I was in NYC last week for interviews and my sister and brother-in-law took me to Ippudo NY, the first American outpost of the Japanese chain (opened in March 2008).
A confession: I have never really been a ramen fan. Don’t get me wrong, I love noodles more than anything in the world (okay, that might be stretching it, but noodles and dumplings are definitely my go-to comfort foods). Ramen? Just never been my top pick in the Asian noodle-soup category. But it is a new restaurant to try and I happily obliged.
I was a bit turned off by the decor. My favorite ramen places in New York are unadorned and simple (Sapporo and Menkui Tei come into mind). In my mind the “feel” of a true ramen shop should be simple, old, unadorned. Ippudo was the lavish new york version of a ramenya. But hey, given the success of Momofuku Noodle Bar…can you blame them? On the web it even billed itself as a “Japanese Ramen Noodle Brasserie”
On a side note, the decor of the place did somewhat convince me that you can do traditional japanese fare in a fusion setting and still be respected…something to think about as I continue to fantasize about my restaurant =P
Food. I ordered the Shiromaru Classic, knowing well that I was signing up for the fattening and overly rich tonkatsu broth. The broth was milky and flavorful, and unlike some of the tonkatsu ramen that I’ve had, it did not overwhelm me. I think my problem with ramen in the past is that I will feel full with the overwhelming flavor of the broth halfway through the meal. This is especially true with tonkatsu ramen, but the Shiromaru Classic at Ippudo did not leave me feeling this way.
The noodles were not your typical ramen noodles, instead they were more like a thicker, chewier version of somen noodles. The portions were smaller than other ramen shops, but that’s probably a blessing for me because then I get to order other stuff. Namely, the pork buns — they looked like taiwanse gua bao but with pork in a red sauce that was both sweet and spicy. I have never been to Momofuku noodle bar, but photos of the pork buns from Momofuku circulating on the web certainly seemed more impressive than the photo of my sad little bun at Ippudo New York.
I have to say, aside from the noodles, the other dishes were fine…but unimpressive. I also ordered a Sapporo draft beer along with my ramen…although the calpico cocktail was screaming at me from the menu for a really long time…you gotta match your food, and the Sapporo draft beer was on topic with the richness of the broth.
Shiromaru Classic Ramen and Sapporo Draft Beer
sad little pork bun
Ippudo New York is located on 65 Fourth Ave, New York, NY.
Life, Food 