Futo Buta

Best ramen I've had in a long time! Edamame was perfect, mushroom gyoza was stupid good, salmon sushi was extremely fresh, beet salad with umeboshi dressing was bright and beautiful, duck buns were fantastic, and ramen was astounding! They have sake flights! With description cards for each sake! New favorite place in Charlotte!!!

Great location, right off the train station. Staff is fabulous. Good food. The restaurant itself is a bit on the smaller/crammed side. I personally enjoy that for a ramen shop, but I know it's not to everyone's likings. Ramen is tasty and flavorful with great ingredients.

The appetizers were good and the ramen was really flavorful. They have really elevated ramen. The prices are bit high compared to some places, but the quality is not too bad. The broth can be a bit fatty and the portion can be a lot for some. The toppings were good and the noodles were not too soggy and was still a bit chewy. Not as spicy as I thought it was going to be.

We ate here while visiting Charlotte. It is located in a fun area right off the rail trail that starts in Uptown Charlotte. It’s a small trendy space with limited seating and communal tables. There’s outdoor seating available in the summer & when the weather is good. Service was quick & friendly. We tried a bunch of stuff - everything was good. Our favorite was the pork belly buns. There’s a parking structure right behind the restaurant.

As an asian, the ramen was not as flavorful as it could’ve been. My cousin and I went and we both agreed. You can get better quality ramen elsewhere like Jinya. The gyoza and karaage were great though!

Good vibe - amazing Noodles. Good selection of foods and nice local beers. They’re a little expensive, but the taste makes you forget the hole in your pocket. On top of this they always have amaizing servers and cooks, plus a rotating selection of local beers —that includes sours.

This place is AMAZING! Small but the atmosphere is great. Would come here again and again. Food was bomb and the server (Daniel) was friendly and filled with knowledge of the menu. Would recommend this place to anyone. Moving to NC from Florida, this Futo Buta kills all the other Ramen places I've ever been to in Florida or North Carolina. Keep up the good work guys and gals! Will be back. -Victorious Universe

I could eat the Japanese fried chicken every day. So dang good! The ramen is pretty good too, my fav is the buta bowl because it has lots of ingredients.

I feel so grateful and honored that I was able to try this wonderful, cozy spot before they closed. The workers were always so kind and helpful. I'll truly miss the addictive Shishito peppers, the Rice Crispy Squares, and the Pecan Smoked Pork Belly in the delicious ramens. The sake was also a delicious addition to our meal. Cheers, and thank you for the fun times!

