I went here on a whim because I was craving ramen, but then I saw that Kajiken serves not only ramen, but abura soba (a brothless noodle dish where the sauces sit at the bottom of the bowl and get mixed into the noodles). I'd heard about this style of dish before and had been wanting to try it, so of course I had to! I stopped in on a Monday in the middle of the afternoon, and there were already about 4-5 tables occupied, which I took as a good sign! As soon as I walked in, I was greeted with a smile and seated promptly. I ordered the Chicken Curry Abura Soba, and this was definitely a hit in my book! It smelled and looked so good that I dug right in as soon as it hit the table (so please excuse the picture lol). The curry flavor was rich and full, the noodles were perfectly chewy, and the chicken was crispy on the outside while still moist on the inside. At first, I only mixed everything together slightly and thought it was delicious. But once I REALLY mixed everything and got all of that sauce from the bottom incorporated throughout the noodles? Completely different flavor experience. So good! I also ordered the pork dumplings as an appetizer. I order pork dumplings pretty often when I go out, and whatever version of them Kanjiken is doing, I really enjoyed it. The texture was giving homemade...I don't know if they actually are, but that's what it gave! Either way, they were good. To drink, I had a bottle of white peach black tea, which was crisp, refreshing, and paired really well with the meal. Overall, I highly recommend Kajiken. In fact, I'm writing this review a few days later and seriously considering heading back there for dinner tonight. read more

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Went in on a whim, thinking this was a ramen place (like soup ramen), but found out quickly about Abura Soba. The sauce is served at the bottom of the bowl and you mix everything together. The beef with the egg yolk was very good, especially along with the spicy add-on sauce (it was spicy!). The noodles & sauce were excellent; you can order add-ons to the noodle bowls, and they come in separate dishes so you can add on yourself to create different bites, and also share. Each add-on was small and good for 1-2 people to share. Tried umeboshi (sour plum) for the first time and loved it mixed in with noodle or rice. Caution to eating by itself, it'll make you pucker up real quick. Wakame soup was comforting. They also have smaller portion rice bowls, that were plenty filling. I would recommend getting a couple add ons though, as the karrage chicken was good, but rather plain. If you like spicy, you can get it here, but you can also keep it mild. Fun dinner. Kevin was a wonderful server, answered my bunches of questions and was friendly about it. I walked in without expectations and walked out with a memorable experience and getting to try new foods. A win in my world! The inside of the restaurant is very well lit and bright. It has a bit of a high end food court, corporate feel to it. I'd go again. read more

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In a small shopping center, so no issues with parking. We didn't make a reservation and just walked in on a Tuesday evening and had no problems with getting a seat. Service was mostly attentive and quick. I ordered their Chashu Onigiri and we also ordered the Tebasaki and the Kaki Fry. Both were fried great and the batter was crispy and not oily. Definitely recommend both. The Onigiri was okay, the seaweed was just a little stale and the onigiri fell apart pretty quickly. Following reviews, I opted for the Sukiyaki Abura Soba with added toppings of the soft boiled egg, chilly oil and Chashu. It was warm and flavorful and delicious. Overall, great food, a nice and quiet place to catch up. Would definitely recommend. read more

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I ordered the teriyaki tori and my boyfriend ordered the sukiyaki, both dishes tasted great. Unfortunately, the selection of drinks was extremely limited. Customer service was good. My favorite part about this location is that it's attached to a kyo matcha. read more

Kajiken - Teriyaki Tori - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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A cute Japanese spot near Annandale/alexandria/franconia, located in the same shopping center as tropical smoothie and aldi. They're known for soupless ramen but it comes with sauce at the bottom of the bowl, so make sure you mix it well. They also have extra hot sauce, vinegar and other toppings at the table to change up the flavor profile. Appetizers: Gyoza: hand made, small but delicately thin skin, good 9/10 Chicken kaarage: small portions, deep fried, very hot (temperature wise) good orange dipping sauce 7/10 They have a lot of soupless noodles, there's two with stars that are customer favorites. I ordered the bottom row favorite, it's original and the other one. It was a flavor I've never tried before. I didn't think it was too special. It had pork, minced meat, poached egg, bamboo shoots, seaweed. The ramen was perfect consistency of chewiness and stretchiness. I think I'd like it better with different sauce. Service was ok, after we paid the check, it felt like she didn't come back to the table to give us dessert menus or boxes for our food. We had to flag her down multiple times. This location is attached to the Kyo matcha, and their dessert menu included cakes from that spot, but any other menu items had to be purchased next door. read more

