Speakeasy Miso holds soft opening in Troy

“To get a full kitchen staff trained on ramen it’s going to take a bit of training,” Stites said.

As the training progresses, the izakaya (meaning Japanese brew pub)-style snacks will rotate. Stites said offerings earlier this week included edamame, seaweed salad, dumplings and spicy tuna.

She added there are 15 employees, mostly front of the house. She would eventually like to have 30 in order to open for lunch.

Stites noted she is hopeful to serve additional food options in the next three weeks. The plan is to start small with a few ramens as staff knowledge builds.

In the future, customers can expect a full menu with ramen, udon and sushi. Stites said the 4,060-square-foot space has a larger kitchen than its sister restaurant, Speakeasy Ramen in Springfield. Described as a hole-in-the-wall restaurant with the best ramen in the state, Speakeasy Ramen draws customers from all over Ohio in addition to having a loyal Dayton-area customer base.

The designer of Speakeasy Miso described it as having a “classy meets funky” vibe, Stites said. She explained they have big, high-top booths with blown glass lamp shades made by a local artist. She added that customers can expect a chill vibe.

The name of the new restaurant is a nod to their first location. Stites explained miso is a traditional Japanese ingredient used in soup, ramen and other dishes.

She said she is looking forward to getting to know Troy’s taste buds.

“We want to focus on sake,” Stites said. “We have six really awesome sakes right now and we kind of want to change people’s opinion on sake. A lot of people think it’s super dry and it burns, but we have one that is yuzu flavored, a Japanese citrus fruit, so it almost tastes like lemonade.”

Other aspects to be added to the restaurant include an outdoor patio on Cherry Street.

Speakeasy Miso, located at 101 W. Main St., is open 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information and updates, visit the restaurant’s Facebook or Instagram pages.