Kitto
“I've had the pork buns (oh my gosh, the bun is so soft), and the memories of the sauce is making me salivate right now.”
“Went to Kitto for lunch today and got the Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen with a side of the Braised short rib buns.”
“Their menu is broken into 4 parts: Ramen, Sandwiches, Buns, and Rice Bowls.”
Kitto
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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I went here yesterday for a quick lunch with friends. Despite the fact that this place has a Japanese name, offers japanese drinks (like Sake and Japanese iced tea brands), and serves mainly ramen, they strangely also have bulgogi (a Korean beef dish) and bahn mi (typically, if not exclusively, Vietnamese) on the menu. I stuck with ordering a ramen dish cause getting bulgogi or bahn mi at a ramen shop is akin to getting texmex at a chinese take-out place… Just cause the options are available doesn't mean they'll taste good. (Needless to say, I'm quite cynical about the whole "Asian fusion" craze.)
I ordered the spicy tonkatsu ramen bowl while my friends ordered a glass noodle combo bento box set and a bulgogi bowl. I didn't try my friends' dishes so I can't attest to how theirs tasted. My ramen bowl was fantastic — just the right amount of spice and the slices of pork belly were deliciously tender and flavorful. My only complaint is that they skimped on the ramen and the meat. For the hefty price of $11-13 bucks per bowl, I'm used to absolutely ginormous portions. Instead, I ran out of noodles way too fast, and the pork belly slices were disgracefully small. I was left swishing around a bunch of unwanted herbs and veggies in the end. Of course, you can get extra meat or ramen but that's an extra buck or two, and for that price, I could get a feast at any other ramen shop. As far as ramen goes, there are better places in the city.
It was quite interesting that they offered imported sake in the drinks section, though a single jar costs about $10. Ridiculous.
There is also a credit card minimum of $15.
Service: 3/5 — decent, nothing special cause it's a food court style serving system where you clean up after yourself
Food: 3/5 — again, decent, but for the price, you could get amazing food elsewhere in the city
Atmosphere: 3/5 — clean, nice little shop for a quick lunch in the midtown area, though seating is limited since Kitto only takes up the 2nd floor of the building
Overall: 3/5 — good, but not worth the price
+ Tonkatsu Ramen- Delicious broth, 4 pieces of marinated juicy pork cuts, and slightly chewy ramen.
+ Staff is energetic and smiles which enhances the ramen flavor.
+ Marketing incentive – Stamp for each order. Order 9 and get 1 free!
– Can be quite pricey for ramen.
– $15 minimum credit card use. Slight inconvenience.
– Limited seating during lunch. Occasionally have to wait for seats.
Checked this place on a weekday for lunch. My colleague and I both ordered the signature ramen. Waiting line was short and the food got prepared fast, which makes it a good place if you have limited time for lunch on weekdays.
But the ramen tasted so-so. Toppings were little – a few slices of meat with a little vegetable. The most unacceptable thing to me was the raw bean sprouts on top of ramen… I tried to eat it but it tastes too weird to me The rest part of the ramen was okay – nothing surprised me.
Once, I stepped into Kitto by accident, thinking it was an upstairs seating area as a part of Graso Grill. Obviously, the atmosphere is COMPLETELY different, but honestly, you may have to opt for Graso Grill…
Although it slightly resembles a sit-down restaurant, this is a order in the front, pick-up and sit down type of place, as many of the restaurants in midtown are. I went with the kitto set (originally $14.50, but it came out to $12-13 because they had a special either on Tuesday or Wednesday, I can't remember). This kitto set includes one pork bun of your choice, a salad with what I believe is peanut sauce, and a large bowl of ramen – your pick.
I went with the pork belly bun, and unfortunately it had very little pork and very much bun. I love pork buns, but this just didn't do it for me. The salad is also plain, very little complaints there. The ramen was pretty good. I had the the tonkotsu ramen and honestly, it was really really good. Just maybe a little too salty. Did I think it would be worth $15…maybe, but I'm really used to lunch spots here who serve $10, and if you're going to upcharge, it better be really good.
The lines aren't too long around 12:30 and the service is super quick. It just may get hard to find a table, which is pretty bad if you're holding a heavy tray of ramen and waiting around for a table to clear up.
So I've now had the ramen here a few times and it's pretty damn good. Great for a cold day. Especially the Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen. Warms you right up. A bowl will cost you $13 but it's worth it. Much better than any of the udon joints in the area. The Spicy Tonkotsu comes with a few pieces of sliced pork belly, mushrooms, ginger, bamboo shoots, corn and some other Asian goodies. Really rich and full of umami flavor. I hardly get the bahn mi from here anymore. Now I just go straight for the ramen. They have loyalty cards which is a bonus. Saves you about $1 per meal. Definitely a midtown lunch staple for me.
