Cardiff restaurant loved by Jay Rayner reveals big plans on fifth anniversary (original) (raw)

Cardiff’s much loved ramen restaurant Matsudai has reached five years since it first opened its doors in 2020, and it has big plans for its future. Located at Clare Road in Grangetown, the restaurant enjoyed a surge in its popularity after top food critic Jay Rayner called its food a 'revelation' and full of 'deep care and thoughtfulness.'

Matsudai started just before the Covid lockdown and thrived even during it due to its delivery of ramen kits. It has many pop-ups across the UK and now calls the old NatWest Bank building its home. Celebrating Matsudai’s 5th anniversary, owner James Chant wrote: “Five years ago on this day ( I only realised that as I was writing this!) I was running around Roath in chaos - terrified, very excited, completely overwhelmed, but somehow feeling really good about myself whilst making final preparations for our very first, very sold-out pop-up(s) at Blue Honey Local on City Road.”

The restaurant had plans to host some events to commemorate its fifth anniversary, but it couldn’t reach a consensus leading to the celebrations being relatively ‘muted’. However, it does have big plans for its future which include:

a "house, a very big house in the country - like a Ramen River Cottage which will contain a ramen school, a fermentary, a big vegetable plot, our production unit, and a tiny but incredible ramen shop"
a "national chain of Matsudai Express outlets to make ramen more accessible to those outside of the major cities"
a "big Food & Culture Festival in Wales centred around ramen"

(Image: Matthew Horwood)

Details of these projects will be made available in due course with Mr Chant asking people to "bear with us whilst we flesh out (and try to fund!) our madnesses." Recalling the restaurant’s first pop ups, Mr Chant stated: “I was so nervous during those first events I couldn’t help but bolster myself with Dutch courage. But the food was gratefully received and feedback was way beyond anything we could have hoped for, with more than one table crying tears of joy into their ramen.” For the latest restaurant reviews, sign up to our food and drink newsletter here

(Image: James Chant)

He added: “Madness from that point on, it feels like Matsudai has taken on a life of its own. Sure, I’ve been there to make decisions and guide it and put my name on official paperwork, but there was really no stopping that initial momentum and I'm definitely feeling more like a custodian now than an all-powerful master of destiny. It's very strange to still be so visibly central to Matsudai when there are now so many incredible people without whom it doesn’t function.”

Expressing his gratitude to his customers, James Chant stated further that it was an ‘honour of a lifetime’ to feed them.

He said: “Anyway, most importantly I want to express our most sincere gratitude to you all for following along and getting behind me and Matsudai so completely, so immediately. It's really kinda breath-taking and has changed my life, as well as the lives of many others. We will never be anything less than overwhelmed that we get to feed you. It’s the honour of a lifetime.”

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