Nakaya Japanese Bistro

I have eaten at Nakaya a couple times about a couple years ago when it just opened up. Maybe because they were just open and not trained or what, but it was just an okay experience
I think the price was right and food was good portioned. But their rice balls weren’t presented nicely. The quail eggs in ramen were way overcooked and hard. Katsu was good but the service seemed small and the restaurant was just vast and empty with several dining tables.

I was excited for this ramen joint but after the third visit it was a big disappointment. The chef must not taste their soup because it was EXTREMELY salty. I tried my best to finish it but couldn’t get through half of the bowl. I don’t think it worth price for a salty ramen. I felt like I was overdosing on salt! I had the regular ramen and my husband got the spicy miso ramen both were a disappointment.
Chef, please taste your soup before you serve. It is not healthy to overload on sodium!

I had high hopes for this place since it has Ramen and rice balls and I was okay with everything I got. I just wasn’t a fan of the filling inside the rice balls. I wish they just filled it with some smoked salmon or something but I’ll ask them next time if they can and just charge extra. I just got the regular ramen and it was okay, I wasn’t a huge fan of the broth but the pork was good. I’ll try the udon next time. I liked the octopus balls and the Japanese fried chicken. The curry powder on it was a bit much though, just like they sprinkled a bunch on it. The service was friendly and all the tables were filled when I got there so I had to wait a little while but I’m glad they were busy on a Saturday night. Can’t wait to try more things next time I go.

In my Ramen hunt around the Bay area & after seeing so many good reviews i REALLY wanted to check this place out for quite some time. After my visit, i’m sad to say i couldn’t help but walk away just a little disappointed.
Maybe my taste buds have been spoiled by having had the chance to eat ramen at a few memorable places in NYC (ippudo, momofuku … just to name a few) this one fell a little short in comparison.
Chashu Ramen — the ramen was very salty. A friend who also was eating with us also considered herself a «ramen snob» and has had ramen at numerous spots in California also thought the same. I was totally shocked! The pork pieces in the ramen were huge but a little tough and seemed like it had been cooked a little too long. The noodles were good but what killed it was the salty broth.
Takoyaki — This was the one dish i was also really excited to have because i dont know of any other places in the bay area that has this authentic Japanese dish. This dish consists of Battered deep fried balls of octopus pieces covered with shaved bonito flakes. Although it came with four pieces, they were very small and the batter just tasted like globs of fried fat.
Karaage appetizer — Deep fried pieces of chicken which pretty much tasted just like that … deep fried pieces of chicken. nothing out of the ordinary here in taste as it was just flavorless to me even with the mayo like tasting sauce it came with.
Maybe it was just the fact that it was super busy here when we arrived (A Wed’s night), the place only had one cook at the time & the waiter was very nice so ill give it a silght pass. this place has a lot of potential and i really hope they do well but for now ill just have to keep on with my ramen search.

Absolutely fantastic, Best Ramen I’ve had in US.
Reasonable price.
Pretty shabby environment though.

The ramen is a joke. Don’t even bother. I returned mine. The owner didn’t take the item off my check until I asked for her to remove it!
I then tried a couple appetizers which were good.

Nakaya Japanese Bistro is a wonderfully refreshing addition to South Tampa. While I love all of the dining options we have in Tampa, it lacked an authentic Japanese restaurant whose sole focus was not sushi or hibachi. Nakaya delivers just that!
Situated next to Walgreens on Platt St (where you would turn left to jump on the crosstown), it is adorned with humble, understated décor. We came hungry and sampled a lot!
Why 4 stars instead of 5?
Fresh tuna tataki: some of the freshest, best sliced tuna tataki I’ve had! And only $ 5 for a half order (5 pieces) FIVE STARS
Karaange (deep fried chicken dusted with curry powder) It was okay, but we definitely wouldn’t order it again. THREE STARS
Takoyaki (fried octopus balls adorned with pickled root vegetable, bonita flakes, and Japanese mayonnaise)… it was different than I’ve had before (the ball was not as crispy as I’ve had in the past. Still a unique appetizer that we will order again. FOUR STARS
Garlic Beef Ramen… great flavor; way too salty though. We added some water to dilute it and it was perfect. The ramen were cooked al dente and were fresh; not that cheap sh*t you got to cook in your dorms in college. FOUR STARS
Spicy Miso Ramen… good flavor; not as spicy as I was hoping for. The flavors were great, but again, way too salty. Diluted and tasted much better. FOUR STARS.
Japanese donuts & ice cream: I mean what’s not to love about fried dough done right? Great end to our meal. FIVE STARS
We will be making this a weekly visit. This place is awesome!

