Slurping Turtle

Bar Toma has dominated the news of recent restaurant openings, but Slurping Turtle is the new place that I've been most excited to try. I haven't had the chance to check out Takashi's much lauded noodle brunch, so this was my first Takashi noodle experience. It definitely won't be my last.

The wife and I started with a few items from the restaurant's bincho grill. Skirt steak, a miso coated rice ball, and bacon wrapped mochi were all delicious. The mochi was certainly the most interesting item. I can't say I've ever had a savory mochi preparation. We also has the beef tataki from the cold appetizer section of the menu. Fantastic...don't miss this dish.

Onto noodles. I got the shoyu ramen



This was a great bowl of ramen. I thought the noodles were nicely cooked, the pork shoulder was rich and fatty, and the broth was a good balance of sweet and salty. The wife had the tan tan men. It was billed as spicy, but it really wasn't. But again, great noodles and broth. This soup had some meatballs that were seasoned with something I couldn't identify. They were certainly tasty though. I'd also add that the vegetables in both soups were very good. They were cooked with care, not just thrown in with the rest of the ingredients in the bowl.

Service was definitely still getting it's legs, but they'll work it out. The place was empty when I arrived at 5:30, but by the time we left at 6:30-6:45 there was a wait. They are BYO for now.

Slurping Turtle
116 W. Hubbard
312-464-0466

FWIW, this is the Chiyan Pon, which I had on opening night:



I misunderstood the description of this dish, so I probably would have ordered something else instead. However, this was really fine--plethora of seafood over crunchy noodles, not so far removed from a crispy chow mein except with better than average ingredients and a horseradish element. I also had a quince-ginger (?) macaron, which I could tell was deftly made. It just suffered a tiny bit from being held with what seemed some moisture. It'll be interesting to watch this place develop.

Just went to ST on saturday for an early dinner. When we got to the restaurant (party of 5), there was already an hour long wait. We, the merry hungry few, decided to stick it out and had some appetizers at the bar. From my friend, I gleaned that there was some overlap from the Takashi menu and he recommended the Duck Fried Chicken (i.e. chicken wings fried in duck fat) which were excellent. Almost no batter on the outside of the chicken, juicy after the first bite, and with great crispy texture on the outside.



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I had the shoyu ramen, which I thought was a really solid bowl of ramen. My only critique is that I've had better at Minca, in the alphabet city part of New York. I would say that the main difference between Minca's ramen and ST's ramen is fat content. The broth at Minca was insanely rich, to the point where finishing the whole thing wasn't an option for me. Minca's pork shoulder was also much more rugged looking, with these crispy burned pieces that were amazing in soup. I will say that ST probably has the most authentic ramen in Chicago city, without going out to Mitsuwa in Arlington Heights. The noodles were clearly hand made and had a nice heft to the chew. The little tea egg in my soup was perfectly cooked medium, which I definitely appreciate. I ordered extra pork shoulder, which I highly recommend, because your friends will be snatching bits out of your bowl otherwise. Of all the ramen I've had in the city, I think the ranking would probably go like this:

Slurping Turtle > Chizakaya > Tampopo

I also really dug the atmosphere at ST, almost a chic nuclear bunker type of aesthetic, but much more pleasing than I'm making it sound. Within city limits, I'm still trying to hit Tokyo Hotel and Sunshine Cafe to see if they have any noodley goodness too.

Eaterlover wrote:I will say that ST probably has the most authentic ramen in Chicago city, without going out to Mitsuwa in Arlington Heights. The noodles were clearly hand made and had a nice heft to the chew. Of all the ramen I've had in the city, I think the ranking would probably go like this:

Slurping Turtle > Chizakaya > Tampopo

I also really dug the atmosphere at ST, almost a chic nuclear bunker type of aesthetic, but much more pleasing than I'm making it sound. Within city limits, I'm still trying to hit Tokyo Hotel and Sunshine Cafe to see if they have any noodley goodness too.

Minca's ramen is more comparable to Santouka in Mitsuwa, stylistically speaking it's tonkotsu-style, regionally made famous around Hokkaido (also down south in Fukuoka area with some variance). By looking at pictures as I've not been to ST yet, ST's ramen is more standard Shoyu/Shio variety, so comparing the two styles are a bit apple to oranges. However, if you want a more direct comparison, go down the street and hit Cocoro. Their ramen is a underrated for its quality, very respectable IMHO, and I've eaten ramen all over. Never had Chizakaya's ramen, Tampopo's effort to me is lacking to say least (I'll reserve the harsher words as the name itself hold a special place for me for it's namesake movie). When you said Tokyo Hotel, I take it you mean Ginza. I haven't been there in a year or so, but if I remember it correctly, their Ramen was so-so to me, good noodle, but broth leaves something to be desired (I do like the rest of the menu/restaurant very much) . Sunshine cafe has no ramen offering, IIRC, only Udon.

