Zutto Japanese American Pub

I really like ramen. It’s rare that there’s a bowl of ramen I don’t enjoy. Lots of other people like the ramen here. I just don’t get it. While I appreciate creativity and I like trying new things, the ramen here is just not for me. The restaurant looks pretty trendy though. Lots of wood accents. A bar near the hostess stand.
Left Hand Milk Stout, $ 7 — a very mild stout
Parma-​Karma Ramen — rosemary infused pork noodle soup topped with parmigiano-​reggiano, menma, fresh grated ginger, karashi, and scallions, $ 16
What a strange and unusual ramen option. I was curious enough to order it. After all, I love parm. I was hoping that the parm would make for a thick and rich broth. But nope.
First of all, I could see the parmigiano and I could smell it. But once it was in the soup, I couldn’t taste it, because the herbaceous flavors were so overpowering. With the first sip, I could detect all the flavors of the rosemary and ginger. I didn’t mind at first, but rosemary and ginger are quite strong. The taste of the fresh ginger (not pickled) kept building up. I couldn’t get the taste out of my mouth. I could barely taste anything else.
The noodles were pretty weak and disappointing. They were pretty thick, but didn’t have any flavor. At least it didn’t absorb too much of the broth’s flavor. They were still mediocre. While I ate, I kept biting into bitter pieces of burnt garlic.
I was definitely disappointed. Not to mention, $ 16 for a bowl of noodles with no egg and no meat is pretty pricey.
Tonkotsu Ramen — «tonkotsu» noodle soup topped with chasu, kikurage, menma, pickled ginger, sesame, and scallions, $ 14
The tonkotsu was slightly better, but still disappointing. Mr. Joy ordered this and he said they were definitely heavy handed with the ginger as well. Apparently there was a ton of fresh, un-​pickled ginger in this bowl too. There were only two tiny slivers of chashu. Pretty disappointing when the menu claims it is «topped with chashu.»
Also, this bowl appeared to have some pickled vegetables that remind me of a Chinese minced pork & pickled vegetable dish. (Does anyone have any idea what I’m talking about?) It was interesting as I’ve never seen pickled mushrooms in ramen before.
Kobe Beef Steamed Buns, $ 12
I needed some meat to go with my meal and I needed to taste something other than ginger and rosemary. So we decided to try the steamed buns. We received what looked like 2 mini hamburgers in white buns. It seems like a sin to take kobe and make ground beef out of it and cook it until it’s done, no? For $ 12, you are actually paying $ 6 for each mini burger. Also, ours didn’t have any tomatoes or caramelized onions, just a sour, spicy sauce.
The service was pretty weak too. A very large party sat near us and took up the focus, while we waited patiently for our check. I’m understanding if is a busy night. But the busboys cleared our table pretty early on. Then we were asked if we wanted dessert, to which we replied no. 20 minutes later, the waiter asked if we were ready for the check. I’m sorry, but what did you think we were waiting for all that time? I miss how in some countries, including Japan, you can pay at the counter on your way out instead of waiting for a waiter to notice that you would like to leave.
Perhaps I ordered all the wrong things. But usually if you’re craving ramen, tonkotsu should be a fail-​safe option. So that’s enough to deter me from returning.

«Ginger ramen with a side of ginger, please!» — said no one ever.
This place is overpriced for what it is. Known for their ramen, it really shouldn’t. As usual, I’ll go over the dishes we had and follow that up with a review of service, as well:
Tonkotsu Ramen — ²⁄₅. Like I said, too much ginger. I always taste the soup before anything else. The spoonfuls I drank tasted very gingery… this didn’t even include the pickled ginger which didn’t taste pickled at all. The picked mushrooms were a nice touch and the noodle were al dente (Not that I prefer much between al dente ramen noodles or cooked through. As long as they’re not mushy). What was the worst offense though was the two very thin slices of pork. No thicker than half a finger and no longer than a thumb. It was like eating a ginger, mushroom, noodle soup.
Parma Karma Ramen — ¹⁄₅. I only tasted a little bit of this. You could visibly see the parmesan, but not taste it. It was also overly gingery… if not more so than the Tonkotsu. Very expensive parmesan ginger noodle soup (no meat)
Kobe Beef Steamed Bun — ²⁄₅. It’s a mini hamburger. The uneven spread of the sauce, which ended up at the center of the fold of the steamed bun, was too spicy because none of it could reach this ball of meat. Did it taste Kobe-​worthy? Nope. It was decent, but it should really be called a Kobe Ground Beef Burger in a Steamed Bun.
Service — ⁰⁄₅. Once this group got seated, all the attention was on them. Having finished our meal and saying we didn’t want dessert, we didn’t receive a check for nearly 20 minutes. Pretty much unacceptable. Just leave the water pitcher on their table. No need for everyone to duck their head to the side so you can pour water one-​by-​one.
All-​in-​all, I definitely cannot recommend this restaurant for their ramen or their service. I wouldn’t come here again even if they comped us a meal.

