4 Unforgettable Ramen Dishes I Ate – Food Around the World!

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I LOVE RAMEN. One of my favourite comfort food. It’s great to eat when the weather is cold but honestly, I love it so much that I eat it even in the summer. In fact, it’s probably my top favourite dish. The rich broth flavour and al dente made noodles put together in a bowl brings a smile to my face.

I have been meaning to write this post for a while so I could remember the experience and taste of the very unique ones I’ve tried. Actually, I’ve been organizing all my ramen photos (and in my thoughts) in a folder sorted by where and what type I ate. To think that folder sitting in my laptop would come in handy. I’m so excited to share with you the great ramen dishes I ate while travelling to so many places.

Ramen 101

Ramen is a type of noodle soup that originated in China then became a staple noodle dish in Japan. It is one of the most popular dishes in Japan. The noodles are made of wheat and varies in thickness from thin, regular, and thick. There are many different types depending on the soup base. The traditional ones are miso, tonkotsu (pork broth), shoyu (soy suace), and shio (salt). In Japan, there are regions/cities that specializes and very popular for soup bases like miso in Hokkaido, Tonkotsu in Fukuoka, and Shoyu is popular in Tokyo.

The noodle soup is topped with meat and various vegetables. The typical ones are chashu pork, menma (bamboo shoots), bean sprouts, corn, seaweed, and green onions. These are the traditional ingredients but there are other toppings and broth types these days that I swear there is a ramen dish that could satisfy every person in the world. This dish has evolved so much in Japan and ever since it gained popularity outside Japan. Now, there are so many different broths and toppings out there.

What’s So Great About This Dish?

I have eaten a lot of this in my life. There’s that home-y feeling in that broth that makes you go back for more. Specially on a cold winter weather and it gets really cold here in Canada. All I want is a hot noodle soup bowl to warm me up and it hits the spot. Honestly, I don’t know when I fell in love with the dish. I think it was when I saw that many of this joint have been popping up in the West at a noticeable rate since I’ve become a foodie. Specially here in North America. Ramen chains from Japan established locations here and chefs that have trained in Japan or learned how to make it have built shops. These great people helped expand ramen’s popularity, created their own renditions, and there’s now a big culture for it.

The great thing about the Western ramen scene is that they put their own twist on the traditional ramen dishes. If not, even recreate a new ramen completely. Yes, it will still be ramen because of the use of wheat noodles and ‘broth’ in my opinion. Ramen chefs trying out different combinations for the adventurous ramen enthusiasts like myself who likes to try new things. Two or more flavours on a broth that you would not think could work together and they did. Adding some non-traditional toppings that make up the whole taste of the noodle soup. This dish is so very versatile now that there’s just so many various types out there.

Therefore, whenever I travel, on top of eating the local cuisine, I check whether there’s a ramen restaurants that locals go to. I actually crave this wherever I go and would it eat even if I’m travelling at a summer 30+ Celsius city. I’d checkout whether there’s a cold noodle soup on the menu and if not, I go traditional.

My Ramen Story

Personally, since I’ve lived in the East Coast America and Canada for a while. I’m happy to say that I’ve had a fair good share of amazing ramen here. New York has a pretty good ramen scene. D.C. and the DMV area as well that I became a regular at those restaurants when I lived there for three years. Been to all the Momofukus in new york and the Toronto location, the favourite D.C. Toki Underground and Daikaya. I have been everywhere in Toronto for ramen. Also ended up becoming a regular customer at some ramen restaurants in the city and went to new ones to try their ramen.

The great thing about the Western ramen scene is that they put their own twist on the traditional ramen dishes. If not, even recreate a new ramen completely. Yes, it will still be ramen because of the use of wheat noodles and ‘broth’ in my opinion. Ramen chefs trying out different combinations for the adventurous ramen enthusiasts like myself who likes to try new things. Two or more flavours on a broth that you would not think could work together and they did. Adding some non-traditional toppings that make up the whole taste of the noodle soup. This dish is so very versatile now that there’s just so many various types out there.

Also, I have never been so happy in my life when I went to Japan and I got to eat regional ramen dishes when I was city hopped for a month in 2016 and two weeks in 2018. So many types and places added in my belt! Maybe I’ll make a post of those regional ramen styles later to educate you (and myself lol). I was fond of my Sapporo, Hokkaido and Fukuoka adventures where I found a street full of ramen shops and even went to the one Tony Bourndain went!

I even tried the first Michelin star ramen restaurant Tutsa 蔦 where I lined up twice yes TWICE to eat a bowl of noodle soup due to their ordering system. Actually, it is quite common to line up for food in Japan so don’t be surprised if you’d have to wait. This is actually a good thing because you know the place is good. I also think there’s more Michelin starred ramen restaurants now so note to self to bookmark them for the next trip.

I love this dish so much I actually make it at home. Spend a whole day making chashu and perfecting my ajitama (ramen egg) to get that perfect runny yolk.

When I was in Japan, many of the ramen restaurants sell theirs outside their shops so you can get them at supermarkets and souvenir shops. You can also get regional ramen styles in the shops so guess what!? With my obsession to this dish, I could not let this opportunity pass so I bought them and tried them out at home.

Anyways, here’s the moment you’re waiting for! Ramen dishes that I will forever remember for the rest of my life. As much as I enjoyed writing this, it was also tough to rank. Thinking about many factors I considered that made the items on my list.