Extremely disappointed...so much so that I doubt if I'll ever return?? For years, I raved about their "Buta Bowl". Still, it took some convincing to get my hubby (not a big ramen fan) to come here with me...but I managed to do just that. First of all, just as expected, we weren't able to get 1 of the 3 regular tables (with decent chairs, with backs)...even when we arrived at 5 pm! So we sat in one of those backless chairs, with this long "communal" table in the middle of the restaurant. Did I mention how much I hate the seating arrangements in this tiny joint?!? This restaurant just does not provide a comfy dining experience AT ALL. Also, the place is way too small...and I felt claustrophobic right away. Fortunately, I DID prepare my hubby for this...and we were not surprised to be dining on these backless, high-top chairs. Then the loud, raucous overhead music...this heavy grunge rock that may appeal to some 20's and 30's...definitely not us!! Absolutely hated the music...and wanted to leave almost as soon as we arrived. We ordered Chicken Tori Karaage and Rice Crispy Squares (their version of Crunchy Spicy Tuna) as appetizers...then the Buta Bowls, with all the seasonings on the side. First of all, the spacing of the food delivery was ridiculous. They basically brought out the noodles within ONE minute of the appetizers...which made no sense! It was as if they just wanted us to drink down our foods and leave real quick. Also, it was almost a dead giveaway just how quickly the foods came out. There's no way they cooked up the Tori Karaage that quick. I'm betting that they simply microwaved what they had the night before..it didn't taste as freshly made as before either. Anyway, this ridiculous food delivery made it almost impossible for us to enjoy the appetizers...as we had to cram them down to make room for our ramen bowls. OMG?!? I remember thinking how good the Karaage was in the past, but not that much this time around. Again, am thinking it might be due to the fact that it wasn't as fresh this time around. Then the Rice Crispy Squares were just not that great either. Interesting, down-home presentation (but actually not a very good one), but basically, the rice wasn't as crispy as it should have been....and the raw tuna had a oily, gross texture. Made me not wanna eat tuna again. So sadly, we didn't like either of their appetizers. Then the Buta Bowls...the reasons we were here. Surprisingly, they were hugely disappointing! Long time ago, I remember this being THE best ramen I've had in Charlotte. Well, no more! They definitely changed things up...for the worse. First of all, they basically left out the ground pork...and if they did, it was literally 1-2 drop's worth. Basically robbing me of one of my fave ingredients in the Buta Bowl. I had half a mind to send it back. Seriously, why wasn't this ingredient included in this 19-dollar ramen bowl?!? Instead of being generous with the ingredients, they doubled up on the noodles instead. I also regretted having them bring the ramen bowls out, unseasoned. This actually happened because when I asked the waitress to make it medium/mildly spicy, she suggested bringing the sauces on the side. The ramen looked quite unappetizing as they were brought out from the get-go...since unseasoned, with no color in them. Of course, it looked and tasted better once we added some sauce...but the thing is, it was a bit of a pain mixing all these sauces in...to get that just-right flavor. I REALLY regretted buying into our waitress' suggestion, to just bring the sauces on the side. Overall, we did not enjoy the awkward, claustrophobic dining experience, the loud, raucous music, and even bad ramen (with missing ingredients!). Shockingly bad all around. With so many nicer, comfortable ramen joints in town to choose from, THE only reason I would come here is if they had stellar ramen. Well, I don't feel their ramen is that good anymore. Just not the same as I remembered it. Sorry...but I can't do better than 1 star this, and possibly the last time. After all, it was an extremely uncomfortable dining experience (both seating and music/ambiance), bad ramen, with missing ingredients, and even a bad suggestion by our rather meak waitress. We also had a hard time understanding her, as she basically whispered the whole time...while the blaring overhead music was drowning everything/everyone out! The dining experience was just a total mess...a ONE-star experience for sure.

Nice ambiance Excellent music knowledgeable staff Mouthwatering ramen This restaurant checks all the boxes. I popped in for lunch and had the special which was a brisket ramen. It was perfect- great flavor, lots of food and I enjoyed the ambiance. Great spot for noodles on a brisk day in Charlotte.

This place was once listed on Charlotte's Top 50 restaurants and I have NO IDEA why. Lunch was ok but I likely wouldn't go back - Unisex restroom, cannot pay cash, uncomfortable chairs without any backs ! Chop stick wreaths were cute. Restaurant seating is horrible. Only a couple of normal tables. All others are high top tables and none of the chairs have any backs. UNISEX restroom, so hopefully you don't need to go while you are there. They also don"t take cash. 18% gratuity is automatically added to the bill. No problem with the 18%, but THEN they also ask for an ADDITIONAL TIP on top of that, which is quite cheeky of them. You have to hit "no tip" but you already tipped !!! Playing with emotions there to guilt you into adding something IMO. Then their card machine starts a survey. Enough already. Geez. Food was just ok IMO. Decent but not great. Neither one of us liked the gyoza. It just tasted like a sausage ball rolled into dough. The sauce was not good that it came with. We got the Rice Krispy cakes with spicy tuna. It was good. But the sauce it came with was meh. I wanted to order the brussel sprouts but they said they were out. I got the Fire and Ice (salmon ramen with slightly spicy broth), friend got the Chizu (chicken broth with pecorino cheese and whipped pesto). Both were ok, not great. I asked to tap into their wi-fi, but our waiter said the wi-fi (3 links) are only for the office area. (?) Parking and location is confusing. I followed the tips someone left on Yelp. Thankfully I had that handy. Parking is free in the garage for 3 hours. So many better places.... not worth the discomfort and all the down sides of going here.

