Wagamama

We are regulars here of an early Saturday evening. Our recent trip was the first after the venue’s recent makeover (which is nice, and creates a few slightly more private areas). We found the service to be friendly and efficient as always and the food 100% consistent with our previous experience. Great spot for a quick, moderately-​priced bite.

As far as chains go, this one is ok. This particular branch is nice as it is really big and spacious but it is at basement level so there is no natural light and not much to look at so not somewhere you can while away the hours, well, I can’t. I always have the same dish when I go in here as it is so good — The Wagamama Ramen, which is noodles in a miso, ginger and chicken soup topped with grilled chicken, barbecued pork, prawns, mussels, a tea-​stained egg, chikuwa and wakame. garnished with menma and spring onions. It is so good and tasty and warming. Perfect on a cold winter’s day and it is a huge portion all for € 14.95, expensive, but worth it!

The pulled pork donburi bowl is worth returning for again and again — it’s laced with plum sauce and has lots of good bits like butternut squash, asparagus, and red onions. It’s wonderful at 13.95 and comes with a side of miso soup.
The setting is very casual in the main space — shared seating in a picnic table setting. But, I prefer the rear dining area where there are booths and softer lighting.
The staff is always pleasant and they check in on their patrons pretty regularly.
Also, if you are loving the juice healthy smoothie craze, then check out their offerings. If you’re a healthy eater in general, this is a pretty sweet spot.
What else? Brown Thomas employees get a 10% discount so it’s nice to head over there for a post shift dinner or lunch!
If you want to know what wagamama means, read the menu while you’re waiting for your eats!

Large portions and friendly staff, but nowhere near as tasty as other asian places in the city. Unreasonably long queues.

I’ve had the ramen, katsu curry, yakitori & gyoza here so many times over the past 16 years. Food service has always been fast & the staff quick to replenish drinks. Today I tried the firecracker prawns for the first time; it was sweet, spicy & delicious. Pity Japanese food in Dublin costs x3 times what it does in Tokyo. At least there’s a student 2 for 1 on mains & the occasional grabone or livingsocial voucher.

Rather than going for a main, we decided to go for a bunch of starters (we had a voucher to blow on € 30) as neither of us were particularly starved!
On the whole, it was okay, not great not bad but definitely not the kind of place I’ll be running back to. But then I wouldn’t scream blue murder about meeting someone here either if pushed to.
The wok fried greens and chili prawns were delicious, the pork bulgogi was pretty good, the chicken yakitori was definitely poor and the ebi gyoza was without doubt the worst gyoza I’ve ever had, hands down!
Also the waitress we had was over the top pushy practically ordering the menu for us. Not something I appreciate I gotta say.

Well what a place this particular restaurant. Its actually quite hidden. hehehe. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit their. The staff, were most pleasant. I went along with a group of Vegetarians, that I’m a member of. Following is the meal I had.
Cha Han yasai
AND
A Selection of Seasonal Sorbets
When I arrived, I was greeted with a lovely smile and get this, a FREE Green Tea. I must have had about 3 or 4 Green Teas. Imagine that. eheheh.
Although the price was on the high side, I was most impressed. Its actually of Japanese Cuisine. Very well laid out. The restaurant in question is underneath Dunnes Stores of Stephens Shopping Center. I asked for a Cha Han, which NORMALLY comes with chicken and Egg something to that effect, however, I was wanting a vegetarian. So I asked the waiter, what would he recommend, he recommended the above WITHOUT Egg, which made it Vegan. I was so delighted with this. I thoroughly enjoyed it. When I think about it, it is well worth the price. VERY filling. Especially with me devouring it. The dish came with as follows: Stir-​fried Rice with Fried Tofu MINUS Egg to make it Vegan etc.,
Then after a few minutes, I got myself a dessert for about € 5. Considering the amount I received, I actually thought it was very good value. heeheh. It was fantastic and so tasty. It consisted of Green Tea Sorbet; Mango; Passion Fruit Sorbet. Oh it was so scrumptious. All three were scoops. eheheh

Wagamama is the fast food alternative if you have cravings for Asian food. They have an extensive enough menu to cover all tastes and the flavours are quite real. It has got a bit pricey for veijg what it is (between 10 – 15 € per main dish and the drinks range between 3.50 and 5 €) but it does the job for a late asian dinner without aby fuss.

This is basically my «go-​to» place for lunch and dinner in the area. Consistently good food with an extensive menu that has new additions pretty often. I find the food here to be more like real Japanese food than the stuff you get in Yamamori on George’s Street or the quays.
The staff are always friendly and attentive and in good spirits.
The place is bright and clean and spacious, and it doesn’t feel cramped, even when you are shoulder to shoulder with a stranger on the bench-​style seating during a busy lunch hour.
Highly recommended.

Pricey but good value, does that make sense? The chicken stock they use as a base is amazing, and the chicken ramen dish always tastes so fresh and slightly spicy –just perfect, really. Wagamama is as good as a family-​run restaurant. There, I said it.