J’s Asian Kitchen just opened, and if you’ve been craving a new comfort-food spot that understands the holy trinity of ramen, crispy snacks, and late-night noodle ambition, this one looks very worth a visit. The new Tampa spot is at 5229 N Florida Ave, and the restaurant’s website describes it as a home for fresh, authentic Asian comfort food with ramen, noodles, and classic dishes, with pickup available into the evening.
The biggest reason to go, though, is the menu, because it reads like someone sat down and said, “What if we simply refused to choose one category of delicious?” and then followed through. The ramen section alone is doing a lot of heavy lifting, with original ramen options like miso, shoyu, creamy mushroom, and tonkotsu, plus black garlic and red spicy versions if you want your dinner to feel a little more dramatic. Prices mostly land in the mid-to-high teens, which feels pretty standard for a loaded bowl these days, and there are vegetarian ramen options too, which is always nice when a menu remembers not everyone wants to battle a pork broth on a Tuesday.
The appetizer list is also aggressively tempting. You’ve got edamame, takoyaki, spring rolls, oyster tempura, fried wonton flowers, and multiple gyoza options, plus kara-age in regular, honey garlic, and spicy versions. In other words, you can absolutely show up “just for a quick bite” and accidentally order enough food to require a takeout box and a reflective walk afterward.
Then it gets even more chaotic in the best way. There’s pho, udon, pad thai, japchae, yaki soba, fried rice, donburi bowls, Thai curries, and bibimbap, which means this is less a narrow concept and more a delicious multiverse. Even the drinks are fun, with Calpico flavors, Ramune, bubble tea, and green tea options, plus mochi and cream puffs for dessert…