This is an exceptional place. Best ramen in Charlotte that I've tried by far. They have great cocktails with Japanese liquors. Good ramen. Heft buns. The place it self is cozy but elegant. Good chill music at a conversational volume. And anime on mute in one of the screens. Really nice!

Made a stop at Futo Buta after a recommendation from one of my friends while I was in town and had a great time! When I arrived there around 5ish on a Saturday and it was pretty busy already. I snagged a chair at the bar top. It was a bit busy with everyone who worked there, but was still nice! I got the sake flight to start and it was great! Each of them were different, but good. Next, I got the kampachi seasonal app and it was good (but would probably try something different next time) After that, I got the tonkatsu with the spices, kimchi juice and ground pork on the side. The broth was good, feeling a bit standard - however the egg was a really nice touch as well as the meat being great! I would definitely stop by again next time I'm in town, but would probably try something new!

With the 1000+ reviews and 4.1 overall star rating, I decided to come and try their ramen. We were seated after they cleaned up the table, as we requested indoor seats. The ambiance is very early japan rock vibes, including the bathroom. We placed our orders moments later and waited quite some time to receive our orders. We ordered the miso ramen, tonkatsu ramen and the brussel sprouts. The brussel sprouts were pretty good, it had a slight tangy taste from their sauce. Neither of the ramen tasted good. The broths were both underwhelming and felt they weren't cooked for long enough, pretty much tasted like water with seasoning that's been boiled for maybe 10 minutes. The noodles itself was okay, but everything else was nowhere near good. Perhaps being that New York has far too many options and much closer to authentic ramen, this restaurant is far below standards when compared.

Everyone thinks of ramen first when you say Futo, but I'm here for their sushi. The kampachi special was delicious and fresh. The salmon nigiri is also really nicely done.

Checked out this place with some friends on a Friday night. They were busy but able to accommodate us with about a 30 min wait. Our server was awesome and super friendly. We ordered a bunch of apps and drinks to start. We had the fried chicken which was super crispy on the outside but nice and juicy on the inside, it came with a great sauce and the spices in the batter were amazing, I'm not usually into fried chicken but this was good. We also got some veggie pot stickers, which were solid, and some Duck Buns which were just amazing. The bun was soft, the duck was flavorful and the pickled carrots and greens made it perfect. We also got the rice crispy squares which I neglected to take a picture of but was truly amazing. My wife and I drank some sake, but we were overwhelmed with choices, so we asked for 2 separate flights for both of us to share. That all came with description cards, which was very helpful and enjoyable. I got the Tonkotsu for my main dish and the broth was just delightful, delicious pork, the egg was perfectly just runny and melted into the bowl. This is great ramen. Great food, great service. I'm going back when I want Ramen in Charlotte.

I'm not sure what the 'rave' is about. I guess Charloteeans are just discovering Ramen and other Asian dishes. Don't get me wrong the food here is good but it's not 4/5 star worthy compared to what I've had in DC, Boston, Atlanta etc. The BIG question here is access. The address is the same as for an adjacent apartment building on E Bland St. The restaurant is on the OPPOSITE end of the building from where you enter. You MUST know that as soon as you enter you MUST turn left, otherwise you'll be going into the parking garage for the apartments. IF you turn left, there will be adequate parking for the restaurant though there are NO signs that indicated Futo Buta, they say 'retail/restaurant' access. You exit the far end of the building and turn right toward the Lynx line tracks and you'll see it on the corner. They DON'T take reservations. There is seating inside and out. MOST of the inside seating is at community tables. The outside patio is covered. If you are there in the early evening you'll get to see the droves of evening joggers as the come down the sidewalk adjacent to the Lynx line. Ben invited me to see a play at Belk Theater so we were dressed appropriately. Most of the people eating here looked like they just got done with their evening jog or grabbed their closest athleisure gear for a dining experience here. We shared the Tori Kara Age which is essentially fried chicken. It came out cold which was disappointing. We also shared some pork buns. My recommendation would be to take the Lynx line here since there is a Bland St stop.

