09/14/17
Toki Underground is a well known ramen spot located on H St. a few miles from Chinatown in DC. The restaurant is actually located 2-3 stories above ground and is a small, cozy space (accommodates about 25 patrons max). The ramen here is great, but my favorite dish to get each time I visit is the Karaage, or Japanese fried chicken steamed buns. The chicken bite-size pieces are marinated in what I can taste: sake(bc I love sake), soy sauce and garlic. The breading is ultra crispy and is coated in an asian sweet chili sauce. This sweet sauce is not too overpowering when the chicken is placed into a hand held steamed bun. Three soft, pillowy buns are served on the side along with scallions, pickled carrots and daikon, thai basil and a delicious Japanese mayo which has a sprinkling of the Toki spicy seasoning (salty, hot and smoky) on top. The contrast in textures you get from biting into the cloud like steamed buns followed by the crunchy, sweet and spicy fried chicken is really BigTime. You get slight soy, garlic and sake flavors from the moist chicken as you chew. The pickled carrots, daikon add a sour backdrop and the silky fatty spread from mayo compliments the entire experience. This dish is approx. $15 and is a great starter before diving face first into their ramen. Be careful though, I find that sharing this with 2-3 friends may turn into an awkward stare down, so order 2 just in case. Bigtime for sure ✌🏽