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A solid ramen spot on the border between Annandale and Alexandria. Good portion sizes, especially for the seaweed salad and octopus balls. I understand the comments about service, but our experience was solid. Friday night @ 6pm with almost every table filled, and only 1 person managing the tables. Waiter was pleasant, happy to answer questions, even though we are pretty wise to ramen joints. Sadly they were out of the black garlic chili oil. Next time! The spicy tonkotsu is solid. Would always like more of the minced pork, but I added an extra half egg, so I was more than satisfied. Highly recommend. read more

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Good sukiyaki ramen! I've had it before in Rockville a few times and I really loved it back then; not sure if it's maybe different at this location. Or perhaps I'm so used to it by now that I found it good but nothing jaw-dropping at this point. read more

Kajiken - Sukiyaki - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

Personally did not try the ramen here, but I did get the Sakuyaki Don rice bowl, which has beef that is marinated to perfection, scallions, and rice. I added the edamame to the bowl as well with the spicy chili oil, which wasn't spicy, but added good flavor. Definitely need to come back and try the ramen next time around, since I've heard a lot of good things about it and how many places around here truly have soba noodles to serve at their restaurant , even if considered a Japanese restaurant. read more

Kajiken - Sakuyaki Don with endamame - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

Unique ramen experience. Good. Albeit a little salty as I think all Japanese ramen places are but noodles are so bouncy chewy, runny egg makes it super rich. My friend said dry ramen is the way to go- it's not dry dry because there's a little broth and runny egg to mix (they recommend mixing for 20 seconds). I had the homura aburasoba- it def had a kick. A little too salty. Loved the noodles and flavor though. I tried my friends's original aburasoba and suyaki- both good but I needed spice with both. Service was mid but worth trying! It's not my specific preference so I probably won't be back. read more

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Delicious Ramen! The food here was great and definitely fulfilled my ramen craving. I was a tad upset that the dish only came with two thin slices of pork, it should be a little more IMO. The restaurant ambiance was modern and chill. The major upset was service. It took us a while to get our orders in, assuming because there was only one server. read more

Kajiken - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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The location was a bit smaller than the other one I've been to but we got seated super fast. I ordered the Homura, which had a kick of spice to and super flavorful. The karaage we shared was perfectly hot and crispy. Plus, you it's right next to Kyo Matcha, so we just walked over for a refreshing dessert right after. Definitely an awesome dinner combo! read more

Kajiken - Homura - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

The family and I ate here for dinner. Aburasoba may not be the popular ramen, but I may enjoy it more than broth ramen!! It's so flavorful, the noodles are so bouncy and don't get overcooked in the broth. I often don't finish ramen broth anyway bc it's quite salty (they do offer ramen broth bowls if that's what your feeling). All that to say, the aburasoba that they do here is really good. Some of the apps are on the smaller side, but the salad and the tebasaki are worth it for sharing. You can order with the staff or with the kiosk. Service is good and it's a casual dining area inside. read more

I've been on a hunt for ramen around my area these past couple of months now and Kajiken was up on the testing block. I was aware of this spot for a while now after the old Foxfire grill closed but taking the time out to try it has been tricky. Well, what's a better time than 30 minutes before closing time to just pop in and grab a couple of bowls then! It's cold, it's night, it's ramen time! We stumble in grab some shoyu, miso, seaweek salad, takoyaki, karaage, and tiramisu at the end. This place feels like a Japanese version of a Pho shop. Clean restaurant and clean bathrooms. Service was good, straigh forward, skip all the pleasantries. No Bars here but there is a connected space where you can get matcha drinks and boba but its matcha. Everything was matcha. If you're into that stuff, then that's a matcha for you. Ramens were okay. Broth was blowing my mind in flavor. I would say the depth was not too deep but this will work for a cold night. Karaage was okay. Takoyaki lacked impact in flavor also, missing the oomf! Seaweed salad was good but I'm not gonna rave about seaweed salad. We wrapped things up with the tiramisu cake. Oh boy, that was a surprise. It fell flat. The layers were overcooked and had a tough bite. I expect tiramisu to have a tender bite to it. We didn't finish that slice of cake. Well, we left full but half fulfilled. Was it worth it? Not really. If you need ramen and cup o noodles isn't cutting it, this is an option. Then again, there are options. read more