This is one of the OG ramen spots in Charlotte, and will always be tops on my list. I'm a creature of habit, so I pretty much get the same thing every time, with the exception of the apps - I love them all! There is never a time when I come here and don't order the rice crispy squares. They are absolutely phenomenal and so unique to Futo Buta. The tuna tartare is always fresh and flavorful, and adding it as a topper to the crispy rice squares is a perfect blend of textures and flavor. You really don't even need the soy blend. For the first time, we tried the salmon belly nigiri, and OH MY GOSH - what a flavor explosion in your mouth. The yuzu mayo and sweet maple complement the wood smoked salmon beyond measure. A couple of other go-to's are the shishito peppers and brussel sprouts. For an entree, I go for the shoyu bowl add spicy ground pork for an extra added kick. The broth has the absolute best flavor, and they have spices and oils to beef it up a bit. If you're looking for something heartier and larger, go for the buta bowl - it has a blend of everything in it but is pretty spicy!

THE BEST MEAL I HAD IN CHARLOTTE! Absolutely divine, tasty, heart-warming! Our server was so cognizant of our dietary restrictions and it was such an inclusive and delicious experience. We were able to sub out anything we wanted and they were helpful throughout the whole meal. We sat outside with the heaters which felt so wonderful with it being early fall! Everything we had was tasty and everyone we saw after our visit we made sure to tell them to hit up Futo buta! Will most definitely be coming back to Charlotte for this meal!

Futo Buta - hahaha! My joy of having a ramen bowl was robbed when I saw so little broth in my ramen bowl especially in a rainy day. Within several seconds of receiving my bowl, I asked my server for more broth .... I thought the kitchen made a mistake. The broth did come & I added to my original bowl still was not that full. May be 80% maximum of the bowl. To my surprise ..... they charged me extra for the broth. This makes this ramen order: almost $30 Is it worth it? You can decide for yourself Taste wise - meat was cold even though was delicious Egg was broken - no presentation Broth - slightly too rich but lacking the wow Presentation - 6.7 Veggie - delicious They do have good selection of sake, so if you add that, you may like it better.

Great restaurant in Charlotte. Food is awesome. Service is impecable Had a great time

I really enjoy futo buta. It's tiny, cozy, and intimate. Great for a cold day to warm yourself up with some tasty sake or spicy noodles. The front porch is also great during the warmer months for people watching on the rail trail. Pork Gyoza, Japanese Fried Chicken, and the Tonkotsu are all huge favorites of mine. Can't go wrong with any. The staff is friendly and courteous every time I've been.

Makenzie is the best! We came out here from Cali and this ramen did the trick after a night of partying lol Makenzie was super sweet and did a great job with customer service! Glad we came!

I saw bee on the way here and I just wanted to let you all know that this place was better than his knees. Jokes aside, we tried the crispy rice, hamachi nigiri, Japanese fried chicken, shoyu ramen, and buta bowl. All were so delicious and also came out really quickly. The staff was so friendly and gave great suggestions. The place is also very comfy and has outdoor seating as well. We will definitely be coming back!

Hard to find location via car. It's actually facing the train station. But when you find it, it's pretty solid. The Bun was a little chewy for my expectations but good. The Ramen was solid and just needed a little kick to it. Service was perfect and super friendly. Quaint ramen spot near the tracks was a fun spot. Probably a 3.7 overall.

Excellent, the best ramen in Charlotte. The food is always amazing quality and fresh with flavors that shine compared to the average ramen place. You can tell a lot of love and passion goes into the restaurant and especially the food. The staff is always friendly and happy to make any recommendations, and attends to the customer's needs well. The ambience is always great for friends or dates. I find I sometimes have a hard time hearing when we eat inside, since it is small and they can really pack people in. I love the music and music references everywhere, but again sometimes can be hard to hear if you have an auditory processing disorder and/or have hearing loss like yours truly. It is also fairly expensive, but the portions are large and again is reflective of its quality. It's me and my boyfriend's favorite place, our place. We love it so much and we'll always go back when we can.

