The chain originated in London in 1992 and now has 227 locations worldwide, eight of which are in the U.S. It's a full-service and high-energy concept inspired by fast-paced, Japanese ramen bars.
Most of the tables are lunchroom-style, so you'll be seated next to other parties. You'll likely be able to see directly into the kitchen from where you're sitting. It's social and inviting. A catch-all for any occasion.
The menu has a lot going on — not to the extent of the Cheesecake Factory, but it gives a similar level of decision paralysis. This place is a gold mine if you're in the mood for a little bit of everything because you can somehow order a chicken katsu curry and freshly squeezed juice off the same menu.
For the sake of all of our attention spans, we'll keep things brief. Options are a mix of Japanese, Chinese and Korean cuisine. Big plates are divided into a few categories: ramen, teppanyaki, rice dishes, curry and a "Nourish Yourself" section, with healthier options. Then you have shareables, wraps, desserts, drinks and a kids' menu.
The final stretch of happy hour was going on when we sat down. Monday through Friday there are $5 beers (yum), $10 cocktails, $5 wines (yummer) and $10 sake bombs (let's go). Food items from the shareable section range from $4 to $6.
Next time we'd order more than one boat of tuna tataki, which is just $6 during happy hour.
Aaren Prody
Everything comes in half sizes for happy hour, so calling them 'shareable' would be a touch inaccurate. The small, eco-friendly serving boats are downright individual. Luckily this was a solo dining trip; order generously if you're going with an entourage.
The tuna is worthy of a double order. Dressed in a citrus ponzu and Japanese mayo, it's fresh and melts in your mouth. The calamari wasn't anything to write home about since the squid was more of a vessel for a chili cilantro dipping sauce.
Considering that Wagamama has produced enough ramen noodles to circle the globe 64 times, the chili shrimp and kimchi ramen deserved a rightful spot as our entree.
Charred shrimp, kimchi, cilantro, green onion and mung bean sprouts generously decorated our piping hot bowl. The broth was rich and full of flavor; the noodles fall on the softer side, if that's your preference. It's as good as chain ramen gets, although $18 was pretty steep.
To finish things off we grabbed a matcha cheesecake, which is subtly sweet and leans closer to the cake side of a cheesecake since it's slightly crumbly. The vanilla ice cream helped bring moisture back to our bites.
Generally, the parking in Uptown is two things: non-existent or nothing short of a nightmare and at least $10. Thankfully, Wagamama is one of the few restaurants around that offers free parking with the validation of a receipt. That means their happy hour sake bomb is technically free. That's how we do maths.
Wagamama, 2425 Harry Hines Blvd., Sunday – Thursday, 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.; Friday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.