I’m not often in the area, but when I’m in Tribeca I always make it a point to eat here. Their spicy miso ramen is solid — not quite on par with ippudo or totto, but only a hair behind, which for a non ramen place, is pretty damn impressive.
I once came here immediately after eating a disappointing and meager meal at Nobu down the street for restaurant week. As a taste test, I got the rock shrimp. I have to say that the significantly cheaper shrimp here was waaaay better than the restaurant week watered down version of rock shrimp at Nobu.

This place is way more western inspired than most japanese places around. for example, the Parma-​karma Ramen is rosemary infused pork ramen noodle soup w/​parmigiana reggiano cheese. the overall menu generally strays away from traditional japanese cuisine. the bibim nigiri is a must get though!!! think deconstructed bibimbap with seaweed wrapped around. The zutto fried rice comes w/​chorizo, kimchi, pastrami, and of course a fried egg!
they also have way more variations in ramen than almost any other ramen spot i know of. they have a seafood (z0mg manilla clams!!!), duck, wasabi shoyu, and even lentil based vegetarian ramen!!!
zutto is extremely vegan friendly for a sushi place. not only do they have your usual suspects but they’ve got the vegetarian lentil ramen, panko breaded cauliflower wings – a vegan favorite when it comes to party foods, steamed buns w/​portabella miso filling, tempura silken tofu, charred edamame, grilled nasu (eggplant w/​miso & sesame)
some people might criticize them for being all over the place (with the korean wings, gang nam pork, steamed buns, thai green papaya salad) but i love that their menu isn’t too huge and everything seems to be done well!

This place is the best. We ordered edamame, rock shrimp, & 3 rolls (fire, spicy salmon, yellowtail jalapeño). We ended up ordering another edamame after dinner because they were so delicious!
The edamame comes out charred with some amazing seasoning — probably the best I’ve ever had. The rock shrimp is definitely the best I’ve ever had! The shrimp are medium sized, lightly battered and the sauce is perfectly portioned on the shrimp. The sushi was good, pretty average but we didn’t try any adventurous rolls.
Will definitely be coming back & trying the buns!

Buns here are really great. Steaming hot and filled with meat. Really good
Fish is fresh and delicious. Tuna avocado appetizer is really good.
Service is quick and atmosphere is casual and nice. Would come back if in the area

3.5 STARS
Came here for my yearly group reunion with friends. Everything was good except the ramen.
PROS:
Appetizers
— Short Ribs Steamed Bun $ 11 for 2 — Pretty good. A little on the salty side.
— Pork Belly Buns $ 11 for 2 — Yum!
— Sashimi Appetizer $ 22 — 9 pieces of assorted raw fish. Fish was pretty fresh and yummy.
— Calamari was fried and laced in mixed mayo sauce.
THE OKAY:
— Shisoto Peppers — fried peppers. It’s not super spicy.
— Buffalo Cauliflower — panko breaded cauliflower with hot sauce. It’s alright. The cauliflower tasted sort of like heavy dose of sweet and sour asian sauce with a light hint of spiciness.
— Dragon Roll $ 14 — it’s decent.
— Maya’s Mule (cocktail) was very weak and it tasted very watered down. I saw the ingredients ginger beer and lime and it was right up my alley however the drink itself was a little disappointing.
CONS:
— Duck Ramen — I didn’t like the ramen they used. It was way too thick. Duck was a little on the fat and dry side. I wouldn’t get their ramen in general. 1 STAR
— Zutto messed up by charging an extra $ 7 to three of my friend’s credit cards. Thankfully we looked at our receipts closely and they refunded it back to us in the end.
NOTE: I wouldn’t go out of my way to come here nor do I see myself coming back here except maybe for the buns and sashimi.