My shriveled tongue couldn’t keep its taste buds off of my husbands Ponzu chicken dish for lunch. I was so excited about having a Ramen place near home but mine was ridiculously salty. I’m not trying to be rough; I mean, how do you make sure that every bowl is going to taste right? There was a man in uniform eating lunch that day next to us. I couldn’t help but feel bad, I saw he had ordered the Ramen too. It’s a cute place it only has a few tables. It’s roomy, but it only has just a few-​small-​tables. Perplexing.
Every single dish tasted right in the Philippines at this place called Ramen bar. Every single dish was perfect there. If you are traditional Japanese, then I have to compare you to that. Maybe I’ll come back, my discrimination only reflects the batch of ramen that I tasted.
Calling all Ramen!!!

What a great little place. I went on a Friday for lunch, and had an excellent meal. The dining room is larger than you would think from the outside, and tables are well spaced out. It made the room feel very peaceful and very relaxing.
Service was quick and friendly, and my bottle of diet soda came right out, as well as a little ramekin of complimentary appetizer. For my meal I started with one of their specials — a half order of tuna tataki. Delicious. The order consisted of 5 fresh pieces of tuna.
Then on to the ramen. I had their spicy miso ramen, but because I’m a baby, I asked for the spicy on the side. It was perfect. Flavorful broth, chock full of chopped pork, fresh noodles, and I loved that I could adjust the spice to what worked for me. My original intention was to bring half home, but it was so good I ate the entire bowl!
I was not in a hurry, so the fact that food took a bit of time to come out, leaving me plenty of time to chat with my friends, was fine — but if you are on a tight time schedule, be aware. I will definitely be back, as I can’t wait to try everything on the menu!

So I am a huge ramen fanatic… I usually hit a noodle place in each city that I visit. I even make ramen at home (full on dumplings, veggies, and hard boiled egg) so when I saw everyone checking in to the place, I had to try it out.
We went around 2 pm so we were the only ones there. The waitress was very friendly and the service was very quick. We decided to order the Takoyaki which is the fried octopus balls. I have had them when they are crispy, this one was mushy and not to my liking. We also ordered the tuna tartare that was just ok. We also ordered the hamachi Kama which is the cheekbone of the yellow tail. It was good but I would prefer it to be grilled a little more to make it crispier.
Next came our soup which I ordered the spicy miso soup. The waitress also bought out an extra glass of water for me because she said the soup broth can be spicy. If you guys know me, I can eat super spicy. The broth was not spicy to me so I had to ask for sriracha on the side to add to it. The description said there would be ground pork in it… I barely had any in mine. The broth was a little bland for my liking.
Overall, the service was excellent but the ramen was ok.

Went there yesterday w/​my children, 8 & 6 & we love it! We all had the miso soup & it was great. Both my kids ordered California roll & both cleaned their plates. I ordered the green tea to drink & the spicy ramen! Love it so much! Just like my mom used to make! This place is authentic! Both the cook & the hostess were so incredibly sweet! They gave my kids an avocado tree to take home! Two thumbs up for sure!

I do not want to appear ungrateful. It is great that Tampa has a Japanese ramen restaurant with a Japanese owner and cook that serves mainly ramen. However, in my opinion, the best dishes at Nakaya are not the ramen.
The ramen soup bases are very salty, I have had both the shio and the tonkotsu soups. The noodles are just fine. But, the saddest part is the chashu pork… it is dry, flavorless, and flaking apart. Not falling apart, but flaking into shards because it is so dry. The egg is hard boiled. Hard boiled eggs are more likely to be used in cold Japanese dishes. To be honest, I have used the pre-​made ramen mixes at home with better results. Also, the vacuum packed chashu pork is better.
Other Japanese restaurants in Tampa have better ramen and pork.
Nakaya shines in their excellent customer service, adorable location, and snack dishes. My favorites are the karaage chicken, onigiri, and takoyaki. The karaage dark meat morsels are the perfect representation of this dish.
The takoyaki are also excellent and so are the oshinko. The onigiri is clasically formed with salted hands and are massive. I recommend to come here with multiple people to sample the ramen, and order many side dishes.
The building is hiding behind a drugstore, and a little difficult to spot.

