Daniel B.
Yelp
Based on Rose's Soy Tonkotsu Ramen (best ramen I've had in the state), Housemade Belt Noodles, Ice Cream Sandwiches, and Macarons, I have to give Rose's five stars. Not everything we had here was great, but each of those particular items was outstanding. I like and recommend this place.
Rose's is located in the Brightleaf neighborhood of northwest downtown Durham. At the time of writing this review, you can park for free directly in front of the restaurant in the spots marked "Fencers Club Reserved" because the fencing business has permanently closed. You can also park for free in the spacious Brightleaf Square parking lot across N Gregson St and, a little further away, in the lot at the corner of S Gregson and W Main.
Rose's originally opened in 2013 as "Rose's Meat Market & Sweet Shop." During our visit in 2022, the south-facing exterior and our takeout box of sweets had the Meat Market & Sweet Shop logo, which features an old meat scale. I noticed this was in contrast to the "Rose's Noodles, Dumpings & Sweets" logo on the outside signage and menus, which features a bowl of noodles. According to the restaurant's website, "in summer 2017, Rose's made a full transformation of their space from meat market to an East Asian-inspired eatery."
Rose's has a small space with an open kitchen, dining room, and pastry shop all in a single room. Seating is limited. I counted six seats at the bar and maybe 25 or so seats lining the storefront windows. All bar-height. The interior was snug and cozy. It had a bit of an industrial feel to it. The atmosphere was casual and hip.
Since seating is limited and this place is popular, you should make a reservation through Rose's website at https://rosesdurham.com/. Our party of four had a Friday 6:30pm reservation. The dining room was at or near capacity for the duration of our visit with a few open seats at the bar.
I liked the restaurant's simple menu. When we visited, the menu had six appetizers ($3.30-13.00 each), salads ($10 each or 2 for $15), sandwiches ($12.00-15.50 each), and bowls ($13-17 each, except for the Crispy Soft Shell Crab at $38). The drink menu had interesting selections, not just run-of-the-mill offerings, including beer, wine, coffee, and tea. The bottle of rose we got, listed below, wasn't on the menu. I forget the price, but bottles on the menu were priced at $37-49 each.
Here's what we got:
- Appetizers -
* Beef & Pickled Chili Dumplings ($12) - garlic chive sauce
* Pickle Plate ($9) - 3-4 seasonal veggies in different preparations
- Sandwiches -
* Katsu Sando (x2, $15.50 each) - milkbread, cabbage, tonkatsu sauce
- Bowls -
* Soy Tonkotsu Ramen (x2, $17 each ) - pork belly, marinated egg, black mushrooms, nori
* Housemade Belt Noodles (x2, $16 each) - spicy pork belly sauce, broccoli, sweet onion, chili oil, cilantro
- Ice Cream Sandwiches ($5.75 each) -
* Carrot Cake Cheesecake
* Strawberry & Strawberry Sorbet
* Brown Sugar Cookie Dough
- Other Sweets -
* Meyer Lemon Poppyseed Macarons ($2.25 each)
* Burnt Honey Honeycomb Macarons ($2.25 each)
* Pistachio Candied Orange Sugar Cookies ($4.00)
- Drinks -
* Sprecher Cherry Cola ($2)
* Getariako Txakolina Ameztoi Rubentis (rose)
I didn't mention the Beef & Pickled Chili Dumplings in my first sentence above, but they were yummy as well. I recommend them. Five plump dumplings were served to an order and they were rich and flavorful. The crushed nuts on top added an extra crunch.
I love pickled food and was looking forward to trying Rose's Pickle Plate. It wasn't bad, but the veggies could've used more pickling, in my opinion. The veggies included cauliflower, cabbage, and squash.
I was also looking forward to trying the Katsu Sando, but it wasn't all that I was hoping for. The unique sweet flavor of the milkbread threw me off. And I would've preferred a bigger pork cutlet and perhaps less cabbage. This one wasn't a homerun.
What were homeruns, though, were the aforementioned Ramen, Belt Noodles, Ice Cream Sandwiches, and Macarons. Everything about the ramen was terrific including its appetizing noodles (fantastic consistency), perfectly soft-boiled egg, thick, succulent slices of pork belly, and rich, complex broth. Simply put, Rose's ramen is legit. The Belt Noodles were packed with flavor. The wide noodles had phenomenal texture and the pork belly meat was mouthwateringly good.
The Ice Cream Sandwiches are a must. My favorite was the Brown Sugar Cookie Dough, but I don't think you can go wrong with any of the flavors. Rose's makes their own ice cream. The Macarons were expertly-executed as well. Very sweet, top quality, and ideal texture. The Pistachio Candied Orange Sugar Cookies were quite delectable too. Fresh, sugary, and aromatic.
There was a 4.0% "Happy Workplace" surcharge that I was happy to pay in order to help provide the employees with health insurance (and maybe other benefits). Our server and everyone else we interacted with from the restaurant were great. Excellent service.