I'm giving this place 5 stars because I love how lowkey it is, not too busy, there's indoor and outdoor seating, and the food is AMAZING! I tried the ramen as well which I forgot to take a pic of, but I recommend!

Top down the best tasting Ramen in Charlotte. It is house made and the broth is outstanding! My rating is based on the surprise I received on my bill. Unfortunately the service fee (18%) and the expected additional tip from our server made our 55.00 dinner meal into a 79.00 meal. The bill said they pay a livable wage, yet they still expect tipping. Our server said they make 10.00 an hour (not really a livable wage) and the service fee is 40% for the kitchen and 60% for the servers. She said additional tips are for the servers. I think customers should be aware of service charges and tipping expectations before they order.

I went on a Saturday around 4:30 pm and seating was limited - they do not accept reservations (first come first serve basis) As my appetizer I had Tori Kara Age (Japanese Fried Chicken). Absolutely delicious ! It comes with a sauce which has a slight spicy kick - highly recommend!! For my entrée I had the Buta Bowl. Unfortunately you will be limited on what you want to substitute - I wanted to substitute the spicy ground pork but was limited to only tofu. The bowl was good and is very spicy !! The server was extremely patient and explained food items on the menu to my party which was very helpful. FYI - They do charge 18% gratitudity! My party was only 2 so expect this when you dine!!!

Pretty good, pretty good but I think Donburi Dojo in Maryland has spoiled me for ramen forever (the best bowl on the planet). Nevertheless, it was decent. Ambience: small indoor seating with a cute patio that filled up quickly. A lot of communal seating and it was loud in there. I really liked the music they were playing but it was hard to have a conversation in the middle of the day. Food: we all ordered Tonkotsu ramen with ono chili sauce added on. I feel like the prices were a high, especially for ono chili sauce added for $2. Would've thought it'd be like 50 cents or maybe $1 but $2? Yikes. This drove our bowls to about $16/$17 a piece which I guess is average? The ramen was pretty good but, as others have mentioned, I didn't find the broth to be too rich or flavorful. Even with the ono chili, we had to add A LOT of chili oil and dry seasoning to flavor it up/add it to a spice level we liked. Once it got there, it was good but I think I prefer the taste of the red ramen from Jinya. We also ordered a beets and green salad app that was good but nothing out of this world. Service: our waiter was friendly but took a while to check on us. I would've asked the people who dropped off our ramen for the chili oil and dry spices but they left before I could ask and didn't ask if we needed anything so we eventually took those from a newly empty table. Pretty decent for an American ramen place. My friend told me it was average and compared it to ramen that he had in Japan but that's not fair - it's Charlotte; not Japan haha. Go in there with a realistic expectation and you're likely to enjoy it here.

Love the experience. Great food, nice ambiance, great staff. In the hear of Charlotte close to the train tracks.

The best ramen I have had. Great selection with varying tastes in mind. Server was courteous with great suggestions. Seating is limited so could see a wait during busy times. We sat at the bar but didn't have a problem with it as it was comfortable.

Still our favorite ramen place in Charlotte. Worth every penny. My favorite things to add to my ramen are the seaweed, bok choy and the spicy ground pork. I add those to the tonkotsu to make an extra filling experience.

Not sure if it was the specific ramen I had, but the broth itself was very bland. I think something spicy would have been better. Otherwise, quality of ingredients seemed a lot better than other ramen shops in the city. The salmon nigiri belly was good however. The staff there was also really nice. Just think that a ramen shop should have better tasting broth.

Food is great, my favorite this is the buta bowl ! Service is always Quick and responsive, and the atmosphere is good for any mood!

Parking was absolutely easy with a local parking deck for a minimum amount of time. The ambiance is so calming with subtle lighting to keep the vibe going with family and friends surrounding the area qualifying the location easily as family friendly. Barely any wait time with the service taking place immediately. And the food was absolutely exceptional. The Roman bowls are to die for with there delicious home made chicken/bone broth this place is hard to miss. We hope you enjoy !

