chaco ramen

been wanting to try this place for a while, and finally decided to go today.. booking is essential guys, we were seated near the entrance and saw at least 2-3 times people try to walk in, end up not given any seat.. the staff are pretty attentive and helpful.. we ordered the 9+ wagyu tataki on special menu, followed by hokkaido scallops, cawanmusshi, wagyu tongue skewers 😍😍😍, chicken liver skewers, meatballs, gyoza and grilled rice with chaschu and a jug of sake which we cant finish.. overall they all delicious dishes.. will comebackfor the wagyu skewerss

a dimly lit little japanese chuan chuan 🍡 bbq place. very low-key exterior, it was hard to find on first visit. i and xihuahua 🐶 went there for our sweet semi-anniversary. tables are tiny and the place was later ham packed with eaters. bad luck if you are claustrophobic.

tuna belly is a bit of a novel dish being basically pigs ear salad. i liked it.

gyoza is fantastic and tbh the best i have had in sydney. quite $$$ as well. no sure what filling it had. comes with a nice dipping sauce.

chuan chuan fell below my expectations overall for the price. chicken thigh and heart was ok. ox tongue was very chewy and probably overcooked. pork with enoki was great but i did not like the dry outside and overly sweet marinate. whole wing was surprisingly not on a stick and too salty but it was tender though. miso eggplant was nice coming in 4 cubes on a stick! they serve the initial 2 skewers on a small bed of cabbage which i loved but later skewers were delivered individually to the bed of diminishing cabbage.

ume wine was super gooooooood! loved it! i think perhaps it is best to have wine and gyoza here, they do go while together! an old chinese sayings goes like “🥟饺子就酒，越喝越有。🥃” perhaps we will gobackfor ramen one day too!

gyoza is to die for!

venue:
tiny ramen bar with communal table on crown street.

service:
awesome, they give sometimes for you to decide even though i came just before lunch service ended at 2 pm, and they tell you special on the wall is available only for dinner.

food & drink:

gyoza :
recommended! house made and serves 4 pieces.
trust me you will comebackfor this gyoza.

yuzu scallop:
i never had such and interesting ramen like this in my life.
the both is super yummy, the combination all together is making sense, love the black fungus in the broth.
the dory dumpling was smooth and delicate!
for me the scallop a little bit chewy, because of the side muscle is still intake, but then again it’s only my opinion.

had a wonderful end to the working week at chaco bar. three of us arrived about 12:30 for lunch and managed to squeeze onto the communal middle table. we went up to order our ramen at the counter and received our bowls of steaming hot noodles in about 5 minutes. it was delicious! hot broth that was thick, salty and flavourful. the noodles and other toppings were perfect. the half cooked egg was interesting, i couldn’t seem to break the egg wth my spoon or chopsticks, so in it went down in a slurp. the yolk on the other hand managed to semi dissolve into the soup.
i tried less fat because overall it just doesn’t seem right to order extra fat.. plus the saltiness in the broth.
will bebackagain i can imagine soon :)
thank you for a lovely meal.

a cosy little restaurant tucked away in surry hills that transports you to japan. came to satisfy some serious ramen cravings and was utterly blown away. it is nothing like any other ramen joint in sydney. this sets a very high standard of ramen in sydney and nothing as of yet comes close. cant wait to gobackfor more. this has to be on the top of the list for anyone going out for ramen

chaco bar concocts new and exciting ramen flavours. however, ramen is only available at night on mondays and no reservations. we ended up waiting for about 1.5 hrs and that was for 4 people. the ramen wasn’t worth the wait, at least open up another ramen night or make reservations available so customers can book.

