Izakaya Ronin

I love the skewers and the kabocha dish. This place really felt like I was in Japan with the food that was served and the interior decoration. If you want an authentic Japanese place that serves skewers and sashimi, this place is for you.

I had the most extraordinary dinner at Yopparai Ronin with wonderfully prepared dishes and impeccable service. I plan to return over and over again. The six courses are delight to one’s palate. I highly recommend this intimate restaurant with fantastic sushi chef Junya-san. I have been a fan of his for years and really enjoyed this new tasting version of Yopparai.

Had quite an experience with the 6 course omakase; a few of them they let you choose one out of the 3 or 4 options so go with a group of 2+ give you a taste of everything Great recommendations on the sake as well

Love the food and atmosphere. Definitely need to check the secret lounge at the back. Great music and collections.

Wow, that was a let down. Went to Izakaya Ronin on the 25th July 2024 after a great experience at the sister restaurant Yopparai a couple of days earlier. We sat down and started ordering Sake and directly the server become super rude. Not sure why to be honest. He keeps ignoring us while being super friendly with the 2 other groups in the restaurant. when he speaks to us he is short and rude. In the end we had enough and for the first time in my life I give 7.5% tip as the services was so poor. And then after two days I discover they altered my tip so it was 20%. To say I'm disappointed is grave understatement. Never going back.

$120+ later I was still hungry... Atmosphere is great. Definitely have a very good vibe, service was also great. But food wise, I felt like I ate almost nothing. The skewers were nothing special. Definitely did not feel it was worth 100+

Tiny little spot that takes pride in their food. Interesting cuts like tongue and liver thatvim happy to see on menus. AND a secret little speakeasy in the back! I'll be back

My partner and I had an amazing dinner at Yopparai Ronin. We were looking for good Japanese food on our last day in town and were pleasantly surprised to find a same-day reservation available at a nice place like this. We went in not quite knowing what to expect, especially since some old photos online made it look like this place is a rock-and-roll themed Japanese bar (it isn't, and those were photos from before they renovated and rebranded. Also note this place is different from the sister restaurant down the street just called Yopparai). We were so we glad we went. The food was top-notch. They serve a six-course omakase tasting menu, with some options to choose from for one of the courses. We loved every dish we had. The food is fresh and seasonal; they revamp their menu every few months and had a couple of specials available to choose from as well. The sake pairing was also delicious, and I'd recommend adding it on if it's in your budget. The service was above and beyond. The staff was super friendly and knowledgable. Our main waiter made great dinner conversation and even taught us a bit about Japanese culture. After our meal was over, he even hooked us up with a table at the speakeasy bar next door (where we also had a great time). I'm definitely going to tell my friends about this place, and I hope to come back next time I'm in NYC.

The entrance was a bit shady but once youre inside, this izakaya/speakeasy will transport you straight to Japan. The interior decor is spectacular all around and even has the traditional sit-down where you have to take your shoes off. We opted for the 1/2 omakase and everything was delicious. Skewers were seasoned and cooked to perfection. While the food wasnt anything thatll blow your mind, I think this spot is 100% worth it for the cozy ambiance and experience that fits for a special date night. I do wish each course couldve been paced better because we felt a little rushed but nothing serious that couldnt be adjusted.

This is a very quaint spot. You walk in and the seating is all the back. Service was good but the staff was definitely very awkward. We were going to event after that also had food so we kept it light. I got the 3 skewer combo ($20). Today menu had the okra, chicken thigh and chicken liver. I enjoy the flavors and they had spices on the side to put on it. It was expensive but overall I enjoyed the flavors

Amazing food, professional service, everything was fantastic!! Great ambiance, I love the Japanese decor too!

The setting is nice, waiter was excellent and the food was well executed. The only problem is that the cost basis for the $110 experience is around $15.

The service is very good, the owner offered us free drinks. The environment is very clean and calm. I recommend for dinner!

What a special restaurant! The food was so great and thoughtfully presented, and the service was amazing. The chef did a great job at explaining each course and making recommendations of how to eat it. And the space is really cool - feels very authentically Japanese.

Wow. We loved our meal here. Authentic Japanese food, beautifully presented. The service was wonderfully attentive and friendly. We look forward to coming again!

