NYCReview
Included In
We've had taco momos and momos wrapped in a paratha, but we’ve never encountered a momo quite like the one at this tiny restaurant in Astoria. Small, delicate, and stuffed with herby confit duck, it's a dumpling that could only have been dreamt up in Queens—and just one of several things at Ramro that blend global influences without feeling gimmicky. At their best, the dishes here hit a groove of unexpected combinations. But even when the food feels occasionally like a work in progress, Ramro is the kind of earnest, ambitious restaurant you want to root for.
Ramro began life as FoodStruck, a takeout window with messy-delicious late-night food that made it a beloved neighborhood stop for anyone getting off their shift after midnight. But you won’t find pulled pork sandwiches dripping with calamansi honey, or dirty fries loaded with beef and cheese here anymore. Now it's open only three nights a week, with neon glowing in the doorway, tealights flickering on the tables, and a playlist that vacillates between old-school hip hop and contemporary R&B. From the four-seat counter overlooking the tiny kitchen, you can see two chefs carefully wiping drops of soy off plates of mushroom skewers.
photo credit: Ramro
The chef's counter bar has about four seats.photo credit: Andrea Grujic
Skate wing with lemongrass, ginger, and kosho.photo credit: Andrea Strong
Red snapper crudo with kohlrabi pickle.photo credit: Sonal Shah
The menu draws on the staff's Filipino and Nepali roots, with the polish of the restaurants and wine bars where they built their careers. Dishes like a red snapper crudo demand such close attention that, after we ate the fish, we drank the citrusy liquid straight from the bowl.
For your first visit, come during Happy Hour on Friday and Sunday, when their shochu and sake cocktails help ease into (or out of) the weekend. The menu of drinking snacks—like those momos and some pudgy beef longganisa—supplements repeat-worthy a la carte plates of pork-filled pithivier and cauliflower with walnuts.
The tasting menu starts with three small bites.photo credit: Sonal Shah
A vegetarian course from the tasting menu.photo credit: Sonal Shah
Basque cheesecake with butternut cream and an espresso martini.photo credit: Sonal Shah
Eden cheese ice cream.photo credit: Sydney Sweeney
Things feel a little stiffer during their $99 tasting menu offered on Saturdays (there's also a $89 Sunday prix fixe option). The six courses include some highlights—that crudo, for example—but other dishes are unnecessarily restrained, like half a roasted baby beet atop some butternut puree in a pool of nage made from reduced vegetable scraps.
Ramro could benefit from a little splash of the chaotic abundance of its former incarnation. But for a restaurant that’s practically the size of a subway car, this place dreams big. And, for the most part, they pull it off.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Ramro
Drinks
photo credit: Ramro
Momo
Beef Longganisa
Walnut Cauliflower
photo credit: Andrea Grujic
Porc Pithivier
photo credit: Sonal Shah
Calamansi Ice Cream
photo credit: Sonal Shah
Silvanas
photo credit: Sonal Shah
Tasting Menu
Some drinks are included, like a fortified wine aperitif, an espresso “martini” with a whiff of orange blossom that comes with a dense Basque cheesecake, and a blueberry wine digestif at the end. They’re all tasty and make the $99 tasting feel like a great value. It’s a nice experience for food nerds. In case you’re hungry after, Franky's is right around the corner.