Minca's ramen is more comparable to Santouka in Mitsuwa, stylistically speaking it's tonkotsu-style, regionally made famous around Hokkaido (also down south in Fukuoka area with some variance)

Oops, my ignorance is showing. That makes sense why Minca's ramen was so drastically different from ST's variety (like comparing the different bbqs of the south). I think my preference is for the Hokkaido style ramen, I like a lot of fat to my broth. I've been to Cocoro for their shabu shabu, which was pretty sub par, but now that I'm armed with ramen knowledge, I'm adding them to my list. Tampopo, the film, started the whole ramen obssession for me. I had no idea it was more than packaged goods until I saw the movie and then headed to Minca right away. Tampopo, the Chicago version, is not a great noodle house, but I love their nigiris and some of their classic makis, but that's discussion for the Tampopo thread.

Had ramen withdrawal symptons today, especially since I had ramen 4 times last week in the Bay Area, so I stopped by Slurping Turtle today.

Ordered a tsukune skewer and soy grilled rice ball to start and a shoyu ramen (hard noodles) to follow. Tsukune, aka chicken meatballs, was passable. Leaning more on the spicy side, the sauce was sweet and at times cloyingly so. The riceball though was a pleasant surprise. Crispy outside, chewy, the umami-ness of the sauce/paste slathered on top.

Ramen arrived about 30-35 minutes I ordered. Yes the longest I have waited for my ramen to arrive. Noodles had a good texture, not mushy (which was why I ordered it hard to begin with). Egg has a soft (not runny) center, though not marinated long enough for the soy to penetrate the white. Standard bamboo shoots, snow peas were out of place for me. Soup was bland (for me), slightly salty, but not rich enough to stand up to the rest of the components. Pork shoulder was slightly overly salty, which helped balance the bowl out, but I was out of luck when I finished the pork with noodles to spare!

I was not full as I was finishing my bowl, so I ordered the agedashi eggplant. Nicely seasoned, but overpriced. $5 for 3 slices of eggplant. Wow...

I would return to Slurping Turtle if my friends insisted on it. But I would have to be pretty desperate to return by myself... Maybe for the riceballs... But even those were $3 each! At least they were bigger and stuffed with something at Ginza!

The boyfriend and I went last night - got there around 5:15/5:30, and were seated immediately. The place really filled up in the time we were there - pretty sure there was a wait by 6.

I eat fish, but no other meat. None of the noodles save for the tofu & mushrooms were made with a veggie or fish broth, and as I'm not fond of mushrooms, I passed. (I've had virtually an identical ramen from Takashi's noodle place at Macy's, and it is chock full of mushrooms.) Boyfriend had the tori ramen, and was quite happy - the whole thing disappeared pretty quickly.

We had the sesame-soy marinated salmon to start. Fish melted in the mouth, but there was a disappointing lack of a real fennel taste for both of us. I mixed and matched from the bincho grill for my meal - unagi, which was good but nothing really special, miso marinated black cod, which had a surprising mustard flavor, kabocha, which was terrific but quite small, and a mochi. Like a poster above, I'd never had savory mochi, and I found it delightful, though difficult to eat in small portions, as it was so sticky. Boyfriend also had a rice ball, which I tried and enjoyed. Noodles appeared almost immediately, but the bincho stuff trickled out.

Drinks - a couple of cocktails, the shojito (basically a mojito with shoju) and some Myazaki-named gin-based cocktail which was surprisingly good. I also tried a Baird's Amber, which was very good - I was previously unfamiliar with this brewery.

Anyway - good food, a bit overpriced for portions, and a nice atmosphere. But the one thing that was REALLY lacking was the service. Our waitress just couldn't handle a full station - once we (slowly) got all of our entree orders, we didn't see her again, except at the tables next to us. With a completely empty table in front of us, we waited nearly 20 minutes for dessert menus - by the time she returned to offer them, we decided not to bother, and just asked for the check. Which she didn't even run - a guy at the bar noticed me looking around and came up for it.

I know they've only been open 2 weeks, but I find service delays this big unacceptable at a place like this. Knowing the buzz in advance, you would think Slurping Turtle would have hired servers that can handle being slammed on Sunday evening. It's rare that I drop this much on a casual dinner - it was a celebration for my boyfriend finishing a tough semester - and it was a shame for the meal to end on a sour note.

