Hiro Ramen & Tea – Spiciest Dish in Columbus Series

It’s a new experience for a lot of folks and seems to be working pretty well for Hiro Ramen & Tea.

We love ramen in general, so we had to give Hiro Ramen & Tea a shot. In recent weeks that added an additional feature, set to assist both from a serving and safety perspective.

The whole experience is a bit unusual in the Columbus landscape, but as folks that are still getting used to being out in the wild, it definitely reduces the amount of human interaction needed. Walk in, snag a table, order through the site, and the robot shall bring you your food. Be sure to clean up after yourself as well and not leave your dishes and such on the table like a gremlin (this is called out on the back of their QR code menu).

Along with ramen, Hiro also features a wide array of teas to choose from. I went for an Assam Black Tea with Mango Boba in the bottom, while The Lady of the Farm snagged a Green Tea Latte. The options and tea permutations appear limitless, so if tea is your thing, you definitely need to check out Hiro.

We also snagged some pork gyoza and Pork Belly Cheesy Fries, the latter of which was unique in terms of the toppings they use. It’s not just pork belly and cheese slapped on there, it’s a more traditional Japanese dish with okonomiyaki sauce and house spicy mayo.

“But what about the slosh?” I whispered to The Lady of the Farm. “I’m sure it’s fine,” she replied, annoyed. She was right, the robot that was bringing us our ramen was, in fact, fine.

I was pushing the boundaries of science. Could I force a robot to break the first of three core laws of robotics? “1. A robot must never harm a human.” Would it be able to deliver pain tableside? The answer is a soft yes.

The Spicy Miso Ramen from Hiro Ramen & Tea is a twist on the traditional miso broth with chili oil, topped with chashu, bok choy, scallions, kikurage, corn, ajitsuke egg, and marinated bamboo shoot.

Red haze gracing the top of the bowl, I inhaled the soft-boiled egg, and took a pinky-out sip of the broth. The chili oil is prominent and hits a bit different than other ramens I’ve head around the city. It’s a bit more peppery, but also a bit more separate from everything else, coming in as an afterthought instead of a thorough heat.

Working through the noods and other ingredients within the bowl, you get the savory of the broth first, followed by a lazy heat that almost seems angry to be involved with the ramen. Reaching a plateau and backing off, the chili oil in this dish is enough to help dislodge the face goop that hides in your nose.

The tea is a nice offset to the middling heat, and also wards off dirty looks from the devilish blue eyes of the robot servers. Saying a quick thank you to Asimov for concocting The Three Laws, I finished up the broth in the bowl, letting the warmth get the better of me, even letting out one small cough as the chili oil hit the wrong spot.

Reflecting on the ramen, it’s a smooth, consistent experience of ups and downs. That said, we’re placing it at #82, just after Satori Ramen Bar’s Kara Kapow!

Hiro Ramen & Tea is located at 4800 Sawmill Road, Columbus, OH 43235.

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