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First time having aburasoba (soupless ramen) and I was really impressed. Rather than broth, the flavor comes from a more concentrated sauce pooled at the bottom of the bowl that you mix with the noodles and all of the ingredients. The flavors and ingredients cling to the bouncy noodles well, and the dish is filling but you don't feel too stuffed or bloated like you might feel after eating ramen with broth. Highly recommend the Niku Miso aburasoba- it was delicious. read more

Kajiken - Tebasaki - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

The food here was so yummy!! We loved every dish we ordered. The staff also did a great job taking care of us and making sure we had what we needed. The restaurant was very clean as well which is hard to find these days! read more

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Kajiken is our current favorite ramen spot in NoVA. We love Kajiken's food, but bring a jacket, parka or whatever you need to brave the restaurant's A/C. Well yeah, it's true, almost all restaurants in these parts tend to get cold in the summer. We came here on a Friday evening. We were able to be seated immediately inside but noted there is plenty of outdoor seating too. Aside from the A/C my other critiques of Kajiken, which is part of a restaurant chain, were that they brought our entrees out almost immediately after our appetizers. Also, while our server was pretty good, checking up on us during our meal, he did kinda leave us hanging at end waiting for our check. If not for these things, Kajiken would have been five stars. The ambience was lively and appealing. They were playing dance trance music at the perfect volume. We started out with the fried oysters, which came with a little dish of egg salad. The oysters were fresh and they were prepared perfectly. We also began with a sunomono and a house salad. Both salads were outstanding, we loved them. The sunomono was pieces of octopus and slices of cucumber in an excellent light vinegar dressing. The house salad was spinach, romaine lettuce, red lettuce, mushroom slices, tomato, avocado, bits of fried onion with a delicious vinegarette. For entrees, we ordered the tonkatsu shoyu ramen and the spicy tonkatsu ramen. Both were very good. The broth flavor in the tonkatsu shoyu ramen improved as I ate it, pulling in flavor from the other ingredients. Of note: the pork in the ramens was grilled perfectly and super tasty. We liked that there was a canister on the table we used for topping our ramens and salads with sesame seeds. read more

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Came in strictly for gyoza take-away. Immediately greeted at the door. Love the chill music and ambiance. The art work is beautiful. I asked if they made the gyoza in-house and was told yes. Six come with an order. The pork filling is moist and flavorful and the wrapper is delicate. Taking home and eating them with my homemade wonton soup. read more

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I went on an adventure today with my friend. I just love ramen in general. My friend suggested this restaurant and I was excited because we are both foodie. This location has plenty of parking in a shopping center. We arrived and was seated immediately. The place was nice but cold inside. We looked at the menu and I decided to order an appetizer. I ordered the Gyoza which were really good . After the appetizers we ordered our ramens! I got the tonkatsu ramen and my friend prefer shoyu ramen. I was disappointed in my ramen because the broth tasted watered down which was a bummer. It was okay but I had other better ramen at Jinya or Kimen. read more

I was skeptical about soupless ramen, but ended up really loving it! My boyfriend and I came here for dinner and got the fried chicken, seaweed salad, and octopus salad for apps. For our mains we got the roasted beef and niku miso dishes, they were unbelievably delicious and the sauces coated the noodles perfectly. The beef in my roasted beef dish was also super tender. The restaurant is somewhat small, so expect a wait during busy times. Service was friendly and pretty fast! read more

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We tried the Niku Miso and the Homura ramen, and both were on the salty side and nothing particularly special. The noodles were al dente, but the portions felt small for the price. For dessert, we ordered the black sesame tiramisu, but it didn't taste like black sesame at all--it was very sweet, topped with cocoa powder, and ended up tasting more like an Oreo mousse. The shop itself is small but has a charming wabi-sabi interior and is connected to a matcha shop, which gives it a cozy vibe. Overall, a cute spot, but the ramen and dessert didn't quite deliver. read more

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Had the Spicy tonkatsu with extra chashu and it was great. Servers are always nice and patient. Music and atmosphere is very chill and not too loud even with larger parties around. Never have any co plants. read more

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I'm so glad I stumbled upon Kajiken! I was nervous as most of the menu isn't ramen, but rather Abura Soba, which is a soupless ramen. I did still end up getting the spicy tonkotsu which was delicious! Especially with an extra ichimi added to it. My husband and friends all got abura soba and they loved it! I will need to go back and try that. But the food was honestly a 10/10 from everyone in the group! read more

