The transformation from Noodlecat to Otani Noodle is nearly complete. Almost three months to the day after Team Sawyer shuttered its downtown ramen shop, Otani Noodle will open its fast-casual noodle shop in its place. Write this date down, downtown noodle slurpers: Monday, November 13 at 11 a.m.

The downtown location (234 Euclid Ave.) is the second for Otani, with the original opening more than a year ago in University Circle. The small but growing chain is operated by the same folks who have been running Otani Japanese Restaurant in Mayfield Heights since 1978.

The straightforward pictorial menu ticks off bowls numbered one through 15. Broths include rich tonkotsu. miso, shoyu and tom yum goong. Most bowls come with ramen noodles, but the tom yum goong swaps the ramen for rice noodles, and one of the shoyu bowls contains udon.

Each bowl is topped with a different main event, from sliced char siu roast pork or simmered pork belly to crispy tempura-fried shrimp or thin, crisp chicken or pork cutlets. Most also contain a soy-marinated soft-boiled egg, scallions, seaweed, veggies and mushrooms.

At the original, guests order and pay at the open kitchen, grab a seat, and wait until their name is called. We’ll see how the process compares at the new space soon enough. Prices range from $7.95 to $11.95 per bowl.

Coincidentally, Noodlecat will open its new suburban noodle shop on the very same day.

This article appears in Nov 8-14, 2017.

For 25 years, Douglas Trattner has worked as a full-time freelance writer, editor and author. His work as co-author on Michael Symon's cookbooks have earned him four New York Times Best-Selling Author honors, while his longstanding role as Scene dining editor has garnered awards of its own.

2 replies on “Otani Noodle Announces Opening Day for New Downtown Slurp Shop”

  2. Congratulations! I hope to visit someday and enjoyed the Mayfield Heights restraurant about twenty years ago and worked in Columbus during the eighties for awhile.

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