A new location of Rayaki Ramen is under development in Gloucester Township, to be located in front of the Target store on Berlin Cross Keys road… directly next to Five Guys.
It seems that first and foremost Rayaki considers themselves a Ramen (soup) restaurant with a Japanese Anime theme.
But they also feature robatayaki, bao buns and more. In fact the Glassboro location front signage indicates “Ramen and Robatayaki”
Rayaki – Japanese Street Food in an Anime Setting
Overall the general theme of Rayaki is “Japanese street food”. Food items widely available to you if you were walking through a street market in Japan.
That being said the preparation of the dishes seems to be far beyond what you would find from most street vendors, as the entrees are as beautiful to look at (and share on social media) as they are to eat.
If you are unfamiliar with these Japanese street food items featured at Rayaki:
Ramen: Ramen is a Japanese noodle soup that is popular in Japan, and is experiencing an increase in popularity throughout the world including the USA.
Yes you are likely familiar with the dry noodle bags from the supermarket, but restaurant ramen features freshly made noodles and broth, and also offers numerous variations which include toppings of meat, chicken, fish, vegetables and more.
You may be surprised to find that most recipes include half of a hard boiled egg as part of the toppings!
Robatayaki: Robatayaki are skewers of meats, fish or vegetables which are barbecue grilled over an open flame.
At Rayaki you can order per individual skewer, and they offer many variations which include pork, shrimp, steak, seafood, a selection of fresh vegetables, and more.
Bao Buns: Are small steamed buns stuffed with your choice of ingredients. The dough recipe and steaming process makes for a fun, soft and unique pillowy texture.
The last major category for Rayaki restaurants are a variety of freshly made tea drinks.
Rayaki Cross Keys – Gloucester Township
This appears to be the 6th location for Rayaki.
Their first location opened about 6 years ago in Cherry Hill, and they have other locations in Glassboro, Edison and two in Philadelphia.
For the upcoming Gloucester Township store, as mentioned they will be located in the small strip mall in front of Target.
There are actually two empty units on the right side end next to Five Guys.
I visited twice in the last few weeks and in my first visit the doors were open and crews were actively working on the inside of both spaces.
The “Rayaki Coming Soon” sign is on one unit but the permits listing are on the other unit, so i’m not clear at this point if they are taking over both of the units.
Rayaki Anime Japanese Restaurants – Glassboro
I recently visited the Rayaki in Glassboro NJ, which is located in the ShopRite shopping center plaza. While it’s not certain the style will match the upcoming Gloucester Twp store, it’s a fair assumption there will be similarities.
And maybe this will inspire you to visit Rayaki in Glassboro!
Just walking up to the Glassboro front door you’ll realize you are in for a different experience as greeting you outside the door is an 8-ft tall anime robot!
Then entering the restaurant you’ll feel like you’ve crossed through a portal which has brought you into a modern Japanese city eatery.
Immediately grabbing your attention are the lively decorated walls featuring anime cartoons in bright colors, as well as a large video screen. A red border frames the upper portion of the walls.
The dining area itself has a tile wood grain floor, and the chairs tables and booths all sort of evoke a Japanese restaurant style.
The tables for example look like they are made from large blocks of wood but still leaving the rough natural grain textures.
It’s clear they spent extra money to upgrade towards interior features suitable of a Japanese ramen restaurant… could have easily just went with the bare bone basics!
Ordering is done via a printed menu slip where you indicate next to each item the quantity of what you want.
Overall it makes for a deliciously fun dining experience!
Links and Locations
Rayaki Cross Keys Road (Coming Soon)
494 Berlin – Cross Keys Rd
Sicklerville, NJ 08081
Rayaki Glassboro
166 William Dalton Dr,
Glassboro, NJ
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