Food: 5/5 Service: 5/5 Really enjoyed our dinner. The ambiance is relaxed and cozy. The waiter did a great job and took special care to pace the tasting menu so that we were never waiting for the next course, but we were never rushed either. I'd recommend that people get the full course menu over the light menu because we really liked the sashimi and dessert. My other favorite dishes were the oden, marinated pumpkin and okra skewers. But everything was great.

The restaurant is small but service is excellent! It specializes mostly in skewers...chicken. There's only 2 options to choose from the menu. A nice place to hang out and talk for 2 hours. The staff takes his time to explain each skewer to us, recommending what spices to dip it with. Very nice experience.

It's not apparent from the street that this is actually a private Omakase dining room for 6-8 people. Was expecting more traditional Izakaya / gastropub food, with bar etc., based on the description. This place only serves sake, which was ok, but wish there were a wider selection of drinks. The skewers were tasty, but quite tiny, (2" long?) and the other selections were more like teeny samplings than portions. The Half and Full Omakase menus were offered, we had the Half Menu for $60 each and we left starving. Little bits of Kabocha and tiny cups of ozoni style broth with radish bits. Not so much as one nigiri or piece of sashimi to satisfy our hunger. Waiter was sweet but not terribly on target with descriptions of courses; and it was unclear if he had ever eaten what he was serving. Disappointing overall. There are wonderful Izakaya and Omakase spots downtown and this is not one of them.

Cute little spot from the same group behind Azasu and Yopporai. Cute outdoor seating during Covid. We came here for second dinner of the night so more like drinks and bites. Tsukune skewer was tasty. Grilled Salmon was fresh but little overcooked. Grilled Squid was my fav. Super simple just fresh ingredient not overly done. Would recommend!

I eat yakitori around the world; often I travel to Japan just for yakitori. This place has it nailed! Ambiance, sake selection (and price!), and love of yakitori were all on point. It's people who care about yakitori, and if you don't know yet, you SHOULD care about yakitori too; sushi is the celebration of fish, yakitori is the celebration of (grilled) chicken. It takes time, it takes skill, and it pays off. I let them know well in advance, but they had all the chicken parts I love, and all expertly grilled. You owe yourself a night out here; get the 3 year aged in snow sake: Hakkaisan Yokimuro. So good, just the optimal pairing.

Simple but high end, chicken-focused yakitori in a typical hideaway izakaya setting. Attentive, informative service, lovely atmosphere.

My partner and I were on our way to another restaurant when we passed by Ronin Stones (obviously a play on the Rolling Stones). We decided to try this place out because it's new, it's closer than our first intended restaurant, and we like supporting small businesses. We walk in, and it's not very big inside, but it's EXTREMELY clean and cozy. And as if it wasn't already cozy enough, they also have a heater on the ceiling and an open grill that you can feel heat being emitted from. There isn't much seating at the front, and the seats are close to one another, but that wasn't a problem for just the two of us. The chef/staff were very friendly and nice. Usually restaurant staff don't make me feel comfortable because they seem like they're always on your , but I was really comfortable with them. We ordered the edamame, potato salad, grilled vegetables, chicken gizzards skews, chicken thigh skews, and beef tongue stew with demi glace over rice. THEY WERE ALL FANTASTIC. THEY WERE ALL ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS we've had really tough gizzards before because they've been overcooked, but the ones here are tender, juicy, and flavorful! And no potato salad compares to Japanese potato salad. It was rich, filled with assorted vegetables, and fresh. I was a big fan of the rice dish. The beef was cooked until tender and once you bite into it, it just melts in your mouth the sauce also pairs well with the beef and rice. The sauce may be overwhelming for some people (like it was for my partner), but I definitely loved it. I will absolutely, positively be returning soon!