A cute ambiance with good food. I’ve been here twice before — once for dinner and again for lunch — and enjoyed both times. Everything we’ve ordered from the specials to ad-​hoc items on the menu to drinks were delightful. It’s, however, a tad pricey for items you can get at another venue at a lower rate (i.e. Ramen for ~$ 16) but what can I say? Since Zutto is in this location, the pricing is relatively average.
It’s never been busy the two times I came here (once around 7pm and once around noon — both times during a weekday). The servers are kind and attentive but are a bit on the slower side when it comes to preparing the food so I don’t recommend coming here when you’re in a rush.

The food is okay. Definitely recommending the pork belly buns. Those are just simply delicious.
But that was it. Décor was surprisingly tacky for an izakaya + Tribeca. There was a cheap looking sushi area that took away from the aesthetic not to mention the rather sad looking Christmas tree. The food took quite a long time and when it got there they forgot one (of four). To their credit they gave us a free dessert to compensate.
The ramen was mediocre.

Great place for a late night grub or a special occasion. We had a bunch of appetizers and tried three different soups — everything was super delicious! I can’t wait to come back to try more things.

Food: had tonkatsu ramen. Decent. Didn’t blow my mind but ok.
Place: good service. Very comfy and relaxed atmosphere.

Fine. Not awesome, but totally acceptable ramen in Tribeca. I got the tonkotsu, he the spicy miso. Spicy miso lacked any actual spice, tonkatsu lacked the body and sheer depth of flavor I’ve come to expect from the best ramen places in town these days. Good, juicy chashu, slightly overcooked noodles.
Didn’t deliver one of our dishes but it remained on the bill. Accommodating to kids though clearly not entirely happy to do so (I get it, kids can be a mess in a restaurant).
Not a place we’d likely return to, though if we were in a pinch in tribeca, we’d make it work. Overall, not a bad option, just a bit underwhelmed.

Fan.
The ambiance feels like an american pub but with japanese food, which is an interesting twist. And hence the name.
Get their spicy miso ramen– and add the egg. Always a fan of spicy and miso, this combo works well together and I’ve tried it at many places and enjoy how Zutto’s version has more of a garlic, gingery taste.
Don’t fo get to Check into Unilocal and get a free Sapporo beer.
Great service — they brought out the wrong order for my friend and quickly rectified the problem as well as brought out a free appetizer and dessert.

I was looking for a nice sushi restaurant to go with my cousin who was staying downtown at the «W». I was also looking for something reasonably priced. Zutto was recommended by 2 different friends. It did not disappoint. We got there at 5:15 and it was not crowded at that time. The space is very warm and inviting.
We were able to take advantage of happy hour, drinks and appetizers. The cauliflower appetizer was great. I had sashimi and got a great piece of uni on the side. My cousin had ramen. We were both really happy with our dinners. The service was terrific, we had the nicest server. By the time we left, it was pretty crowded.

Zutto seemed exactly like a place I’d love. How disappointing the real experience was.
I ordered a Sapporo and then mentioned the Unilocal deal to my server and she told me she couldn’t honor it because I ordered the beer first without showing her my checkin. I thought she was joking because this happened literally seconds after I sat down. Understandable if I waited all meal and got the FINAL check that would be my mistake but this experience kicked off my extremely lackluster meal.
Ordered the Spicy Miso ($ 14). Their ramen falls flat. The noodles are mediocre (not particularly fresh) and the broth’s flavor never peaks. It’s almost amazing to have a bowl of ramen that’s so completely lacking in Umami depth.
TriBeCa is so starved for ramen options and if you’re in dire need of it Zutto is a good reminder that planning ahead, traveling, waiting for ramen is worth it — probably why their rating is so high. Skip this place for ramen and travel to the Village instead.