I hope you get the taste of these ramens as you read through and their backstory. Even make it to your own bucketlist to try when you visit the city. Maybe this list will even get updated when there’s a new mind blowing ramen I will eat in the future. For now, these 4 were the best ones I’ve tried.

4. Yuzu Shoyu Ramen – Afuri (阿夫利) (Tokyo, Japan)

Afuri Ramen is a local ramen chain in Tokyo and now has locations outside Japan (I think there’s one in B.C., Canada). They are known for shoyu style ramen which Tokyo is actually famous for. I had the Yuzu Shoyu Ramen and went to the Shibuya location when I was in Japan July 2018 at the peak of summer. Found this place because it was close to my friend’s salon where I got my hair done. I was hungry after my haircut so I scouted my surroundings. Yelp is good to see what’s in the area and the other website that is very popular in Japan is tabelog. I saw Afuri and was interested in trying out their signature yuzu flavoured ramen.

I found it different because there’s yuzu with the shoyu soup base. I have never seen this soup base in other menus and I have been to many ramen shops in Japan. It consists of chicken (not many uses chicken broth) & dashi based shoyu broth, yuzu and the toppings are half nitamago, chashu, mizuna, menma, and nori. Yuzu is a citrus fruit that is very popular in the Japanese cuisine to make the sour taste. That then the next popular one is sudachi (similar to calamansi in the Philippines). It had a very subtle taste. Very light and refreshing compared to the heavy pork broth or miso.

3. Mr. Bob Gray – Kinton Ramen (Church St. Location) (Toronto, Canada)

Kinton Ramen is a well-established noodle soup chain with multiple locations in Toronto and has some locations in the states too. I have tried a couple of locations but my favourite one is the one on Church Street near Ryerson University. This location is my favourite ramen restaurant in Toronto. Kinton is a chain but I only go to this one specifically because of the service, food quality, and ambience.

Kinton had this dish in October 2017 as their promotion for Halloween. They named it Mr. Bob Gray from Pennywise. A ramen with a face which I think was super creative on their part. They made a face on a noodle soup using the toppings! I’m eating a face and it’s tasty! Lol! The ingredients were very traditional which I’m fine with. Miso broth with thick noodles topped with bean sprouts, pork belly, seasoned egg, garlic oil, chashu, hot sauce, and red pepper shreds. I was very entertained eating a face noodle soup.

2. Uni Mushroom Mazamen – Jun-Men Ramen (New York, USA)

Traditional ramen is great. I love them but I also enjoy innovation and new things. Trying out the serves Uni Mushroom Mazamen at Jun-Men Ramen was one unique ramen dish I will never forget. This local New York shop in Chelsea District has created one of the best ramen out there with over the top ingredients.

Mazamen is a brothless type so it’s dry noodles concept. Uni mushroom mazamen consists of uni, roasted pancetta, truffle oil, porcini butter, fried shallot, scallion, parmesan cheese and thick noodles. UNI IN RAMEN. WHAT! When I saw this item on the menu there was no thinking twice I ordered it right away.

All the ingredients blended well in my pallette. I ate each ingredients first on their own then mixed it al together after. The uni gave out the umami flavour and there’s saltiness from the parmesan but not overwhelming. It was so good and HONESTLY SUPER TASTY! It looked like pasta but it’s wheat noodles and most of its toppings were non-Japanese. Looks like fusion to me which I’m a big fan of. Chefs who makes amazing dishes This is ramennovation at its finest.

1. Tokusei Tsukemen – Rokurinsha (六厘舎) (Tokyo, Japan)

Ah Rokurinsha. Ahhh Tsukemen. MMMM. I dream about this whenever my mind goes back to my Japan travels or when I eat this lol! Tukemen is dipping style where the noodles are separated from the broth. You dip the noodles on a broth before consuming it similar to eating soba noodles. The toppings could be on another separate bowl or on the noodles. I love tsukemen and I love this restaurant even more because they have perfect the egg making of ajitama. Had my first bite back in Summer 2016 and guess what!? I went again when I visited in Summer 2018.

Japanese train stations are amazing that you don’t have to go outside to experience the city’s food and culture. They’re all accessible at the station. So whenever I had a 20-30 mins transfer time at the station, I’d go wander around, shop and eat. Major Japanese train hubs like Fukuoka (Hakata), Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo have a section that is dedicated solely for this amazing dish. You will see it as Ramen Street or Ramen Alley when you look at a station map.

Rokurinsha is located at Tokyo Station, it’s located at the B1 level Ramen Street which you won’t miss because there’s always a line. I stumbled upon this place when I had a long transfer at Tokyo Station to go visit my friend in Maebashi, Gunma. I was at the station very early in the morning, walked around, and noticed a line here. The only one with a line. The restaurant wasn’t even open but there was a line so I thought to myself, must be good so I also lined up. Best decision! EVER.

I ordered the most popular Tokusei Tsukemen on the menu priced at ¥1060 Yen. 12 DOLLARS CANADIAN FOR THIS GOODNESS IF I HAD A BOTTOMLESS STOMACH I’D GET A SECOND BOWL. Line up twice. Anyways, the soup base was a super thick pork broth with green onions, naruto (fish cake), chashu, shredded pork on top of seaweed, and some menma (bamboo shoots). Served with thick noodles which is a good combination for the thick broth. You dip the thick noodles on the broth and slurp.

Every slurp was heaven. And that first bite of that egg! It was perfectly half-boiled, well-seasoned super delicious! I also let some noodles sit on the broth so the flavour seep through the noodles. I could not forget this place that I ended coming here again in my second visit. Maybe I’ll go again on my third visit.