I have been to Nakaya several times in the past few months and I am definitely a fan. It is located at the end of a shopping plaza, tucked away, almost hidden by the Walgreens. Let me tell you, it is worth the stop.
The restaurant is simply decorated with very few tables. The owner could fit more tables in the restaurant, but I am glad he doesn’t. The restaurant is never too busy and never too crowded, and I would like to keep it that way.
The service is very good and the servers are always attentive and friendly. The food is always fresh and delicious.
I have tried several of the appetizers. The Agedashi Tofu is fried to a perfect consistency, and is delicious. The Rice Balls are gigantic, tasty, and inexpensive. The Gyoza is very good, too.
But the ahhhhh… the ramen. The ramen is oh so good. I find myself craving it all the time. Being the creature of habit I am, I always order the Chashu Ramen. It is chock-​full of giant pork slices, noodles galore, bamboo shoots, and a quail egg… yum!
I have now turned my friend into an addict, as well. He always orders the Spicy Miso Ramen. His sinuses have been cleared and is blowing his nose non-​stop by the time he has finished his meal, but he says it is well worth it.
Keep in mind that the ramen broth is soy sauce based and is salty. I am a salt-​a-​holic, so this suits me fine.
Nakaya has a great Happy Hour too! 2 for 1 Sake!
I will definitely be putting Nakaya on my weekly rotation for meals. I plan on visiting for lunch, too. They have some great lunch specials!

Great food! Ramen is sweet, but not overwhelming. Staff is helpful, happy to see you, and super helpful. And the décor is perfect, being well thought out in its simplicity.
I’m coming back next week to try more of the menu!

Quick Summary: A decent variety of ramen, though not a ramen specialty shop. It’s more of a casual shop with a variety of palate pleasing japanese dishes; a good place to go if you’re branching out of your normal cuisines.
Tampa doesn’t have a lot of ramen offerings, but I had a craving and was happy to see that they had a good variety here, my personal favorite Spicy Miso Ramen :)
Before we got to the ramen, started with a couple of appetizers. They’ve got a pretty long list of appetizer, which are perfect for the sharing. Decided to go with Chashu and Kaarage. If you’ve never had Chashu (charshui, chasiu… various spellings) it’s an asian style bbq, more on the lighter side not as strongly flavored as American style. It was pretty mild here, but the sauce added some good flavor. The Kaarage is a like very lightly breaded fried chicken pieces; I really enjoyed these as the chicken was quite moist and flavorful.
My go to ramen for comparison is the spicy miso, and I was pretty happy with the ones I got here. The broth was a little lighter in flavor than I prefer, but the heat was definitely there. I think it would be cooler if you could customize the ramen; I like mine with some fresh garlic, corn, and a barely hard boiled egg… mmm mmm… but the bowl I had here was still pretty satisfying.
It can be a little hard to find this location, squeezed inbetween a bank and a CVS. But they’ve got some pretty solid food; a good place to take some friends that are looking to expand their food horizons a little bit!

My friend and I were drawn to this place for one and only reason– it had ramen. Glorified bonified ramen, like the made from scratch kind that has been sadly represented by the cheaper kind that is the foodstuffs of dorms. Don’t get me wrong, I love that stuff too.
But it’s just not everyday you find a ramen house in the Tampa Bay Area and lo and behold it was here.
It’s not very obviously advertised and hidden behind a Walgreens but in the quieter part of downtown Tampa on the verge on Davis Island. It was quiet and plainly decorated but the waitstaff were super nice and the ramen was worth the drive. Perhaps not the drool worthy beef curry ramen I had once experienced in Annandale, VA (right outside of DC) — but it will suffice.

I went with a friend a few weeks ago. We ordered the chashu ramen, takoyaki, and fried assortment. The takoyaki and assortment of fried stuff were okay but nothing special. The ramen itself had decently chewy noodles. The broth was however over-​salted though somewhat flavorful. I’d say the main downfall was that the chashu was not only kind of cold but super tough to chew. I tried to rejuvenate it by dunking it in broth, but it could only do so much. I did appreciate the shichimi provided for the ramen. I also enjoyed the quail egg.

