ippudo

new york, ny

website

eating a bowl of ippudo ramen brings me back to the ramen bars that were on every street corner in tokyo's shinjuku district. the noodles are perfectly chewy and the broth is perfectly flavored. but what i love about ippudo is that (1) it's walking distance from my apartment and (2) every time i go, they put a unique twist on their standard bowl of tonkotsu ramen. this time, it was a tomato red sauce with sausage that you mixed into the broth. delicious. remember: do not drink all of your broth just in case you want an extra order of noodles. (ask for kaedama!)

this place gets crazy busy, so derek and i usually go at off-peak hours, either early (6 pm) or late (10 pm). otherwise it could be an hour or two before you get a table. at off-peak, it's still a 20-30 minute wait. fortunately, you can get a refreshing sake cocktail at the small bar in the waiting area. you can also admire all of the ramen bowls from japan on the wall behind the bar. don't worry, it is well worth the wait.