In a nutshell:
A small & nice Ramen specialist restaurant in Gurgaon who make very good food (saying this after experience of eating out at some of the best places in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka etc) , have nice interiors, an open kitchen, well spoken & well informed team & super high stools to sit on & beautiful narrow table to eat from (not aged people conducive).
Address & other details:
Instagram – long finish by Ramen Donn
Facebook – NA
Google – long finish
Phone for reservations / enquiries: +919311039674
Meal for 2: ₹500 onwards
Cuisine type : vegetarian & non vegetarian
Disclaimer: All restaurants / eateries reviewed by YUMMRAJ were visited by YUMMRAJ himself & he has paid for the full Bill & tips also. http://www.yummraj.com does not have even one featured / sponsored reviews. YUMMRAJ believes in going to a restaurant in anonymity, as a normal guest, experience everything & give a honest account of the same to you.
YUMMRAJ rates all the food items & then gives a final overall rating, which is a simple average of the individual item ratings. What the ratings stand for: 5 = Excellent, 4 = Very Good, 3 = Good, 2 = Fair, 1 = Disaster
Short description- in case u r in a hurry
We got to know about Long Finish from social media. It was on our list for long but was just not getting the courage to go to galleria & ensure the parking torture (treat that as an excuse. We could have taken a tuk tuk as well😜)
The restaurant is located in a corner shop & hence has a two side view. The name is prominently written outside.
As we entered, we were welcomed by a very cool & smart boy who exudes the confidence of the boss in charge.
The seating is along the wall on 2 sides & next to the counter of the open kitchen. The seats are absurdly high (don’t want old people to come here? Or you do ones with injuries?). They are uncomfortable from a sitting posture perspective – visually attractive but functional (read practical) disaster.
The table was made from a single piece wood sliced off from the log & finished. Excellent but too narrow for keeping multiple things. Once again visual delight over practical.
The menu card is small & crisp. The menu is explained in detail. The boys on the floor also did explain the nuances of the fish well.
We loved the food & will surely keep going back. Thankfully this was not only visual delight but also immense delight for the taste buds & the senses.
Detailed description – in case u hv the time to njoy reading:
Chicken gyoza – loved the intensity, the stickiness & the sheer flavours of the gyoza. A tad high in salt (to meet Indian tastes I guess) as compared to gyoza in Japan.When it arrived at the table, the gyoza looked a bit over charred. But the charring turned out to be perfect. we were absolutely bowled over by this dish. One of the best gyoza we remember having in recent months. Rate it 4.75/5
Pork chashu tonkatsu with shio & mayu (burnt garlic oil) was a revelation. But before I describe how it was at Long finish, let me describe this dish the way we had in Japan.
The broth of most dishes in Japan would be watery vs. a thicker, more viscous broth that we had at Long Finish. Is this done to satisfy the thick gravy loving Delhi palate? I don’t know. Whatever be the reason, it tasted outstanding. Every drop of it.
The intensity of flavours of the main ingredients would be strong in Japan, specially if it was pork. The same was true at Long Finish. Strong intense meaty flavours.
We always like to enjoy the flavours of the ingredients as much as possible. So we opted for ‘shio’ instead of a soy base. We also asked for a burnt garlic oil in pace of other option which might have masked the porky flavours.
The meats in Japan were a class apart. They have taken raising of farm animals to a different level of art, making best use of science. The meats at Long finish were excellent, as compared to what we get in most restaurants in India. The meat was cooked just right. It was juicy & soft & did not turn rubbery due to overcooking (problem with many Asian restaurants in India).
The egg was perfectly boiled & was dipped right in the soy. The fermented flavours of soy on the soft boiled eggs in Japan was missing.
The ramen was not the usual industrial one. It was really good on its own & it was cooked perfectly – not too much, not too less. It had the tight bite.
Rate it 4.75/5
Till then, the rating of food here averages out to a whopping 4.75/5
Will get back, have more items & add them to this review.