“Thought I’d stop in to grab some food for my partner and I. Was blown away by both the service and the quality of the food. The crab rangoon and tonkatsu are the BEST in town, and the teriyaki chicken was well worth the price. Definitely will be adding Mr. Tokyo to my rotation of restaurants I love to eat at here in BTown!“
“Itadakimasu! Hearty, authentic ramen and Japanese bites make for one of Bloomington’s best dinner spots. This just may be the Midwest’s best ramen restaurant.Yatagarasu has to be one of my favorite local Indiana restaurants. The Bloomington location is immaculately decorated, with incredible ambiance. The food itself challenges that of ramen joints in most major cities. I want to clarify that I’m not a strong believer in the idea that the best restaurants can only be found in more metropolitan areas. Some of the greatest food I’ve ever eaten has been located in what some would consider a hole in the wall in the middle of nowhere. However, as Bloomington’s options have dwindled thanks to the import of major restaurant chains like Canes and Sweetgreen, among other examples of gentrified dining, I’ve been harder pressed to recommend restaurants I consider local staples.Yatagarasu is a breath of fresh air (unfortunately, depending on your university affiliation, coming from our mortal enemy Lafayette). I proves definitively that we Hoosiers don’t need to commute to Louisville, Chicago, Indianapolis, or St. Louis for quality restaurants. Yatagarasu has a simple, undemanding menu that delivers each time I come here. While the menu may be short the food itself is complex and packed with flavor. You don’t find yourself wishing you could have more options because your regular is always excellent. The pork in the rich garlic ramen melts in your mouth, and the soft boiled eggs are always cooked to perfection. There is little more one could ask for in ramen.What they do at Yatagarasu they do well. This includes the drinks, which are plentiful, and range in price and preparation depending on your personal persuasion. If you do it right you can get a lot of bang for your buck though it’s a not a bar where you’d want to over indulge. It feels more akin to a high brow speakeasy, with its low lighting and secluded booths.If you want to watch a sports game, they almost always have women’s gymnastics on. It’s never so crowded as to be uncomfortable and the service is excellent. I deducted one star from the service score only because my last trip here our waiter seemed to be inexperienced and forgot our napkins, spoons, the towelettes that come with every meal, and the appetizer plates. I don’t usually like to harp on service as I know it’s a super challenging, under appreciated profession. However the experience was so jarringly different I had to mention it. Please, anyone who owns a restaurant, don’t throw your servers in the deep end if they’ve never waited tables before or had comprehensive training. It sucks all around, but especially for the server, because they end up evaluated and criticized for mistakes they probably would never have made had they had enough time and help to properly prepare. Good, slow service is always better than fast, poor service. That being said, all the other times I have been here the hospitality has been a 10/10. If you’re in Bloomington, even if you don’t consider yourself a ramen person, check this place out. You will leave with a full belly, surprised in the best way possible.“
“Delightfully impressed with the service, quality and cozy ambiance. The place is run by young people and we came in with a crowd of about 15. They were polite and had our orders out quickly. The boba menu has several options. It was not the best in town but still really enjoyable. I ordered the miso ramen and my partner ordered the Tonkatsu Ramen. They were both surprisingly delicious although I preferred the Tonkatsu best. The broth was top notch and flavorful. It had a hint of woodsy/mushroomy flavor which hit the spot. My friends had the Korean corn dogs and the chicken with had a wonderful array of spices. I kept my cup as it’s sturdy and reusable. My only complaints is the lack of dairy options for the milk teas(at least they weren’t listed) and the pork belly was slightly dry. I will definitely return for another filling lunch.“
“Pretty good local ramen experience. Their ramen noodles have great texture and the broth is delicious. They have a sampler platter for all the various ramen meats (with a side of a vinegar-type sauce) that's a good app to try to see what ramen bowel you'd like. The dumpling were the perfect chewy texture as well. Finally, I tried their oreo-based aqua tea and it was well-balanced and not too sweet (plus the oreo bits gave it a good mouth feel). I definitely recommend trying them at least once.“