We have been to their Speakeasy a year ago (which I need to write about it soon), but we haven’t had the chance to visit their restaurant until now. KEI (Izakaya and Ramen) offers Izakaya dishes, ramen, and other Japanese dishes. We went off hours so it was not busy, but this place can get packed! The inside is not that large, but has a good amount of table seating, and a handful of bar seating.
Their interior is quite cute. On one side of the wall, they have fans with all sorts of design. on the other side, they have all kinds of small figurines, mostly lucky cats. I enjoyed looking at all kinds of cats on the wall here.
This was one of the hot days, and although we wanted to get some cocktails to go with our dinner, we decided to get mocktails instead. Safety first, even at a restaurant…LOL. They had three mocktails to choose from, and we both ordered Yuzu White Peach Sparking ($12). It is made with Peach Jam and Peach Sparking. It came in a tall glass, with a nice gradation of colors. After the first sip, I was very happy! It was sooooo good, and with the sparkling, it was refreshing. Sweet but not overly sweet, you can actually taste the real peach flavor from the jam!
For appetizers, we ordered Chicken Karaage ($15), which is Fried Marinated Chicken over Coleslaw. It came with around five pieces of fried chicken, and they were pretty nice size. Some places give you small pieces, but here at KEI, they are good sized chicken pieces.
The fried chicken had crispy exterior that you can hear the crunch when you bite in, very appetizing sound! The marinate and batter made them very flavorful. The chicken was moist and juicy. Coleslaw was a nice touch against fried food. They were fresh and crunchy, and tasty too! I enjoyed that very much.
Again, this was a hot day, so we wanted a dish that was not going to heat up our body. They had interesting cold noodle dishes, one ramen, one udon. So, we decided to try Ramen Salad ($24) and Cold Udon with Tempura ($25). Just look how beautiful and appetizing they are!
We have a cold noodle dish called Hiyashi Chuka in Japan, but here at KEI, they have something unique and interesting. They offer Ramen Salad, made with Chilled Ramen Noodles with Avocado, Corn, Tomato, Arugula, and Sesame Dressing. Noodles were perfectly al dente, and veggies were super fresh. I love sesame dressing, so that was extra plus. But that was not all… The grilled corn was amazing, it looks something so simple, yet it was flavorful and delicious. Speaking of simple, they had two cherry tomatoes without the skin. When I ate one of them, I was almost shocked how amazing it was! I had to ask the server what they are marinated in, and he told me they are marinated in plum wine (but burned off the alcohol). THE best cherry tomato I have ever had, excellent flavor! Needless to say, it was a big hit, I really enjoyed this dish!
Cold Udon with Tempura is somewhat traditional Japanese dish, but the way it was presented was so elegant and beautiful. It came with fat, plump, and silky udon noodles. Dipping sauce was earthy and packed with flavor. Tempura pieces were huge and lightly fried so crispy outside without being greasy. Every piece of this dish was done with care, we loved it!
We ended our meal with their Vegan Matcha Cheesecake ($12). I’ve had vegan desserts before, and something like cheesecake can be hit or miss. I remember having more crumbly and dry kind, which I didn’t enjoy. Here at KEI, they sure knwo what they are doing, but their vegan cheesecake was so creamy, almost like a thick mousse! I don’t know how they do it. Strawberry compote was amazing, tasted homemade. The dessert itself was small, but rich and satisfying. Dusted with real matcha powder that gives the bitter flavor, which was nicely balanced out with sweet strawberry compote perfectly.
Their bathroom is slightly hard to find. Go down the hallway on the left side of the bar. It is a long hallway. At the end, turn right, and you will see three gender neutral bathrooms, one of them accessible. I heard some people are confused on how to open the door to these bathrooms, which I can completely understand. Some modern bathroom designs can be…well, you know. All you need to do is push, and if it opens, it is available. If it doesn’t, then it is occupied.
The accessible bathroom is quite large, clean and well maintained. The first two photos are from the accessible one. I did not see a changing table, but I assume not many people will go to a bar/izakaya with babies? The third photo is from the other, or regular gender-neutral bathroom. It is much smaller, but still very nice, well lit, and nicely maintained.
We had a really nice Sunday lunch here at KEI. The server was very friendly and attentive, he took a good care of us. Every dishes were made with high quality ingredients that you can taste. We enjoyed every bite, they were all excellent and memorable. I can see how much thought, time, and care went into each dish and drink. We would definitely go back again for more of their tasty offerings!
KEI (Izakaya and Ramen) – 193 7th Ave, New York, NY 10011