KENKA
Company Details
Tuesday: 5-11PM
Wednesday: 5-11PM
Thursday: 5-11PM
Friday: 5-11PM
Saturday: 5-11PM
Sunday: 5-11PM
Contact Information
New York, New York, 10003
United States
KENKA Reviews
Submitted by Amber Sherry on 09/05/2022
Amber Sherry 4 stars rating.
Cheap, yet good authentic foods in small plates. When you arrive, sign the list to secure a table. The menu has an incredible amount of options.
At the end of your meal, you will receive a mix for the cotton candy machine.
Submitted by Yolanda Zhou on 08/27/2022
Yolanda Zhou 5 stars rating.
The food was was pretty good. It’s pretty loud inside and the atmosphere is definitely very… unique. We tried a few different things but the pork belly was the star of the show, in my opinion. The prices are also cheaper than you’d expect in Manhattan.
Submitted by Carlo Roukous on 07/23/2022
Carlo Roukous 5 stars rating.
Have you ever seen an Anthony Bordain type show and you always think “how do they even find these restaurants?” Here it is. Here is one of the most amazing restaurants I’ve ever been too. First of all it’s cheap, it’s really really cheap. Second of all it’s absolutely absurdly amazing. The food is so good bro. It’s genuinely astounding how they can even make food this good. Third of all it is the coolest restaurant in the world. I refuse to believe that there could be a cooler restaurant in the world. Kenka is a MUST stop if you live in NYC or are just visiting. The pictures don’t do it justice at all. It was beautifully decorated with some crazy posters and windows into other rooms where crazy stuff was happening. Like a middvil crazy villain lair.
Submitted by Albert Law on 07/22/2022
Albert Law 5 stars rating.
Food is good and inexpensive. However our grilled kabob is kind of cold today. Wait time for table do expect 30 to 45 mins.
Submitted by Yamin Inzali on 04/23/2022
Yamin Inzali 1 stars rating.
If possible I don’t even want to give this place 1 star. Despite the warning from one of my friends about this place, I went there thinking it couldn’t be that bad. All I have to say is people there love “white people”. Not offending white peeps who went there because it’s not their doings. Those people serve white people like their masters and treat us like beggars. Like one of the reviews here said, it’s worse when your own race is racist towards you. All of us were waiting for our turn according to the wait list we put our names on. But the server mostly gave the tables first to white people first even though they put their name down way after us. Some of them didn’t need to put down their names on the list, they were just given seats as soon as they arrived and it was without reservation.
And they took forever to take our order, serve the food and even to get the bill. I know it’s cheap there but it’s not like we’re paying $1 for each dish. I mean even the food truck on the roadside gives better service than here.
The other problem is that it’s very under staffed. That is one of the reasons why everything takes so long.
For anyone who’s planning to go there, just don’t. It’s really not worth it. The food is mediocre. The wait is too long. And the racism. It’s better not to go there.
Submitted by Jax Tran on 03/02/2022
Jax Tran 2 stars rating.
Great if you want to try a wide variety of Japanese food, but terrible if you want quality food and service. My party of 3 arrived around 7:00 pm and got seated at 8:00. It wasn’t a matter of slow service, there were 8 people ahead of us yet 5 people who put their name down and arrived after we did got seated first, even TWO parties of 7. When we finally got seated, we were amazed at how cheap things were and how wide the variety was so we got 11 dishes. All of them were extremely bland- chawanmushi tasted only of egg and really nothing else, torikawa (chicken skin) had a stale styrofoam texture and wasn’t flavorful, the kaarage and Yakitori were missing salt, and the saba teishoku (grilled mackerel) didn’t taste like mackerel at all. It felt like all of the dishes could be improved tenfold with some salt, shoyu, or a marinade. The okonomiyaki, azazuke, hotate butter, and everything else we ordered were okay. We loved the fried garlic and the cotton candy experience at the end was cool but other than that, we left unsatisfied. 2/5.
Submitted by Mallessa Y on 01/27/2022
Mallessa Y 4 stars rating.
Went here with a group of nine friends at the time they just opened and we got seated right away! I recommend coming early if you have a big group as seatings are on a first come, first serve basis.
The food is tasty and resonably priced and they also have a wide selection of Japanese beer and sake. I ordered their omu rice and it was really delicious. The interior gives a real vibe of the izakayas in Japan!This is one of the best izakaya in the St. Marks area.
Submitted by Jung Park on 01/25/2022
Jung Park 4 stars rating.
I recently went here with my family. I used to go here often since early 2000 when it first opened. It is still there and food is still bad but the price is unbeatable. Beer is $1.50 there is no food that is over $10. It is good for college kids to get drunk. I love the atmosphere and their decoration.
Submitted by Julia Hsia on 11/21/2021
Julia Hsia 4 stars rating.
I personally love this place a lot!! It really brought my back to the time in Japan when I was hanging out with my friends there. The food was not perfect but the price was good and you get what you pay for. It’s a good place for vibes and time with a lot of friends that u just want to relax with.????????????????????
Submitted by Lior Gonda on 11/17/2021
Lior Gonda 4 stars rating.
This place was quite a treat and I would recommend it. The menu is a lot to take in and some of the more interesting items (on my option) were sold out sadly.
But I was able to do get a great meal. Most items are very affordable, making this place accessible. Only pricey if you eat a lot, like me.
Had one of the "cocktail" which was dark beer and ice cream. Better than I expected actually.
Some stake cooked "rare" was not really rare, unfortunately... But I want going to send it back. It was probably medium.. and still good.
Grilled octopus skewers often something I enjoy and this time was not different.
Omurice tasted good. But the egg wasn't fluffy and runny enough to part away like you see on TV. Sad.
Fatty tuna was a delight. Great flavor and so soft.