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I've been looking for a new ramen place for a while and this place hit the mark. The spicy edamame was delicious and gyoza was on point. The service was excellent and it's a really cool little spot with fun lighting and some outdoor seating. My friend was excited to be able to order noodles (soba) with Japanese curry which isn't on a lot of menus around here. My go to is the spicy tonkotsu ramen and it was delicious but I do think next time I will ask for it to be extra spicy or to have the chili oil at the table because that was the only thing that was missing. But really overall a good experience after a lot of disappointing places in the area and I would def recommend it. read more

Kajiken - Spicy tonkotsu ramen - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

Really disappointed in this considering all the good reviews. Granted, I did order delivery but it was a huge letdown. I ordered the Tonkatsu ramen. The egg was cold. The pork was dry and the worst part? The broth had zero flavor. Worst ramen in falls church I've had thus far. I also felt the portion was small. read more

Kajiken - Tonkatsu Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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Tasty shoyu tonkotsu but it's not mind-blowing. The noodles are great, the broth is good but I didn't love it. Probably because they ran out of black garlic oil and they only had a garlic grinder on the table (which didn't really work all that well). The chicken ramen aburasoba was superior I thought. Next time I will stick to the dry noodles. read more

I've been here twice now since this location has been open and UGH it's just SO GOOD. My favorites to order are the fried oysters, takoyaki, and the sukiyaki! The lychee oolong tea drink is also so good and not too sweet! read more

Kajiken - Sukiyaki - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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Should you start craving for chewy ramen in a friendly space, this is it. Flavor selection is vast, appetizers come in quick. We arrived earlier than the usual rush, so service was spot on. My friends went back the following day to try to the other dishes. Yes, their noodles were good made fresh and definitely not the box type. Try it, and you will like it. Five stars for me and will I come back for sure. read more

Kajiken - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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Five stars since I don't have to drive all the way to Rockville anymore for dry ramen since this gem came to town. I can get Matcha on the other side but still enjoy all things ramen at the restaurant. Dry ramen sounded weird at first but it's so delicious. Be aware though: it is pretty heavy. You can't go wrong with anything here but I do think it's better to get the good stuff they're known for. Came back again in the same month after trying this out for the first time - definitely wasn't my last. read more

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This was my first time trying aburasoba! I got the roasted beef one, and my boyfriend got the niku miso. We also shared the tebasaki and the gesokara. From pictures I wasn't sure how to feel about the roast beef, but it was actually super tender and flavorful. The mixed up noodles were delicious, especially after adding on goodies from our spice rack (garlic bits, vinegar, and chili oil). The bowl itself was a good amount of food for me, but maybe not enough food to justify the $18 price point. I would still get it again for sure! My boyfriend's Niku miso was also yummy but probably not as flavorful as my roast beef one. It had a nuttier flavor to it, but the miso wasn't as strong as we wished. Still delicious!! Highly recommend the gesokara and the special tebasaki! Gesokara was perfectly cooked and the tebasaki had such a unique sauce on it that was delicious. We realized that their desserts are from the Kyo matcha next door, so we decided to just go over there to share some post-dinner treats. (They charge the same $). Service was friendly and food came out super quick. And ambiance was nice! A pretty big restaurant - casual but vibey. Also recommend downloading their app and using your QR code to get points (mention to server BEFORE paying). Overall, this will be our new spot whenever we crave aburasoba. read more

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My friend and I wanted to check out this new restaurant chain that opened up in Alexandria. They are known for their Abura Soba - a broth-less ramen with a rich sauce and toppings. I was a bit skeptical at first, but the noodles were so flavorful! The yolk from the poached egg and the sauce made for a delicious and creamy mouthful. Noodles were slightly The takoyaki was standard, but I would definitely come back for this unique ramen! Apps: Takoyaki Entrees: Niku Miso Abura Soba read more

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This Kajiken location opened sometime late last year, and after enjoying the broth-less ramen at their Rockville location, I wanted to try the food here again! My friend and I decided to eat dinner here earlier today. The restaurant wasn't too busy, so we were seated at a booth upon arrival. Service was fast, and we got our food shortly after ordering. TONKOTSU - 16 Since it's so cold outside, I was in the mood for something soupy, so I ordered the Tonkotsu ramen. The ramen comes with two pieces of chashu, half a ramen egg, bamboo shoots, nori, and a generous amount of chopped scallions. The broth was creamy and flavorful without being overly salty, making it easy to sip on. However, the bamboo shoots had a weird aftertaste that I didn't like. The chashu could have been charred a bit more for a smokier flavor, but it was still pretty tasty. The egg was fine, but not remarkable. They use straight ramen noodles here, but it was thicker than what I'm used to. While the ramen wasn't exceptional, I had no trouble devouring the whole bowl. Overall, the tonkotsu ramen at Kajiken is better than most in the DMV. However, I'd recommend trying their broth-less options, which is what they're known for, and in my experience, they're better than their broth options. read more

