Dining Out: Katsubō

The name says it all. Katsubō, Japanese for “craving,” was coined by original staff member Damien, a man equally devoted to anime, Japanese culture, and the kitchen at Kinfolk. The logo, a sleek graphic cat, predates the restaurant by over a decade. “Craveable food,” Chef-Owner Joe Nierstedt says, “has always been the philosophy I apply to every restaurant.”

Nierstedt grew up on James Island, South Carolina, before his family relocated to Beaufort, South Carolina, when the Navy Yard closed.  He spent nearly eight years in New York City, working his way through multiple three-Michelin-star kitchens to a managerial level—among them New York’s Per Se, as well as Meadowood Meadowood in Napa Valley, California, and The Fat Duck in Berkshire, England. A graduate of Johnson & Wales, he started at the Charleston campus before completing his degree in Charlotte, North Carolina. “I started questioning my career goals,” he says. “I didn’t want to cook Michelin-style food for people.” He moved back to the Lowcountry and, with his brother, operated Kinfolk on Johns Island from 2019 to 2023, serving Nashville hot chicken and smoked meats. When a slow winter arrived, and the staff needed extra hours, he launched a ramen pop-up at The Daily and Slightly North of Broad. “When I was first introduced to authentic bowls of ramen, I realized this was something Charleston had been missing,” he says.

Katsubō opened in the former Jackrabbit Filly space in North Charleston’s Park Circle neighborhood last spring. A television plays anime in the corner. Neon lights glow above tables decked with art made from ramen packets, and Godzilla looms somewhere along the wall. Anime art and vintage Japanese gaming magazines tile the walls, a nod to a shared cultural touchstone. In a Charleston dining scene increasingly crowded with polished Japanese concepts, Katsubō occupies a different lane. It’s a come-as-you-are spot—affordable, loud, no-reservations, walk-in-friendly.

Ramen and fried chicken anchor the menu at this Japanese American izakaya, though it has expanded considerably. Rice bowls, bao buns, and okonomiyaki round out the lineup, the result of a recent menu overhaul. “We didn’t take anything away. We actually built on our menu,” Nierstedt says. The menu spans a range of broths, including shio, shoyu, miso, and tonkotsu, each defined by a region in Japan. Every bowl is made to order, built in sequence from five elements: tare, aromatic oils, broth, noodles, and toppings. The tare is what brings flavor to the broth, a concentrated, salty umami bomb of soy sauce, dried fish, and seaweed, simmered, infused, and strained. Broth comes to a boil, lands in the bowl, and is gently whisked to bring the fats, oils, and tare together, a 12-14-hour process before the noodles go in. 

Nierstedt steers first-timers toward the Tokyo shoyu: a clear chicken-stock bowl rooted in technique he absorbed at now-shuttered Mu Ramen in Queens, New York, a foundation he documented in black Moleskine notebooks. “It’s very reminiscent of the dollar packs that you might have purchased in college,” he says. “It has that familiarity for people who enjoy a comforting bowl of soup.” Those who want weight should try the spicy miso or the tantanmen, a staff favorite with a chili-sesame broth. “It’s got a peanut butter noodle quality that I think resonates with a lot of people,” says Nierstedt. The pickled cucumbers are best savored between bites of rich ramen or fried chicken, a first-place winner at Pickle Palooza.

Noodles are sourced from Hawaii-based Sun Noodle and shipped fresh weekly. The range includes tsukemen-style, mazemen sauce noodles, and regional varieties matched to each broth—the same noodle supplier used at Mu Ramen and Jeju Noodle Bar, the only Michelin-starred ramen shop in the country. Nierstedt’s current obsession is the curry pork katsu. This recent addition arrived alongside the new rice program: a six-ounce marinated, pounded-thin, panko-breaded, fried pork loin, served over rice with Japanese hot curry, carrots, and potatoes. “It’s a little mom-and-pop dish,” he says, a traditional izakaya staple rarely seen elsewhere in Charleston. The okonomiyaki is also worth ordering: a savory Japanese pancake made to order on the flat top, a popular street food in Japan.

The cocktail program, built by general manager Sebastian Estes, operates on the same principle as the food, with a recognizable structure and a subtle Japanese inflection. The Negroni is clarified and finished with cherry blossom petals. The margarita swaps yuzu for lime. The dirty martini incorporates nori into the brine. Nierstedt’s favorite is the Japanese Slipper—Midori-based, vivid green, and well-balanced.

At its core, Katsubō is about what happens when a chef trained at the highest levels decides he’s devoted to connection. “I love having an affordable restaurant that people consider approachable,” Nierstedt says. “That’s what brings me joy.” It’s a philosophy that hits close to home. His restaurant sits just down the street from the Navy Yard, where his father once worked. His dad suggested calling it the Gravy Yard.

Park Circle has plenty of longtime favorites. Katsubō is carving its path. But if craving is the metric, it’s already there.   

Katsubō at a Glance

Japanese-American Izakaya

4628 Spruill Ave., Suite 101, North Charleston

Follow @katsuboeats

(843) 448-4000

Don’t-Miss Dishes & Drinks:

Tokyo Shoyu Ramen · Spicy Tantanmen · Spicy Miso Ramen

Curry Pork Katsu · Okonomiyaki Pickled Cucumbers · Japanese Slipper

How to Order:

Start with the pickled cucumbers.

Order one ramen: Tokyo shoyu for the uninitiated, spicy miso for heat, tantanmen for something richer.

Add the curry pork katsu or okonomiyaki if the table has room.

Rice bowls and bao buns are a strong return-visit move.

Where to Sit:

Bar: front-row view of the open kitchen.

Main dining room: anime art, neon lights, and the full Katsubō atmosphere.

When to Go:

Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Walk-ins welcome; reservations available for parties of 6 to 10.

Takeout and delivery available via website.

Price:

Ramen $16–$17.

Fried chicken from $12.

Small plates from $7.

Plates from $13

Neighborhood Notes:

Park Circle, North Charleston. 

Street parking along Spruill Avenue and the surrounding blocks.