KENKA

Absolutely loved it. Went thursday night and there was a huge line out the door. They take your name and the number of people in your party and the line moved rather quickly and we got inside. I got the agedashi tofu and it was heavenly. The tofu's seared on the outside but it was also cooked all the way through and was very soft and hot on the inside. I also ate the edamame which i liked very much and my friend got the udon noodles with chicken and said they were great as well. Staff was very nice and food arrived quickly. I wouldn't go on a thursday night again though because it was packed and really loud but that's not the establishment's fault.

this menu will give a graphic designer a heart attack. if you can bare that, this place is fabulous. great atmosphere, cheap food, cheap beer. all tables have a 90-minute timer on them when it’s busy. so eat quick! cotton candy machine is a nice touch. will definitely be coming back

Cool Japan-centric theme with a weird dominatrix doll in a display area, and walls with weird decor, and crazy Asian historic music and more at this izakaya spot, lots of small dishes to share and try! Liked the ramen but it was salty - the pan-fried pork with kimchi was just right, not spicy, out of the whole squid; squid legs were a bit tasteless and rubbery, tako wasabi was excellent, should've tried the gyoza, and it took forever and a day to get the agedashi tofu (came after our bill, actually). Cheap beer ($1.50!) and the sashimi Moriawase Deluxe was a nice sashimi and salad plate. Little cup of sugar for you to go out to the front and make a small cotton candy for yourself, too. Service - like I said, delayed dishes, hard to find someone to order from and the guy was better than the girl who was just not happy at being there, I think... but food was a fun mix of Japanese small bites. Will have to try the fried chicken and gyoza here next time.

A friend recommended this place to me, and I definitely suggest giving it a try! It can get really busy, so be prepared to wait around 10-30 minutes. They tend to prioritize larger groups since most of their seating is set up for that, but they do have a few tables for two as well—just not as many. When we arrived, there were already a lot of people there, but since we were a group of four, we got seated right away. The food is incredibly affordable, with almost everything priced under $10, and it tasted great! Just a quick note—if you order the soups or udon, they might not be as filling compared to some of the other dishes. It’s a fantastic spot to hang out with friends, but keep in mind that it can get pretty loud—that’s just part of the restaurant’s vibe. One of the coolest parts is that when you’re done eating, you get to make your own cotton candy outside using their machine! For reference, we had four dishes, two appetizers, and two alcoholic drinks, and the total came to $70 for four people.

This is a cool and fun place to have drinks with friends who like drinking, but little inappropriate for little kids. 😅The price is very affordable - where else can we find a place that sells craft beer for only $1.50. Can’t wait to try their Nabi and Tuna Bone next time. 😍

This is the worst restaurant I’ve experienced in New York so far. It was so terrible that it felt like experiencing anti-Asian discrimination at a Japanese restaurant. From the beginning, despite there being plenty of seats inside, we were seated near the entrance. When we mentioned that the potato salad seemed spoiled, the staff showed no apology or response, instead giving us an incredulous look, taking the salad away, and throwing it out. There was no follow-up regarding the salad, so we had to ask again, only to be told that it was our taste that was strange, without any apology. Every time we tried to place an order, we were ignored. Had we been satisfied with the service, we would have tipped accordingly, but given the treatment we received, we didn’t feel compelled to leave a tip. As we were leaving, the staff tapped on the receipt with a pen and mockingly asked, “Two dollars?” I told them I was dissatisfied with their service and left. However, when my friend realized they had left their phone behind and returned to retrieve it, the staff held the phone as if it were a hostage and aggressively demanded to know why we didn’t leave a tip, saying 20% is the standard. I remember the staff member involved very clearly, but I will not mention their appearance. Two years ago, when I first came to New York, I had good memories of this restaurant, so I brought my friends along, but it has now become a terrible memory. While the food was decent, the service was absolutely appalling. I will never visit this restaurant again, and you’re free to blacklist me if you’d like—I don’t care. However, I strongly recommend properly training your staff, as this kind of behavior is unacceptable when dealing with customers.

I thought “yakitori” meant grilled, but it was steamed and just had sauce brushed on. The menu was sticky and dirty, and the food was undercooked, so I barely ate any of it — and still ended up with diarrhea. It was such a bad experience that I never want to go to a Japanese restaurant again. It felt like a Japanese restaurant that even Japanese people wouldn’t go to.

Unique place. Food 🍱 is cheap, tasty, drinks 🥃 are great, atmosphere is unique, not usual. Service is fast. 👍😊