Where is one of the best ramen places to try in New York? It is Ippudo Westside! Located right in New York Times Square and one “floor below” from the streets, you will find a slightly hidden ramen restaurant where you will buy your best bowl of ramen here. Not only is their ramen good, but also their drinks and pork buns! (Did I mention that New Yorkans LOVE eating pork buns? It’s literally everywhere in all Japanese restaurants. I think it’s like a thing that almost all Japanese restaurants have pork buns as an appetizer in one shape or another AND you see everyone ordering it). But sorry for going off topic, .. so back to Ippudo..

We went right after the restaurant opened. By the time we asked to obtain a number, every seat was already filled and there were already parties ahead of us waiting. But thank god, the restaurant also has a bar in the seated area. We decided, “Hey. It’s New York. We’re here together in New York. Let’s grab a drink and some appetizers while we wait. Go all out.”

I don’t know if you can tell from the picture right below, but there is a Japanese-style partition that separates the restaurant from the bar and waiting area. It was very hip and modern actually. I loved that half of the restaurant’s seating area consisted of a circular/rectangular shape in which everyone was seated facing inwards. To watch the servers/bartenders while you eat.

The drinks here were pretty good. Actually it was REALLY good. I love Japanese sweet drinks!

The first drink was the Southern Beauty “Ume-Rose” with no sugar added. It is a Japanese plum sake in which its natural sweetness comes from Koji rice. This was a very sweet and yummy drink. I really like this drink. Has a slight sour kick to it that wasn’t overwhelming.

THIS WAS MY FAVORITE DRINK! It is an Ikezo, which is a berry flavored sparkling jelly sake. So it is served from a can. And the instructions on the can tells you to shake it for a certain amount of times (I think 15). Then pour out slowly and serve. It is a jelly! It is like drinking a jelly slurp. It was so fun to drink. And the best part was that it tasted sweet too! Like sweet berries. Sweet berry jelly.

While we were waiting for our turn to be seated, we decided to try their Ippudo pork buns, which were two steamed buns willed with pork buns, mayo and Ippudo’s spicy sauce. Our order came with just two pork buns. They looked very simple, but elaborately simple. You just need a few simple ingredients to make something so spectacular. The pork was very warm. The sauce was sweet. The buns and lettuce were of cool temperature. It was just perfect.

Yay, we were finally seated! I immediately noticed that that there is a big soup spoon with a little soup spoon plate for it! I was so fascinated by this! And this is a pretty big soup spoon too! I loved it because it was big enough for me to NOW comfortably fit a portion of ramen noodles with mushrooms and pork and soup all in one soup spoon bite. Did that make sense? Haha.

Just me enjoying some Ikedo.

I finally get to eat! At this point, I was starving. The pork buns were such a tease! This is the Karaka-Men. It is the original “tonkotsu” pork broth with an added kick; thin noodles with Ippudo’s special blend of hot spices, topped with pork chasu, cabbage, sesame kikurage mushrooms, scallions, and fragrant garlic oil. This ramen is comparable to some of the higher tiered ramen places back in LA. Still, I wanted to try good ramen in New York just so that I could say I did! The broth was very creamy and savory. The mushrooms added the perfect crunch to every bite. The pork was very tender and fatty. It was just delicious.

Now both ramen bowls look almost exactly the same, but their flavors tasted slightly different from each other. This ramen broth was more garlic-y and strong. AKA, this is the Akamaru Modern. It is a more bold translation of the original pork broth; thin noodles topped with Ippudo’s secret “Umami Dama” miso paste, pork chashu, cabbage, sesame kikurage mushrooms, scallions, and fragrant garlic oil.

This was a side of Shigureni, which is Japanese for pulled chasu pork. This is an extra side of protein that was recommended to be eaten with the second bowl of ramen. It was very sweet, which turned the ramen to a savory and sweet dish.

And yes! I am so happy to have finally tried delicious ramen in New York. 🙂 May many more foodie adventures in New York to come! <3