The moment I found out that a Jinya Ramen Bar would be opening up in the Pike and Rose area, I was pretty much counting down the days until they announced their grand opening, haha. I have been to other Jinya restaurants a bunch of times - mostly in the Seattle area, but there are also other locations near here in DC and VA - and have always enjoyed their ramen. This location officially opened yesterday on the 6th, but I had the chance to try it out with my friend C and other local ramen fans at the preview event the night before!
I like the setup of the outdoor dining space - especially this large communal table with a fire pit in the center.
The preview event definitely made sure that no one left hungry - there were lots of passed appetizers and mini bowls of ramen throughout the night!
One of my favorite bites are the Takoyaki, which consists of a soft flour-based batter with tender pieces of octopus as the main ingredient. The octopus was super tender in every bite.
The mini wonton tacos with salmon poke (above) and spicy tuna (not shown, but definitely enjoyed, haha) were also delicious.
The place filled up pretty quickly once the event got started. I really liked the exposed lighting and upside down planters, which looked really nice above the bar/communal high top tables!
The crispy chicken (karaage) appetizer was seasoned really well and very crispy on the outside without being dry on the inside. It's one of my favorite Japanese foods, and this one did not disappoint.
And now to the main event - the ramen! They served a number of mini bowls so we could try out the different flavors. I love that they did this, so we could really get a good taste of the chicken, vegan, and pork broths, the thin/thick noodles, and the various toppings.
Chicken Ramen
Spicy Creamy Vegan Ramen
Tonkotsu Black Ramen
Judging from the preview event crowd, the neighborhood is definitely excited to have a new ramen restaurant in the area!
Jinya Ramen Bar
Pike & Rose
910 Prose Street
North Bethesda, MD 20852
Great seeing you there. Love the pics!
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