I'm on a Japanese kick these days and visiting New York didn't change that one iota. For a second I considered going to Graso Grill downstairs but changed my mind when I found out that Kitto served ramen.
The restaurant is absolutely stunning. It's as chic as they come. I walked up to the counter and ordered Tori Ramen, a chicken ramen. I opted for the spicy version of the dish and was told to come back to the counter to pick it up. Efficiency is the buzz word in Japanese restaurants so this was par for the course.
When I went to pick up my ramen, the cashier smiled and asked me if I wanted more chicken.
"No charge?" I queried innocently, mystified.
"No charge!" she giggled.
I almost said, "Fuck yes!" but caught it in time and nodded instead. I made a mental note to put her in my will. She gave me a fistful of juicy, marinaded, spicy chicken in a separate container. It was delicious and had a touch of sweetness to it. The broth was delicious too and it had a respectable level of heat. The veggies and mushrooms were fresh and the noodles were cooked perfectly.
When I make my amateur ramen at home, I cook the noodles a lot longer than usual so they're soft. I never even considered pulling them off the heat just beyond al dente. I was doing it wrong. Just above al dente, as it turns out, greatly improves the dish. Instead of verging on melting into the soup like soft noodles do, firm noodles earn your respect by getting you to chew on them a little before they go down. There was nothing else in there with the same texture and textural variety is always a plus in a soup.
The only thing I would have done differently is that I would have added more greens and used less mushrooms. I started off wanting more salt but then the broth began to work its magic. Eating every bite of the dish with a mouthful of broth infused the broth's flavor into whatever was on the spoon. So it didn't matter that the chicken or mushrooms, while delicious, could have greatly benefited from a dash of salt. My girlfriend reminded me that I have to pick my battles; putting any more sodium in the ramen would have caused my heart to pop out of my chest like the original "Alien" starring Sigourney Weaver.
We also got a free Coke Zero with our purchase which I didn't expect. I don't drink soda except for the occasional Ginger Ale for hangovers but the fizz and flavor of the Coke was a perfect complement to the heat and spice of the soup.
I was satisfied and grinning by the end of this meal. It could have been that it was the first thing I ate after arriving in the city. It could have been that all I'd had was a banana since lunch. I don't know. Whatever it was, the soup hit the spot.
Pretty average food, but makes for a nice quick lunch. 3.5 stars in reality. I used to come here a lot. Like, have gotten 9 stamps twice already a lot (10th meal that does not exceed $12 free).
Today I got the tonkatsu ramen with extra noodles. It totaled out to be around $15, and was seriously the largest portion of ramen I've ever received. I kae dama pretty frequently at other ramen shops, but I actually did not finish my bowl of ramen today. Kudos to Kitto for providing large servings, that's for sure!
So the restaurant itself is quite small, but very tidy. It's easy to walk by, as it's actually the upstairs of a Boar's Head deli. It's very much almost "fast food" styled ramen. you order at the register (menu's on the wall), they give you a receipt, call your number, and you get it on a tray. The menu itself actually carries a fair bit of variety. There's ramen, there's pork buns and other appetizers, and there's also bibimbap.
It gets pretty crowded during lunch hours. I got there at 1:15PM and all the tables were taken. Thankfully by the time my friend showed up and we ordered, parties started clearing out and we got a table.
Anyway, back to the ramen. Like I said, huge bowl of ramen if you order extra noodles ($2). To the point where there's almost not enough broth. Almost not enough, but still sufficient. The tonkatsu ramen comes with maybe 4 or 5 pieces of meat. The meat itself can be a little too fatty, but overall pretty decent. The noodles are good, but not spectacular. They can get a bit soggy, but still pretty decent. The ingredients themselves are pretty fresh, but not gonna lie I felt a bit sick from trying to eat such a large serving of ramen today!
Definitely not a place for a date or anything, but swing by if you're in the area for a quick ramen lunch!
3.5 stars. Fresh ingredients, friendly service, cute place, really yummy soba noodles. Don't forget to check out the chalkboards on the side for the daily special! I got the spicy summer soba noodle bowl with tofu and was pretty happy with it, especially with three large pieces of soft tofu and overall fairly generous portion size. The food isn't spectacular for the price but is still decent and fresh – good place to stop at for lunch.