This was a good first time trying ramen . My fire and ice bowl was delicious ! I did order a side of fried chicken but I didn't like that as much . My partner ordered the miso (maybe) bowl . I didn't enjoy his as much . My kid had some noodles and he surprisingly ate them .... That says a lot because he normally refuses everything from me.

Great food and great service, didn't had to wait any long...they have indoor and outdoor seatings.

I would be back soon! Love that is small and authentic. Service was quick and food was great portion and awesome flavor.

Came here on on a Tuesday evening after a long day of studying. Was craving a nice hot bowl of ramen and I've had this ramen place on my radar for awhile! Glad I finally got to try it. It's located as part of an apartment building facing the light rail walkway. It was quite busy for a Tuesday, and there was a waitlist. They we actually turning away ppl after we put our names in. They stop seating ppl after 8:45 from my understanding. We Probably waited about 30-45mins before we were seated. The service was friendly and efficient. Our server even claimed they had the "best ramen in Charlotte". In all honesty, haven't had much ramen in Charlotte, but they were the best ramen I've had so far. We ordered some wine and chicken Kara Age for an appetizer. Kara age was good, not oily, but the inside was not as moist as I'd like. For ramen, I ordered their seasonal spicy vegan ramen. Not too spicy but just the right amount of heat and flavor. The broth was very light as well. The veggies that came with it paired perfectly with the noodles and broth. All and all, I'd definitely be back to try the other delicious ramens they have on their menu

I like the menu here, just enough small plates for an izakaya. Housemade kurobuta gyoza - lots of flavor, Chashu bits from ramen Housemade mushroom tofu gyoza - super clean, needed some fat or meat lol Spicy tuna crispy rice, a bit too much wasabi in tuna, crispy rice was good outer texture and nice soft high quality rice inside. Koshihikari? Brussel sprouts worked well with Sapporo draft and dassai 45 Duck confit don came with shari, it was more cold then usually and actually too much flavor in shari kinda didn't go well with super flavored duck confit. Steamed ride would of been better. Ramen - house noodles didn't have the elasticity as I expected on-a shorter blanch cooking of noodles. The ingredients were on par for the rest of the bowl Sergio was friendly and helpful running the FOH most of the time. Super busy.

Order: hamachi crudo, salmon belly nigiri, fried crispy squares, duck bao bun, tonkatsu ramen, fire and ice ramen. This rating is for my overall experience. Let's start with some bad news first. Our server didn't have much enthusiasm or cheerfulness to her. Might be because the place charges a service fee of 18% (ie tip) to their kitchen and server staff and most customers may be offended by that and don't add additional tip. We had a party of four, not something you would expect for a small party. The place was very claustrophobic on the inside but they did offer outside seating. We opted to sit outside for more air movement/circulation. Food we did not enjoy due to flavor and presentation were the hamachi crudo and the duck bao bun. Hamachi is yellowtail served with grapefruit, avacado and ponzu sauce. Fish was cut too thick and the selection wasn't fresh giving a fishy grapefruit flavor. The duck lacked color, very pale: hoisin sauce would have elevated it's flavor profile, and the bun itself could have been fluffier and whiter. (Using the right vinegar when steaming helps with the color of the buns). On the brighter side we did enjoy the other menu items we ordered. I'm not much of a raw fish person but the fried crispy squares were delightful - spicy tuna over pan-seared fried rice served with wasabi soy sauce. Both ramen were delicious. Tonkotsu is a pork bone broth ramen with pork belly, egg, mushroom, nori, garlic and ginger. Fire and ice is a kimchi and dashi broth served with salmon, bok choy, mint, radish, leeks and scallions. Different flavor profiles but very good. Will return to try other ramen! Happy eating.

Cool vibe place, friendly and fast staff, food was very good one of the best ramen that I had!