Nakaya is a casual dining Japanese restaurant located along Platt Street in downtown Tampa that specializes in homemade ramen noodle dishes and so much more.
It’s tricky to find this place, so here are some suggestions to make your life easier. Nakaya occupies the space formerly held by the Second Line Café, and before that by Nola Café. It is in a tiny little retail strip sitting next door to a big Walgreens on the corner of Platt and S. Hyde Park Avenue. If you pull in to the Walgreens parking lot and follow the signs towards their drive-​through pharmacy pick-​up window, you’ll find Nakaya in the little building on your right, near Plant Avenue.
Once inside the doors of Nakaya you’ll find a very minimalist, but charming restaurant with about 10 tables and some space at the sushi bar. There are photos of the menu posted here in the Unilocal pictures, and you’ll see that they have a number of tasty noodle dishes, sushi, sashimi, rice balls, curry, and other traditional Japanese entrées for lunch and dinner.
Brittany and I arrived for dinner, and we were promptly greeted and seated. The waitress brought over glasses of water and stood there to explain the menu and answer questions before scampering off to get us some hot green tea. We decided to share a sashimi salad appetizer, and that arrived within a few minutes. The slices of raw tuna, salmon, and snapper sat atop a mixed greens salad and we had a little dish of ponzu sauce off to the side for dipping the fish and pieces of salad.
For my main course I ordered a bowl of chashu ramen which turned out to be homemade ramen noodles with spinach, seaweed, a cooked and halved quail egg, bamboo shoots, green onion, and slices of pork loin happily floating in a delightful soy-​infused broth and sprinkled with sesame seeds. The noodles were cooked al dente so they had a nice chewy texture, rather than the usual tasteless blob that comes out of the cellophane ramen noodle soup package from your grocery store.
My date ordered an extremely healthy-​looking bowl of vegetable tempura seated on top of buckwheat soba noodles with a similar presentation of broth and veggies. Both of these noodle bowl /​soups were very tasty, and we were happily pulling up the noodles with our chopsticks and trying our best not to slurp too loudly (although I am told that slurping is quite normal and a sign of respect to the cooks). But hey, I was on a date and trying to show off some good manners.
The food was very delicious and extremely budget-​friendly. I do hope that Nakaya is successful and stays around longer than their predecessors. Yes you should go, and slurp loudly my Unilocal friends!

I found it refreshing to find a Japanese restaurant that is not centered around hibachi or sushi. I read an article about Nakaya in the paper and really wanted to try it. The restaurant can be a little hard to find, but I knew where it was because I had eaten at the restaurant that was there before it became Nakaya. When we arrived the restaurant was almost full. We were lucky to grab the last empty table. The menu had a lot of choices but we found ourselves frustrated by it. It provided sparse details about some items and no details about many others. What’s Chashu ramen and how does it differ from the regular ramen option? You certainly won’t find out from the lunch menu. We pretty much had to interview our poor waitress with «What is this?» and more «What is this?» questions about menu items.
I ended up selecting a lunch special, which I thought was a good bargain for the amount of food you get. For eight dollars I got ponzu chicken, miso soup, and a salad. The ponzu chicken was pretty good.
The hostess and the wait staff were extremely friendly, but the service was so slow. It was well over an hour from our arrival time to our departure. I couldn’t have lunch here again on a work day because of that, but I’d be interested in coming back for dinner and trying one of their ramen dishes.

First good sign was that it was difficult to decide what to order because there were so many dishes on the menu that appealed to me.
Second was the attentive service. The staff is cordial, respectful and helpful. Make that a great sign.
Third good indicator was that the food was so very enjoyable. The spicy tuna roll truly lived up to its promised spiciness which never seems to happen. My choice of two rolls were preceded by a crisp, tasty salad with dressing and miso soup that was flavorful and not over-​the-​top salty.
The premise of this small but charming establishment seems to be to keep the look and feel simple but inviting and the food simply well prepared.
Hope this is a place that not just survives but thrives. And that I get the chance to try everything that caught my eye on the menu.