By the name you should already know it is American says it all and it is in Tribeca. If you don’t know, the sebastian of upper white hipster neighborhood second to UES.
The restaurant was full of this. The loudish, Japanese-​ish style interior was filling up quickly with the dinner crowd. We started with the sweet/​sour calamari, shishito peppers, kobe beef steam buns. The signage about touts the lengthy methods why which the ramen broth was made so of course we had to try the ramen. Two got the seafood ramen and I got the Tonkotsu ramen.
The calamari had a nice crispy without over cooking the squid. The shishito peppers was covered lemon salt and came with an aioli dipping sauce. The steam bun looked liked a hamburger but with a steam bun. The ramen came with thick noodles and broth was overly sweet more suited for Western Tribeca taste palette. My taste buds didn’t like the lobster ramen broth.
I think the best part of the meal was the dessert which was the least Asian dish. The banana bread pudding with vanilla ice cream and the crispy fried mochi with green tea ice cream on the side all were great but took awhile to come out.

This spacious restaurant has a very casual feel to it — lots of thick, wooden furniture, large chalk boards on the wall with sake options, view of the sushi bar, outdoor seating. The menu for lunch is very limited and pricey — average $ 15 per plate (not including tax and tip). The list has no more than 5 items — very limited considering the location.
As for service, we were immediately seated — granted the venue was empty — and were provided menus. We placed our orders within minutes — we were a party of 4 and our orders were very simple (none from the lunch options). Considering it was empty and the orders were simple sushi requests, the wait was above average. It makes me wonder if I arrived during a busy hour, would I have waited much longer for food. Also, my appetizer was given after my entrée — I ordered edamame and a specialty sushi roll.
The food tasted great. Presentation was on point. The edamame was served with a chili salt — dynamite!!! The sushi was made up of tempura shrimp and spicy tuna — delightful! However, the size of the sushi roll was awfully small. The ratio of rice to fish was equal. Their delicious rolls should be an inch or two larger.
Will I return… Um that’s up for debate because my simple order cost $ 25 and there are quite a few sushi restaurants nearby with lunch options providing the same rolls… With that said, please make larger rolls to justify the price.

Alright, I’ve grown to love this place. Eating in is definitely better than taking out.
I still order the kimchi ramen, but I have them put seafood in it instead of the pork. Soooo warming and delicious.
The gyoza are not tough at all when ordered in house, they’re some of the best I’ve ever had.
The rolls are absolutely off the charts. I’ve loved them all, the dragon roll, the fire roll (Shrimp tempura, Avocado w/​Spicy Tuna on top, Wasabi Mayo, Eel Sauce), the tribeca. It’s always as fresh as you could dream of and super tasty.
Service is also great (taking about you Erica!). Go go go and sit outside. They also have these funky little bathrooms with all these old timey… things in the hallway. I added some photos.
ETA: OMG you guys the chorizo ramen is amaaaazing. They serve it for $ 10 on Tuesday’s and it’s my new favorite thing. Ask for it extra spicy (ask for anything extra spicy, actually) — they bring you out siracha and chili oil and let you go nuts.
ETA2: It’s fall and they have curry ramen. CURRY. GO GO GO.
Edited to add 3: The chipotle teriyaki skirt steak is so freakin good, and it’s a great bargain too for $ 18. It’s served over a bed of rice with a side of broccoli rabe AND a side of guacamole. I know you may be thinking that curry ramen and skirt steak with guac make this Japanese restaurant a fusion joint. Maybe, but I don’t think of it as one. And if it is, it’s possibly the first one I’ve ever eaten at that didn’t suck. I love you Zutto.

This is definitely not a traditional ramen place but they offer many options that are quite good. The service is a little slow for lunch but friendly enough.
We started with the calamari that was nicely light and crispy. It came with a really great spicy, vinegary green papaya slaw.
The duck ramen is delicious with the noodles cooked perfectly. The broth is a bit oily but not surprising since it is duck and had a lot of flavor. The Parma Karma had a nice herbal Italian-​influenced broth that was interesting and worked well.
There is outdoor seating for people watching and is a great choice for the area. Would love to try some of their other unique ramen offerings.

Solid sushi and buns
Had the Short Rib Bun… juicy, well marinated, and melted in my mouth. Also had the Tribeca, Crazy Sake, and Fire Roll… all were fresh and well prepared.
Unilocal check-​in discount for a free beer, love that.
Will be back for the Ramen, believe that.