*note* prices on the website and zomato appeared to be less than the menu we got in person. overall, quite expensive and i felt the broths needed more depth in flavour but if you like a more unique broth then give chaco bar a try but be prepared for the long queue!

ordered:
•karaage chicken ($13) - friends said it was delicious

•gyoza 6pcs ($14) - plump & meaty filling of gyoza, good but expensive for 6pcs

•fat soy ramen ($18) - you can choose the level of fat for the porkbackfat & we chose “normal” which was just right - needed more depth of flavour

•yuzu scallop ramen ($19) - definitely the most interesting ramen broth i’ve had, the yuzu gave it that tangy-ness that i wasn’t used to but my friend thought it was a refreshing taste

•fish salt ramen ($18) - light broth for those who prefer lighter broths - i liked this one

•yuzu rum cocktail ($15) - i liked yuzu in the rum and it was a nice and refreshing drink

we came here after being recommended by a friend, and they really have amazing food! we came during lunch time so we couldn't try the yakitori, but we were so impressed by the ramen that we will definitely comebackfor them. the ramen was wonderful, we tried 3 different ramens offered in the menu: fat soy, chili corriander and yuzu scallops. the fat soy is amazing, you can customise the level of fat in the ramen according to your taste. the chili corriander is an interesting taste but it results in a very fresh taste, so the combination of ordering fat soy and chili corriander is a perfect one because the flavours balances nicely together. wouldn't really recommend the yuzu scallops unless you are a very very big fan of yuzu flavour, because aside from that there isn't too much else going in that bowl. sadly the place is tiny and couldn't fit a lot of people, but amazing nonetheless.

what a delight. we left the place totally enchanted. the food was amazing: we shared 2 sliders (braised pork belly), today's sashimi for 2 (see photo!), gyozas, spicy lamb shoulder's skewers and today's special tas truffle rice with organic egg and parmegiano. not only did we appreciate the food, but the service was super efficient and always extremely nice and polite. next time, we willbackfor monday's ramen. see you soon chaco bar!

will bebackfor:
+ egg custard
+ chef’s 6 skewers

this is an intimate little bar that will not be out of place in yakitori lane in tokyo. yakitori’s were well grilled, and had great charcoal flavours. i particularly liked the chicken wing, lamb shoulder and chicken crackling. the egg custard was smooth, the fish perfectly moist, and had a great truffle essence through the dish - delicious. a hot green tea in this case, rounded off the meal well on a cold winters night. service was great and polite but a little slow on a packed night - understandable in this case. will bebackto try the ramens!

busy friday night with the place turning away anyone without a booking. food was amazing and the highlight was the wagyu uni truffle main which very innovative in combining flavours which we never imagined. the match mousse dessert was also outstanding. will bebackagain!

chaco bar didn't really meet my expectations. firstly the place was quite small, so we waited about 15 mins or so for a table, which i didn't mind. i'm quite used to lining up for some decent ramen. but what was sort of a let down was how fast things sold out. i wanted the special wagyu ramen & karaage chicken. both were sold out, so i settled for the yuzu salt while my partner got the pork cha shu. the dishes came out looking delicious! another let down was how small the portions were... i have never gone to a ramen restaurant where i finished all my noodles and was still starving. usually i'm stuffed and unable to finish all the noodles. the ramen was delicious but my partner and i can both agree that it was nothing special.
aside from all that, the restaurant is very cosy and has some beautiful artwork and decor, giving it a very nice vibe and atmosphere. i'll like to comebackhere and try the yakitori some time, so until then.

man, this place was disappointing. firstly, ramen is only on monday nights and during then, they don't have yakitori. you need to make a booking or chances are you'll be turned away. but the trigger for me writing this review is the blandness of the food. the gyoza lacked seasoning. didn't taste like much. although i like the fact that it came sizzling on a plate. but even the soy sauce didn't help with the blandness. same with their special bone marrow kimchi scallop rice. didn't taste like kimchi and not much taste. it was sad and overpriced. the only good points are the scallop (6$ a pop, which my friend liked) and the tiger prawn tempura bau (which was succulent and well seasoned that i couldn't get enough of; $9 for 1 tempura in a bau). the place is cute & tiny too. but sadly, the overpriced tiny portions of bland food means i won't be comingbackanytime soon.

i love the interior of this cute little restaurant, it feels like i'm actually in japan.
the staff were incredibly friendly and the food didn't take too long to come out and was packed with flavour. i would definitely comebackhere

loved this restaurant, so cosy! small restaurant tucked away, feels like i ambackin japan. the staff are so friendly and the food is amazing. definitely try the tsukune, enoki maki, yakioni and taro chips with aonori. can't wait to go back!!

friendly service and funky cool little restaurant. highly recommended to book if you go with big group. we have been twice once for ramen night which was just ok . the other time was for their normal menu. food was excellent ! will bebackto try more