Wasn't as impressed food wise as I was hoping to be, considering how much I loved Yopparai. But it's an awesome concept (with the live music + small plates + sake) and I imagine a fun LES spot in pre-covid times. We tried: Beef tripe stew - Probably my favorite item, soft savory beef tripe. Chicken skewer - The chicken tasted a bit undercooked and under-salted. Not my favorite. Tsukune - My favorite out of the skewers we tried, but unfortunately I kept comparing it in my mind to the most incredible tsukune I had at a neighborhood izakaya in Japan, and this just wasn't that. Good but not exceptional. Skirt steak skewer - Better than the chicken but also nothing standout to me (found it a bit chewy). Oden - Nice warming dish for the winter but again fairly standard. At the end of the day, I think the issue was that I had the wrong expectations going in. Rather than another Yopparai, which is a more refined izakaya experience, Ronin Stones is just a solid neigborhood spot with an excellent sake list paired with some great drinking food - nothing that's meant to blow you away or be particularly innovative, but a failsafe when you're just looking to have a casual drink and unwind after a long week.

Good food, good service. Duck and beef were fresh and soft. Good choice of drinks. It's a very small (intimate?) place, so if you are seeking a large crowd, this isn't the place. Also, there's only about ten seats in the whole restaurant, if you have a loud table, you wont be able to communicate with your group.

I had very high expectation for this place so I booked this place for my friend who are visiting me today from DC. We ordered agedashi tofu, scallops, octopus, wagyu beef over ice and chirashi. All appetizers are okay, scallops were better than okay. The chirashi had many different fish in it and generous amount of uni, but it had cooked shrimps. I've never seen a chirashi had cooked shrimps. But it was okay. The wagyu beef over rice is really sub-par. Beef were over cooked and hard to chew. I didn't even finish. I started to doubt if these were wagyu or just regular beef.

Would not recommend this place. The omakase is subpar and there are many other places that serve higher quality items at their price point. The soba is VERY underwhelming and pretty much soggy. I mentioned this to the staff and their response was "this is what we expect the soba texture to be". I have eaten at many other Japanese restaurants and I've never been served COOKED salmon as a form of "chirashi". An absolute disgrace to Japanese cuisine - STAY AWAY

If it weren't for the owner of Azasu handing me and my boyfriend guitar pick business cards for Ronin Stones, we may have never found the place for years. For an intimate date, take a friend or two to the back room, which is decorated with rock and roll memorabilia, Polaroids of guests, and the lilt of music from old tour videos playing in the background. Danny and I split a few skewers--my favorite being the beef tongue--grilled vegetables and Sapporo. Will return soon to enjoy more of the ambiance and later a larger entree.

Such a cool new addition to the LES! Rock n roll themed Japanese skewer/sake bar. Came here with the boyfriend for dinner and loved the experience/food! Storefront is super tiny and easy to miss so be careful or you might pass it. When you walk in there is a front room with a small counter seating area along the grill. I thought it was really cool that you could watch the grill master cook your skewers. However, caught a glimpse of the back room bar when I went to use the bathroom and it looked awesome! Walls are lined with records, cassettes, a little mini guitar, etc. Some great deals for happy hour, any kind of chicken skewer (meatball, thigh, gizzard, liver) was $5 for 2 and $5 beer/sake. We tried a little bit of everything. I thought the livers were super flavorful albeit very rich, 2 was almost too much. Beef tongue & skirt steak were delicious. Thighs were very tender. My favorite might have been the meatballs - very interesting color (green) but really yummy. Definitely get them.

Excellent kitchy, whimisical, retro 80s speakeasy that that only be pulled off in a Japanese neighborhood bar! The yakitori is top notch as well as the drinks! I really felt like I was in Japan again but with American salary men having drinks and skewers after a long week. I suggest the beef tongue, pork belly, gizzard and skirt steak skewers!

Wow this place is amazing. It is amazing that it's so hidden and it's like a speakeasy that serves food. It's literally LES's new secret. Even though we came when they recently opened, there were already people waiting at 730pm!!!!! Ok anyway - the service is AMAZING. The service and the people are AMAZING. Shawn and Pamela are incredibly nice and the food is amazing as well. This restaurant is by the same owner as yopparai and azasu which are Japanese restaurants that you have to make reservations weeks in advance so imSO happy ronin exists. Pam and Shawn are amazing and the food is delicious. HIGHLY recommend but just don't come when I come because i hate waiting haha :)

They have an amazing outdoor dining setup, which keeps you sufficiently warm in frigid temps. Highly recommend coming here for that reason alone, but also the prix fixe menu was great and the food/sake was delicious. I called and made an outdoor dining reservation for 2 people at 8pm. When we showed up, it was 28 degrees outside... but they have booths with a heater INSIDE the table, which was extremely effective. The outdoor dining setup is incredibly cute and even comes with fresh blankets and robes that you can wear while eating. Despite below-freezing temperatures, we were completely warm and cozy. Ever since indoor dining got shut down in NYC, I have tried a lot of restaurants with heat lamps and nearly froze to death at most. This was the most comfortable experience I've had yet! Only downside is you cannot fit more than 3-4ppl in a booth, so doesn't work for big groups.