Seemed to be a pretty happening place for a Monday night! People were lined up out the door and there were people coming/going with carry out orders. I wanted to sit outside - which means you go in and order at the counter and they bring it out to your table as a "to go" order. It worked well. After flipping though all the Yelp photos, I decided to go with the Fire & Ice ($15) and it was outstanding. Frankly, I've never been a ramen kind of guy....but I wanted to eat every drop. The spice was subtle and not what I would expect...I didn't realize how spicy it was until I started sweating and my nose started running. A real compliment to the flavor being the star of the show! Service was good considering how busy they were and they had a narrow but good selection of local brews.

I came here a few weeks ago for my second visit to Charlotte and it was a rainy day so we thought ramen sounded good. My friend said this was her favorite ramen spot in the city. We visited on a Friday night around 6pm and it was crowded, but we were able to get seated immediately with a party of 3. Futo Buta was a very cool atmosphere as it was cozy, yet modern/contemporary and it felt like you were in Japan. They had a few beers on tap, but they had an extensive sake list. We weren't going to drink much because my friends were running the half-marathon and I was running a 5K the next morning. We started things off with Edamane, which was great! It was a big portion size, which was great for the three of us. I ordered the Chizu Ramen because I thought it looked very interesting as I have never saw pecorino cheese on ramen before. Our server, Julius, recommended to add the spicy pork, which was a great choice! It wasn't overly spicy for me, but it definitely rumbled the stomach the next day. #noregrets. I thought service was great and our food came out fast. Julius was very front and noted that 18% gratuity was already included, which goes to their kitchen & service staff. That's fine as I thought he was a great server and the food came out fairly quickly! I thought prices were fair and portion sizes were large. I would love to come back and try the Fire & Ice ramen and their take on Tonkotsu ramen some day. Overall, I thought Futo Buta was a great ramen restaurant and I see why my friend said it was the best ramen in the city!

Ramen meeeeee please! First of all, Location Location Location. This place is a hidden gem in uptown Charlotte. Easily accessible right off of the Lynx with outdoor dinning available as well. The inside is rustic and cozy. Perfect place to indulge in your favorite comfort food... RAMENnnnNnnnn. The menu is straight to the point, we customized our bowls to our liking, ordered some Sake & an appetizer. And got right to it! The food came out super quick for a busy Saturday afternoon. The broth was delicious, warm, and savory. I ordered the Duck And I knew when I seen it on the menu it was going to be bussin. It was so freaking tender and yummy. The perfect amount of fat! It's all about the details for me we received our check inside of a Full Metal Alchemist Manga (which is definitely in my top 5 anime). I cannot wait to go back and explore the menu some more.

Best ramen in Charlotte. Fast, friendly service. Fresh Sheet items are always great, too.

Loved the ambiance in the restaurant; the aesthetic was great and I loved the wall paintings by the bathroom hahaha. Our server was sweet and walked us through the menu, giving us lots of tips and recommendations. We ordered the shoyu & tonkotsu ramen, as well tofu sushi. Our food tasted okay, and the portion sizes were smaller than expected. It was decently tasty but I did not leave feeling fully satisfied.

Futo Buta is such a cute little spot in South End. It is a super convenient location and the staff is super nice. We prefer sitting outside as the inside is small and can get quite loud but you can't go wrong either way. The fried brussel sprouts here are so amazing. We would come back time and time again for them. They are SO good! The ramen was good but nothing to really write home about. We both got the Niwa as we are both vegetarian and our options were limited. There was nothing bad about the ramen, I just probably wouldn't choose this place first for ramen in Charlotte. There's a lot of great competition in the city and this just isn't it. I'm happy we stopped in but we probably won't come back unless we are on a walk and the need for those brussel sprouts kick back in.

