6830 W. 119th St.
(913) 400-2282
KC Craft Ramen
My visits to new restaurants can go several ways, but the owners and staff are usually put on the spot because I have a lot of questions. That tends to be even more true when they say they stop taking orders a half hour before closing time and I walk in at 8:56 PM, four minutes before cutoff time. I could mention how I tend to be more inquisitive than normal when Japanese food is involved–something very near the top of my list for favorite cuisines. I will just say they were probably more anxious than I was to make sure I had a great meal and that they covered all the bases. In the end I had a great meal not because the good service made me give them extra points, but because the good service is one of the main reasons I was able to pick something excellent off the menu.
The Food
Because of my experience in Seattle I wanted to get Tonkotsu, something that is an amazing blend of flavors when done the right way. I know spicy food can also have very good flavor but in the case of this soup I thought the spice might also cover up some of the other flavors. The short version of the story is that I made the right choice. This tonkotsu was excellent.
Tonkotsu ramen magically converted into “KC Black”
The longer story, though, was where the waitress helped me. It turned out that the waitress was talking about what she liked on the menu, and she mentioned that it had a black oil garlic sauce. I asked if I could get some black oil sauce for my soup so I could give it a try. I do not know if this is something they normally do but she was happy to do it for me. It also turned out, that as far as I could tell, the black oil garlic sauce turned my soup into the KC Black, the second item on the list of ramens. While the tonkotsu was very good, my “KC Black” was the real reason for giving them a high score. I do not think I have had a ramen this good since I was in Seattle.
A further twist of the plot–KC Black is spicy while my soup was just the regular soup with black garlic oil added.
Drinks
Drinks are in a giant cooler and there is a giant selection. I got an Itoen jasmine green tea.
Overall Assessment
When I looked at the restaurant’s web site it was obvious that they know what they are doing–something that many times is not the case with Japanese food. The menu is limited and this would be the only reason I would keep looking for other excellent Asian restaurants in the area instead of coming back here. This restaurant, though, will always be on my rotation whenever I get the chance to be in the area.
Cuisine: Japanese
Cost: $$
Hours: Open Daily
Number of Visits: 1
Best Items: Tonkotsu, KC Black
| Tea: | Wide selection of bottled teas |
| MSG: | No |
| Buffet: | No |
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Tonkotsu |
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KC Black |