Went for lunch on a Saturady with my wife wanting to love the place.
Quality of all the ingredients was high but the ramen lacked authentic flavors.
It seemed like a Japanese lite version of things. No sincereity.
Would recommend Cocoro Yasai ramen for comparison.
Finally price point did not relate to the concept of casual dining (izakaya).
$115 for two, although that includes parking at $15.

The space is industrial hip with loud music. OK, a matter of taste. Acceptable as they are catering to the younger hip crowd. Though I have always wondered if faster loud music turns the tables quicker. The bar had some Japanese whiskey and I assume soju but the room is not a place for serious drinkers. Service was fine.

The details:

Generic green tea at $2.50/person. Misery.

Sashimi was fine, but very small portions. Try Katsu.

Yakitori Thigh was cooked well, crisp and juicy, with extremely sweet soy coating. Some kind of citrus dressing on the side was intersting but not relvavant. Try Sushi Kushi.

Fried oyster, fresh, well coked. Better quality than than the Akai Hanna version. But at $9/3.

Shoyu Ramen. Had better at any airport in Asia. Broth was only passable. Topping were missing bean sprouts, not much of Negi or bamboo. No white pepper offered, only hichimi. Pork was fine. Excellent noodles and egg (Perfectly cooked).
Try Cocoro.

The house special "Slurping Turtle" noodles was actually a version of Veitnamese Pho. A little strong on the anise. Again passable but not competative with the bowels on Argyle or even with the surburban pho at Stir Crazy.
Macroon were good. The best we have tried was a place in Pasenda.

Came last Saturday at 1 pm and was seated immediately.

Ordered the following:

Duck Fat Fried Chicken - very tasty. very crispy skin.
Curry Croquette - basically breaded fried japanese golden curry. i happen to like golden curry. i liked the croquettes.
Tori Ramen - ok. nothing special. not worth a special visit for.
Shoyu Ramen - did not try. some kind of service error occurred and this did not arrive until 45 minutes after ordering at which point, we decided to take it to go and leave. i dropped it off for a friend who lives 5 minutes away.

I would recommend the ramen at Takumi before this place.

But the fried chicken and croquettes may be worth coming back for.

Just stopped in here for lunch after XOCO already had a super long line (our theory that nobody was downtown for lunch this week was way off!) We started with the tofu appetizer, which was okay. Then was grilled kabocha and mushroom. The mushroom was good, but a little tough. The kabocha was delicious, although I rarely encounter a kabocha dish that I don't love.

I went with the tonkatsu ramen for my main. It was quite good, although I wouldn't describe it as to-die-for. My friend who I was with thought the broth was overly salty, but I thought it was fine. The service could have been faster and more attentive, but wasn't bad. The four of us were in and out of there in about an hour.

My two biggest complaints were the tea (I am admittedly a tea snob, but I would expect something better than a cheap tea bag at a place at this price point) and the hip techno-ish music, which seemed quite out of place.

Since this is a block away from my office, I'll certainly be back, although only occasionally. The speed of service and price point prevent it from being a place I'd go more often.

I ate here a few nights ago, and tried a few things: gyoza, tonkotsu ramen and shoyu ramen. The gyoza tasted good, but the char on the bottom could have been thicker and they were pretty sparsely filled. No vinegar was available for dipping.

Both bowls of ramen were tasty, but the soup of the shoyu tasted very different to any ramen I've had before. There was a spicyness to it that seemed out of place, like someone thought they were cooking chinese and dumped a bunch of five-spice in there. Not bad by any means, I liked it, but nothing I've experienced in ramen before. The pork also had this vaguely "Chinese" taste to it, rather than the usual, plainer porky braise found in more traditional Japanese places. The tonkotsu broth was pretty good, could have been a bit richer for my taste but I tend to like it stronger and porkier than most.

The noodles in both were cooked perfectly, with good bite remaining. There were plenty of them.

My only complaint would be the amount of toppings -- both the bowls had only two bite size pieces of pork, and a smattering of vegetables. Not what I expect for $13-14 a bowl pre tax/tip. Oh and more condiments: I'm used to getting vinegar, Shichimi (which was provided at ST), garlic oil, and white pepper with which to adjust the bowl to my liking, but that doesn't seem to be a thing in Chicago.

Overall I'd say Mitsuwa is far better in all respects, but being so far out of town makes it hard for me. I've also had Cocoro, which had nice ingredients and broth, but overcooked noodles which is really unacceptable. I think if Slurpting Turtle could sell the bowls they have for a dollar or two less, or increase the amount of toppings a little, I'd be there on a weekly basis.

