items from their Dim Sum menu, including the Golden Black Phoenix Bun (Egg Custard), Spicy Pork Soup Dumpling, Philly Cheesesteak Steamed Bun, and Garlic Pork Ribs. Each dish was delicious, but the standout was undoubtedly the Spicy Pork Soup Dumplings. Spicy Pork Soup Dumpling: These dumplings were a perfect balance of spice and savory flavors, with tender, well-seasoned pork nestled inside a delicate wrapper. The flavorful broth inside was bold and warming, making each bite a comforting delight. Golden Black Phoenix Bun (Egg Custard): A close second, this dish featured soft, black buns filled with a luxuriously golden smooth and subtly sweet egg custard that melted in your mouth. Philly Cheesesteak Steamed Bun: A unique fusion offering, these buns captured the essence of a classic Philly cheesesteak with tender, flavorful beef and a hint of melted cheese, all wrapped in a pillowy steamed bun. For our main courses, we tried the Tori Paitan and the Spicy Braised Beef Tossed Wonton Noodle. The Spicy Pork Soup Dumplings stole the show, followed closely by the Golden Black Phoenix Bun and the Philly Cheesesteak Steamed Bun. Overall, this was a fantastic dining experience, and we highly recommend giving these dishes a try and we will definitely be back.

I visited the spot on a Friday afternoon, after driving in from New York. First of all, the restaurant is WAY too loud. The music is turned up almost to the volume of a nightclub. And the music is not great: overly sentimental K-pop, and Top 40 dance and hip hop. If you are older than 24 this will feel like a aural assault. The premises are clean and the server was efficient at doing her job, but the meal itself was disappointing. The ramen tasted like it came out of supermarket package. And perhaps to my benefit, the bowl was significantly smaller than what I typically get a restaurant that serves ramen. Still, I felt cheated by the small size. More, there was only ONE piece of pork belly, just ONE in the bowl, which stuck me as cheap and mean-spirited for a dish that costs $16. The broth was fine, but it didn't taste like it had been brewing for more than a few hours. The mushrooms in the dish were fine, the seaweed a bit stale, the marinated egg good. But overall I would NOT go back to this restaurant. There has to be better ramen in New Haven, and if there isn't you all need to stage a protest, stat.

Superb ramen in a casual dining spot. I’m writing this as someone who stayed in Japan and hunted for good ramen while I was there. Had their Tori Paitan Ramen; rich bone broth with actual marinated bamboo shoots and melt in your mouth pork belly. The egg was perfect too. A perfect bowl of ramen. Super underrated and super value for money. Work of an artisan for sure.

Broth: 4.5/5 Noodles: 4/5 Toppings: 4.75/5 Portion size: 5/5 Appetizers: 4.5/5 I was excited to try Menya Gumi during a day trip to New Haven. Overall I enjoyed what I had and would probably come back if I found myself in the area again. We went on a Saturday for dinner ~6:20pm. There was no wait but the restaurant did slowly fill up as the dinner hour continued. As others have said, the service is a bit non-standard when you first walk in (nobody greets you; they just tell you to sit wherever). They also have a rather aggressive sign in all caps that says that looking at the kitchen won't make the food come out faster -- it made me feel self-conscious about looking at the kitchen even though it was right in front of me. That being said, once we got seated the service was quick and smooth. We got two appetizers. The karaage ($10) was solid -- it had a crispy exterior and tender interior. I would have wanted slightly more flavor -- maybe some ginger/garlic flavor or some saltiness. Overall not my favorite karaage ever, but still good. The tebasaki wings ($11) were also good. These had good flavor reminiscent of Bonchon soy garlic wings. I was glad they weren't too sweet. They had a good crunchy texture and were quite large. Overall very solid ramen appetizers. I got the shoyu chintan ramen ($16). The broth is quite good -- well-balanced, not too salty, with good chicken broth flavor. The noodles were your standard packaged yellow wavy noodles. Mine were clumped up in a few places but otherwise good. The ramen had a lot of toppings -- for $16, this is pretty generous given what I'm used to. The toppings were all quite tasty. One thing I noticed was that everything was cut quite thick (or not cut) -- the bamboo was given in thick chunks, the shiitake mushrooms were cut pretty thickly, the pork belly was a thick slab, and the egg was not cut in half. As a result you get a lot of toppings, which I'm not complaining about, but I think it could've been even better if the toppings were sliced a bit. Overall I enjoyed my experience and certainly came out of it very full. Good flavors and plentiful toppings. I would come back. I definitely want to try some of their sandos next time!