Menkui Tei in the East Village is the best Ramen restaurant in NYC. Right off the vibrant St. Mark s street, it’s delicious Japanese comfort food at its best, and a quick meal there is enough to lift anyone s spirits. It’s my first stop whenever I have crummy day, and I can even afford it on a broke NYU student budget! You can’t lose with this place!
The restaurant is simple, crammed full of tables and stools with only minimal (but still pretty interesting) décor, focusing on light and lines, but the food is excellent. They have a huge selection of ramen dishes, including several different kinds of broth. The pork bone broth is particularly delicious. Noodle bowls are enormous, filling, and customizable with a wide variety of extras, from butter to chives to seasoned boiled eggs. In addition to the noodles, they have wonderful fried-rice dishes and a huge and amazing selection of Japanese tapas, small appetizers that range from gyoza to miniature pan-friend octopuses to amazing Japanese-style fried chicken.
It’s also a great place to grab a drink; Menkui Tei has a pretty good selection of sakes, as well as a huge list of fun shochu cocktails. You can also get Sapporo and imported Asahi beer on tap. You can even bring your friends and get a beer pitcher; they have a special beer-and-fried-chicken deal that’s perfect for a group.
Menkui Tei is always a little crowded at dinnertime, and on some weekends when St. Marks is crowded you have to wait in line to get in. During off hours it’s not crowded at all, but if you arrive and find it packed, you can always get take out or delivery. It’s a wonderful, cheap place where the food always makes you feel awesome.