We ate here last night pre-theatre and had a pleasant experience. It is very loud, and our server was a mumbler, so we missed a lot of what he had to say. He was a bit awkward, but very nice and helpful with the menu.

I really enjoyed the Baird Pale Ale (from Japan) that our server recommended after my first Alpha King. It was unique and I'd definitely have another one the next time I spot it.

I thought my Shoyu Ramen was delicious with a nice porky broth and wonderful ingredients. The noodles were perfect and the pork shoulder and egg were well cooked and flavorful. My wife's Tan Tan Men on the other hand was incredibly bland. The ingredients themselves had some nice flavor, but the broth was sorely lacking in some salt (she should have added a big dose of soy).

As I mentioned in the Ceres' Table thread, I have some serious doubts that a chunk of chefs are tasting their soups before sending them out of the kitchen. It's really inexcusable.

/rant

We did have dessert. My wife liked her sea salt ice cream, and I really enjoyed the couple bites I stole. Very salty, but still enjoyable. Not for the sodium-sensitive. Our server said he highly recommended the Egg Shooter, so I gave it a shot (quail egg, coconut milk, mint, condensed milk). It was wonderful, a completely new experience for me. Sweet, creamy, rich and with the nice minty bite at the end. Highly recommended end to a meal.

Definitely want to try more from Slurping Turtle, but hope they have their broths down next time.

There's a new ramen on the menu at Slurping Turtle. It's called tonkatu, and this one is definitely all about the broth. It's described on the menu as a "silky pork broth" and I'd say that's a pretty good description. It's a cloudy broth, with a rich and very slightly spicy flavor. For those who complain that the broths at Slurping Turtle lack depth, I would suggest giving this one a shot.

The pictures look good, but man, what a disgusting name for a restaurant.

After a couple of effusive personal recommendations, I finally stopped in today. My reaction: underwhelmed.

A seat for one was pretty quickly forthcoming, though my tonkotu took a good while to appear. More alarmingly, the parties to either side of me experienced major food-timing issues: individuals were getting their entrees a good 20 minutes apart. I caught some of the explanation that "plates are delivered as soon as they are ready from the kitchen", but I don't know how they managed to do quite so badly.

My meal was fine, which is about all I can say. Admittedly, I am not the biggest ramen buff, with my noodle soup addiction focused on curry laksa (why is there none of this in Chicago?!?) and pho. The broth was tasty yet somewhat bland, the pork nothing special at all, the bok choy amazingly difficult to eat (a single bulb, unseparated). Perhaps I just am not that into ramen, but I doubt 13 more of my dollars will be headed toward this effort again.

As for the idea/atmosphere: if anyone is heading to Melbourne, go to Laksa King! It is along ST's lines, trying less hard to be slick/cool and serves laksa (IMO the best noodle soup of them all).

Laksa King
6/10-12 Pin Oak Crescent
Flemington VIC 3031, Australia
(03) 9372 6383

We made it to Slurping Turtle earlier this week. It was a pleasant experience and I'd return, but I found the food to be somewhat uninteresting.

We started off with an order of the grilled chicken gizzards and the mochi. They have an entire section of the menu dedicated to foods cooked on their bincho grill. I'm not familiar with the pros and cons of bincho grill cooking, but our server described it to us as lower temperature than charcoal so it enhances the essential flavors of the food. Ok, sounds good. Of course this means no char or smoke flavor either. And that's how we felt about the dishes. The gizzards were crunchy and popped when you bit into them but there were no caramelized bits or edges so they tasted pretty plain. The mochi had nice gooey texture but once again it was just a warmed up rice ball. I feel like there must be some advantage to bincho grilling that they just aren't accomplishing at Slurping Turtle.

For soups we got an order of the tan tan noodles and the tonkotu. The tan tan noodles were actually reasonably spicy and the ground pork was tender and plentiful. There are also pretty substantial meatballs floating in the soup, making for a hearty, meaty dish. The broth had good texture and I enjoyed the spice profile, but I've had much more complex and interesting versions of that dish at grungier spots. Not sure if theirs was a Japanese-slanted take on the dish or just a yuppified version with higher quality ingredients (probably the latter). I'd order it again but I'm not yearning for another bite.