Kajiken - Tonkotsu - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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The karaage as usual was pretty good--crispy and juicy chicken. The sunomono was also a refreshing and well-prepared appetizer, but is a skip for me since it is extremely easy to make at home. I would always recommend getting the abura soba since that is what they are known for. The Tonkatsu is good, but nothing particularly outstanding. It had a good amount of spicy in the broth--not very spicy at all but just slightly. The abura soba with the fatty beef made was delicious--the noodles are firm and chewy. Get extra meat--it's worth it. Doctor it up with some of the sesame seeds and garlic and a bit of chili oil for a delicious hefty carb loading meal. Super nice staff and we got our food really quickly. It wasn't too busy on a Saturday evening and plenty of parking. Nice clean interior, and clean bathrooms. read more

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Nice and great service, excellent place . Definitely coming back here . Friendly people read more

Kajiken - Tonkatsu Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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Okay so as someone who's had authentic Japanese noodles, I am usually very skeptical but I decided to give this place a chance. The inside is well decorated and the staff was friendly. We decided to order the kaki fry and OH MY GOSH it was so juicy and delicious ! The price is a little higher for the quantity you get but it was so good. We also got the ikageso which was perfectly buttered as well and so yummy! We wanted to try the ramen and aburasoba so we got one of each. Honestly the ramen was not bad and quite good compared to a lot of places in NOVA. We also got the miso meat aburasoba and it was really good. My fiance was obsessed! read more

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Kajiken offers a solid bowl of Aburasoba, a dry noodle dish that focuses on rich, umami-packed flavors without broth. I tried the Aburasoba Roast Beef Noodles, and it didn't disappoint. The roast beef was tender, and the noodles had a satisfyingly chewy texture. The dish was flavorful on its own, but the true highlight was customizing it with condiments. Adding vinegar, garlic, chili oil, pepper, and sesame seeds to taste elevated the dish, bringing out layers of flavor. Definitely want to come back and try other dishes but overall, a good spot for anyone curious about Aburasoba. A cool thing is it's connect to Kyo Matcha so if you're in the mood for desserts afterwards. read more

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Food was amazingggg. My friend and I loved both of our dishes!! I haven't been the biggest fan of ramen in the past, but I got the sukiyaki and it was delicious. Services was great and the server made sure to refill our waters whenever our glasses got empty. Hope to come back soon :) read more

Kajiken - Sukiyaki - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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Never heard of soupless ramen until I found out about this place. I was certainly happy to find this as I enjoyed the food here. I ordered the roasted beef and was pleasantly surprised by how the combination when mixed together tasted. There were several spices provided on the table that you can add to your dish. My wife ordered the spicy ramen that wasn't that spicy. Appetizers were also good. Bonus is there's a dessert place that share the area so you can get great desserts afterwards. read more

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Came during the soft opening! Very very cute interior for the ramen place. The menu is a front and back and very easy to read. Lots of great pictures to see what you may order. The squid salad was surprisingly refreshing. I added more vinegar and sesame seeds and that really made the salad taste delicious. I don't think I'd get it again though I'd like to try some other dishes. I got the spicy miso ramen and that was amazing! I tasted the broth first and it was rich and sweet. I added bamboo shoots and I think I could eat three bowls. Soooo good. It's great that they also opened with kyo matcha right next door which is a good business move lol. Who wouldn't want ice cream or matcha after an amazing meal? The only thing I'd mention is if it's busy, the doorway area between the two stores gets in the way and could make for some traffic jams when it's busy. read more

Kajiken - Squid salad - Ramen Near Me - Alexandria, Virginia

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My wife and I decided to have lunch at Kajiken at the spur of the moment. Kajiken is a Japanese term for housekeeper. We both enjoy Japanese food and were interested in trying the house specialty, Abura Soba. We were both pleasantly surprised by the depth of flavor in those noodles! I had the charsu pork and she had chicken. We both ordered edamame beans and cucumber slices to augment the noodles. Abura Soba is tasty and filling. The service was pleasant and efficient and ambiance was modern Japanese diner in look and feel. Kajiken is now an international chain. Their menu is not extensive, but what they do offer is prepared efficiently and precisely. read more

Very yummy ramen selections. Quick pleasant servers. Accurate ordering process. Nice atmosphere. Definitely a plus to have matcha ice cream stand right next to it. read more