FYI, Nakiryu is a ramen restaurant in Otsuka that was one of three ramen restaurants in Tokyo to have a michelin star.
Now of course, the michelin star rating system doesn't mean that much in Japan, since many restaurants refuse them because they tend to bring in hordes of gaijin… but it does still mean a lot, and Tokyo has more stars than New York and Paris combined.
I went to Nakiryu before covid, and yeah, it was pretty f'ing good. The wait could be up to 4 hours, but I would get there before they open and only wait 90 minutes.
The shop was run like a military. 5 people coordinating in unison, and it was truly some of the best Dan Dan ramen I've ever had.
I just went yesterday and WOW. It was so shitty. They've implemented a ticketing system so you don't have to wait 2-3+ hours anymore and can just come back at your time which is nice… but DAMN, I cannot believe the drop in quality.
There were only TWO people working. The chef, and some errand boy who was both managing the outside seating system as well as delivering food and pouring water inside.
I took me 35 minutes to get my ramen after I sat down. Before, it took maybe 4 minutes? 35 minutes is an insane amount of time to wait for a bowl of ramen, but again, there was one chef cooking for every single person.
And the ramen was bad. It was like sour peanut soup, not even worth the calories.
Does anyone know what the deal is with Nakiryu?
Also, I've noticed this trend across many restaurants in Tokyo. The service has gotten shittier, slower, and the food worse.
What's going on?
by RedMoonLanding