Torino Ramen is a newer restaurant located in downtown Wilmette.

The first thing I noticed is that it is a small space with a lively environment. It was crowded when I walked in, but not in a bad way. It didn’t feel like there wasn’t enough space and the place had a cozy feel. We were able to get a table quickly.

The restaurant has a modern atmosphere. The kitchen is visible from the dining area, which I liked because seeing the staff create the dishes adds a level of entertainment.

The limited menu focuses on dishes related to ramen, as the name of the restaurant suggests.

One of the main goals of the restaurant is to give people the traditional taste of ramen that the owners grew up eating in Japan.

While I enjoyed this concept, pickier eaters or people with allergies –especially to gluten–should consider this.

The menu consists of many varieties of ramen available with different combinations of vegetables and protein with a few items that are not ramen, including bao buns, rice bowls and some sides.

The waitress came over fairly quickly and we asked a few questions about the menu.

One in my party has several food allergies, so we had many additional questions related to this. While the waitress was good at reviewing the menu “as is,” she was not very knowledgeable or helpful about potential allergens.

She brought someone else over to help, who was more helpful, but seemed stressed out and rushed and wasn’t very polite. I would have liked the whole experience better if the waitress had been better prepared for questions.

We ended up ordering a few dishes, but some in my party were not comfortable ordering certain items based on the lack of knowledge about allergy issues.

We ordered a seaweed salad and a Kinpira veggie bao bun. The seaweed salad was not slimy, as some at other restaurants are, and was very well seasoned. The veggie bun had good flavor, but simple, with carrots, spinach and ginger.

We also ordered the Tantan which is ramen with sesame seeds, chicken broth, pork and veggies. The person who ordered this devoured and loved it.

The food came quickly and was delicious. It ended up being a short dinner, but a tasty one. We were in and out in less than 40 minutes.

According to the website, the restaurant was founded in 2015 when the owners decided that they wanted to bring traditional ramen to the Midwest.

The name Torino Ramen comes from “tori” which means chicken, their signature broth, and also comes from “Torino Festival” in Japan where business owners purchase a decorative rake to wish good luck and business prosperity. There are many street food vendors where you can enjoy traditional food as well.

With this name, the owners envision that the restaurant would have a traditional Japanese feel. I really enjoyed this concept, but for me the place seemed more modern than traditionally Japanese.

But, going to Torino still gave my family a change from the normal dinners that usually consist of us ordering food from the same restaurants week after week to eat in our kitchen.

Overall, I would give the restaurant high marks for the atmosphere, appearance of dining room, the food, and the kitchen.

However, I would say that the service needs work on both their knowledge of potential allergens in their food and their customer service in the dining room.

If you love ramen, this is definitely a place that I would recommend. If you don’t have a taste for Ramen or have specific dietary needs, probably best to try another option.