The tonkotu featured some really tender and delicious hunks of braised pork shoulder. There were at least 5 large pieces of pork shoulder in the bowl and I really enjoyed those bites. The broth fell short for me. The texture was excellent, silky just as the menu promises. However I mostly just picked up salt and some dull meatiness. I was hoping for something more sour and umami since it has pickled mustard greens in it, but unfortunately there were about two small spoonfuls of mustard greens in the dish. Virtually undetectable. Much like the tan tan noodles, it was good soup and I certainly enjoyed slurping it up, but it lacked the richness and complexity I've had in other bowls of ramen. The noodles had good texture and were perfectly apportioned such that each bite had a good mix of noodles and broth. I just wish the broth packed more flavor.

For dessert we ordered a trio of macarons. Be warned, they're pretty big. The oba and the yuzu had excellent texture but the fillings were cold and a little hard. The flavor was present but once again a little muted for my taste buds. The raspberry wasabi was somewhat stale and the wasabi flavor was almost nonexistent. Solid but not spectacular.

I'm happy to see the ramen scene in Chicago developing and I think Slurping Turtle has a valuable perspective on what ramen should be. I can see how what they're producing has broad appeal and their philosophy (they certainly don't skimp on the food) and price point make it a pretty popular joint. For me ramen is first and foremost about the broth, which is of course the hardest part to get right. Slurpring Turtle does a great job of filling a bowl with quality ingredients and well textured broths, but the flavor was just not full enough for my tastes.

Any recent visits?

Anything that you keep going back for? Or items that are just horrid?

Thanks for reading.

I've eaten at Slurping Turtle twice. This is its shoyu ramen.
The most recent visit, I had the spicy, hot tantanmen ramen. I had to pause ¾ of the way through this bowl. It was making me sweat.
It is a pretty good bowl. But I would not yet call it the "best" in metropolitan Chicago.

Well, based on how long it's been since this thread was active, I doubt anyone here will care but per the Trib's website, Slurping Turtle will close at the end of May . . .

Slurping Turtle, one of the early leaders of Chicago’s ramen craze, is about to slurp its final noodle. The restaurant (116 W. Hubbard St., 312-464-0466) will close at the end of May.

“We told the staff last week,” said managing partner Michael Persa.

Slurping Turtle was created by chef Takashi Yagihashi in October 2011. The chef severed his relationship with Slurping Turtle last June, citing a disagreement with the company’s direction.

The Slurping Turtle’s Ann Arbor location remains open, Persa said, and the company plans to add another location in Columbus, Ohio.

“We’re actually planning to expand to other cities,” he said. “This (closing) isn’t anything financial; it’s more of the business model, and what we’re going to base the company on.”

Slurping Turtle closing at the end of May

=R=

To be honest, I was never impressed with the ramen at Slurping Turtle. I often considered it among the weakest of the well known places in town. There have been a few better places to open in the downtown area in the last few years. They had a good run in the end.

marothisu wrote:To be honest, I was never impressed with the ramen at Slurping Turtle. I often considered it among the weakest of the well known places in town. There have been a few better places to open in the downtown area in the last few years. They had a good run in the end.

What distresses me is their game plan -- for other and future locations -- going forward. No one who's serious about food wants to see a place's focus move from specific to general. That's retrograde. The fact that a place called 'Slurping Turtle' will now focus more on sushi than ramen is just plain sad. And this . . .

“Some people are still uncomfortable with ramen,” Persa said. “Sushi gives us access to a wider demographic.”

Oy. How down can you dumb it?!

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:

marothisu wrote:To be honest, I was never impressed with the ramen at Slurping Turtle. I often considered it among the weakest of the well known places in town. There have been a few better places to open in the downtown area in the last few years. They had a good run in the end.

What distresses me is their game plan -- for other and future locations -- going forward. No one who's serious about food wants to see a place's focus move from specific to general. That's retrograde. The fact that a place called 'Slurping Turtle' will now focus more on sushi than ramen is just plain sad. And this . . .

“Some people are still uncomfortable with ramen,” Persa said. “Sushi gives us access to a wider demographic.”

Oy. How down can you dumb it?!

=R=

What a wonderful time we are in when raw fish and seaweed beats noodle soup.

When I went they didn't have a vegetarian broth so I never returned.

I see that they added them but oh well.

It seems I have the last reply on a bunch of threads here at LTHF.
This surprises me. I am on Slurping Turtle's E-Mail list, and was there just in April for a sake tasting. I did not detect any drop in quality. To be honest, I did not know Takashi Yagihashi had departed.
I ponder whether it was because other ramen shacks have opened along Hubbard St., and perhaps Slurping Turtle could not stand the competition.

I’ve eaten multiple times at the Ann Arbor location and I rolled my eyes, when they said they were adding sushi when they opened to “appease people”. FWIW, in every trip there, way more people have had bowls of ramen than sushi rolls at their table. Maybe they should just focus on that.