TabeTomo: From Japan to NYC
After a fire ravaged their East Village home in April 2024, the ramen joint has leaned on community to rebuild, and stand stronger than ever.
What is your name, age, and where are you from?
My name is Tomo Kubo. I am 43 years old and I am from Tokyo, Japan. I was worried about naming the restaurant TabeTomo (which translates to “eating buddy”) at first. In Japan, this would be considered a weird name for a restaurant so I was worried that if we failed, people would say it's because of the name. Now that we’ve opened and been in business for 6 years, I’m happy I made that decision.
What is your position at TabeTomo?
I am the Chef Partner.
How have you been navigating the reopening after the fire?
The fire was de-motivating from a business standpoint, but it was touching to see all the support from the neighbors and community. The silver lining was that it gave us time to take a step back and take all our experiences the past 6 years and really apply those lessons going forward to create a better experience for our supporters.
What has been the most motivating factor of this process?
Definitely the East Village community and all of our neighbors. It was touching seeing all the regulars stop by during our renovation, asking when we will re-open and offering their support. We were also blown away by the support we received on grand opening day.
Are there any new plans for the restaurant as you enter this next chapter?
We just want to continue improving and working to provide a better experience for our customers. Going through COVID, the protests, and now this fire, the team’s mantra has always been to take any challenge and use it as an opportunity to learn.
There is a popular Japanese proverb “nana korobi ya oki” which translates to “fall down seven, get up eight”, and has become the team’s slogan. After re-opening, it’s really now taking that mindset to continue improving and provide even better food and experiences for our customers.
Our vision for TabeTomo has always been a restaurant that’s warm, inviting and friendly—a place that customers want to go to to re-connect with friends and neighbors. We want it to have a cool and energetic vibe similar to sake bars that I grew up in in Tokyo so we’re always working towards that goal.
Favorite menu item?
Definitely the Tsukemen (or dipping ramen)!
Favorite place to eat out in the East Village (when you aren't at the restaurant!)?
KENKA on St. Marks! It has great vibes, great deals and I love that izakaya style of food.