I like to try random restaurants that I've never been too and decided to try this place for lunch. This place is very hidden and very small inside but had an outdoor seating area next the the light rail. I sat outside and it was very enjoyable with great atmosphere. Waitress is very kind and has a very gentle personality. I ordered tonkatsu ramen, salmon belly nigiri, and a coke. 1. Tonkatsu was good although they forgot my add on of spicy ground pork which is not seen in the photo. The waitress was notified and was quickly brought out which I appreciated. 3 large pieces of meat was included and delicious. They were hidden under the noodles which I didn't expect to have that much meat. Overall I think it's worth the price for the size. 2. DO NOT ORDER THE SALMON NIGIRI. First of all they give you so much rice. On top of the it's the worst rice I have ever had for nigiri. It was super compacted, mushy, and had uneven cuts of salmon. I had high expectations for such a expensive restaurant like this and was extremely disappointed. Even low end nigiri tasted better. And for 14$ for 4 shitty pieces? Do the math, unbelievable I can't believe they actually serve that and people really enjoyed it. If people who have been here actually enjoyed the salmon belly nigiri here, you have not actually tasted quality nigiri in your life. The only thing I actually liked about that dish is the toppings. That's it. Do not waste your money. 3. If you take a look at the receipt they actually charge you service fee. Never in my life have I had to pay "service fee" for such a meal like this. NEVER. Only with large amounts of people I would understand. And the AUDACITY to say "servers are making livable wages. Please feel free to tip in addition to service charge" and make us customers feel guilty and entitled to tip more. Not to be a male Karen here but how dare you suggest that to us. And how dare you charge us service fee for your profit. And they highlighted it to suggest tipping more. Never again am I coming here. To have a mandatory service fee charge for small meals, and the worst nigiri ever, definitely not worth it. I wished this experience was better so that I could try the other food items on menu, but not going to waste my time and money here again. $45?!?!? The disappointment is real. Come here at your own risk.

Who would've thought, sushi and ramen would be successful in Charlotte,NC.. I had the privilege to visit this place when I was in north Carolina. I met Sergio the manager of futo buto. Coolest dude, I ever met. Thanks to my friend from a brewery, she texted Sergio ahead of time and told him that I will be in town. The food is amazing. From raw sushi to wagu sushi to spicy ramen with some sake. I left there very full and sleepy. Even Sergio, was surprised that I could consume all that food. To Sergio: thank you very much for your warm hospitality and service! Next time I visit north Carolina, I'll be sure to stay in Charlotte and let's go for a drink when you finish work! Thank you again Sergio and futo buto!

I walked up and the staff were able to break down the menu options and suggest a great meal. It was small but there are outdoor options when it's not cold. Most people were grabbing to go orders but the food overall was amazing and tasted fresh.

Delicious and flavorful! Fun location with nice outdoor seating. Staff was awesome as well. 4 stars because the ramen could've been much hotter. I definitely would come back for great ramen and ask for it to be extra hot.

Came on a rainy day for some ramen & it did not disappoint. The tori Kara age (fried chicken) was 10/10. I loved the small, cozy environment. Great recommendations from the server too!

I was looking forward to this place due to all the rave reviews, but looks like my search for good ramen in Charlotte continues. Pros: - friendly, quick service - tuna rice squares were good - parking garage next door Cons: - noodles were over cooked - shoyu broth tasted one dimensional - onsen egg was not prepared properly For the price, I would expect the quality to be much better. I left full, yet disappointed. Also, we got there around 5:30pm and were seated promptly, but there was a wait about an hour later.

The location of this ramen place was a tad confusing to me. It faces the light rail track, and as I drove, my GPS lead me to the back of some garage. I ended up parking on the other side of the tracks and walking over. They are 100% takeout as of this writing. Another party was there ahead of me, and they seemed to be in no rush to finish their chat despite the fact that my food was ready for pickup. But eventually I got it. They have a regular and a seasonal vegan ramen, and I tried the latter. It was pretty cool. Collard greens in ramen is unusual, but appropriate, and they combined well with the mushrooms and radish. It was a huge amount of salt judging by my water consumption thereafter. I added some tofu skewers which were thoroughly grilled, and some very tasty little dumplings. The extra noodles I got on the side were plentiful, and they are better than store-bought noodles; I'll have no trouble using them. The place had a better vegetarian selection than the average Japanese/ramen restaurant, and a mix of fresh and intriguing flavors. Portion size for price wasn't huge, but I enjoyed it.