Cute little place, themed after the passion the owner has for rock and roll and music. Fairly new and offers Japanese style skewers and rice bowls. We stumbled on it while strolling through LES, and a couple sitting at the window gave us the nod and a thumbs up, which was enough for us to be sold to eating there. The place has a small eating area at the front and all the cooking happens behind the counter. There is however a private room in the back, which is open to the public o. Regular days unless there is a private party going on. That place is like walking into a man cave of a music lover. Very well aid out, posters, lps, CD's and even cassettes on display. Food was good, looked fresh and tasted fresh, though we only tried skewers this time around, it warrants a return trip for the rice bowl. My vating is more for the overall concept, the friendliness of the people who work there and that Man Cave!!!

Small intimate space. The menu isn't creative or different; it's just the typical izakaya menu. I felt many dishes were heavy handed with the seasoning. That's probably because the food is supposed to encourage you to take sips of your drink. Everything is just OK, but the vibe makes things work at this place. I would stop by again if I'm in the area but won't go out of my way to go there.

What a wonderful little bar. Having lived in Japan for a couple of years, it was a reminder of home in a way - just like what you'd find there, but through a NYC prism. The bar itself was Tiny, and everyone was more or less chatting with each other, while enjoying tasty food and drink. Also, the night I was there, there was a really, really good DJ. I can't wait to go back here. Cannot recommend enough.

The food was underwhelming. Standard Izakaya with no standout dishes, though the sauces were good. The scallops and duck were overcooked and they quickly fixed us another plate, but the meat itself was neither as tasty nor tender as French duck.

Outstanding food and service. There is brief intro for each course and the flavor in each course is balanced perfectly. I'd definitely recommend the place, especially who want to try the omakase.

Lovely outdoor seating area with heavy blankets for extra warmth on a cool April eve. We had maguro tuna chirashi and sake steamed Hudson Valley trout. Each dish was delicious and elegantly presented. Washed it down with a nice crisp sake. The ambiance was comfortable exotic Japanese.

Let me tell you, Yopparai Ronin was simply mind-blowing. This place is awesome at what it does. The menu is really terrific, so many really good choices, I had to go with Beef Tongue, and it was terrific. Staff are really helpful and service is very quick. Yopparai Ronin is definitely a special place.

Just a perfect, creative omakase menu served in a tiny, romantic space. You'll love it.

You will be AMAZED, everything cook to perfection when you order. It's a little more pricey than bigger restaurant but this place is very neat and clean reminds me of the time when I went to Japan. The food was spot on and I don't think I can get that anywhere else. I love the beef tongue and the sauce it came with. The oden was delicious and cook perfectly. Can't wait to go back.

My favorite neighborhood bar. Where else but the lower east would you find a rolling stones themed Japanese bar with great sake and yakitori!! Love this place. Once you make it though the secret door, you feel like a true ronin (a rōnin was a samurai without a lord or master during the feudal period). The other ronins - Pam, Shane and kazumi are incredible people who make you feel like home. You can even pick your cds and they'll gladly play it for you. thank you guys!

Heading back tonite after being introduced to RS a couple of weeks ago. To say the place is "chill" is about the most appropriate adjective to use. The vibe, the food, the drinks, the music...ALL CAPS, ALL VERY GREAT! Go and have a relaxing time. Oh, and the bathroom, yes, the bathroom is 2nd to none in the history of bathrooms. It's almost worth going just for that! :)

Beautiful and unique outdoor dining experience. We did the prix fixe menu and everything was delicious. Service was exceptional and we stayed cozy and warm with the Japanese winter style seating with heat lamps. Make sure you make a reservation and support this amazing local business

Amazing bbq skewers and cocktails. Food is fresh. The green-tea cocktail was delicious!!! Highly recommend for a late night evening!