Anaba Tea Room, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Restaurant Details

Food:

Delicious ramen and tea. They have some really delicious staples, like the Tochi which has savory and tender pork belly. Their tea selection is very good and it's a must try for the full experience.

My favorite guilt pleasure about Tochi is the Wisconsin Ramen, which is basically a loaded brat, in a bowl. It has this savory broth that is like an amazing beer/cheese soup with crispy onion, kraut and little bits of pickled goodness floating around. The kicker is that they have a full grilled brat in the bowl, sliced length-wise so it's easier to cut up for consumption.

This place is a staple of our East Side dining. Great for a lunch on the weekend (not as busy) or very good and popular for dinner during the week. You can get a table easily most of the time, but you can also make reservations.

Food:

I really wanted to like Tochi but experienced too many things to sway me the other way. I visited on a Friday night with a friend. After we both placed our orders, I asked if I could place a third to-go order for a friend I would bring the meal to afterward. I was told "we don't do that." However, when I finished my meal I was offered a to-go box. From this, the lack of to-go boxes wasn't the problem for why "we don't do that." I considered ordering two dishes for myself, eating one while not touching the other, and asking for a to-go box for the untouched plate. At this point in the night, the restaurant had several open tables, so kitchen demand wasn't the issue either. Really, especially as a small business, you don't want more money?

Staff (not our waitress) made two appearances at our table after we ordered: to bring us our plates and to take them away.The meal was mediocre. I had the smoked tofu congee. I hadn't had congee before so am not in a position to compare it to any other similar dishes I haven't had.

A few minutes after we finished paying and leaving our tip, either the manager or owner came to our table and said "I don't mean to rush you, but we have a reservation on this table." Before I could respond, she walked away. In my experience when someone starts a sentence with "I don't mean to....", it typically means they "mean to."

Food:

Awesome Smoked Tofu Ramen, it is spicy, smokey and delicious. I love this place! I am so happy Milwaukee has a Ramen joint. I will be returning many, many times!

Food:

This is not Anaba Tea Room anymore! The reviews for Anaba should not apply to Tochi, although it is the same owner and staff it is now a Ramen joint.

Food:

This was some of the best, most thoughtful food I've eaten in Milwaukee. I'm pretty sure the chef must be a disciple of David Chang, which works out awesomely for me. Going here is like a religious experience, which I know sounds absurd, but this food is absurdly good. If you're a fan of places like Odd Duck or Braise, and/or you want some amazing food themed generally around the continent of Asia, get into Anaba. It is also insanely cheap. I kind of couldn't believe how affordable our bill was - we had 5 generously portioned dishes, dessert, 2 glasses of wine and a bottle of unfiltered sake for $68 before tip. Service was very kind and prompt, and the little garden shop attached to it was fun to browse around after dinner.