Ramen Lab
“My second experience was from Machida Shoten from Japan (March 2016), which was also good.”
“I love the concept of having visiting chefs so I get to try ramen from different parts of the world without having to actually travel there.”
“Quality ramen in the U.S. supplied by Sun Noodles, goes pretty much hand in hand with every great establishment in New York.”
Ramen Lab
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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There's no real point in reviewing specific bowls of noodles from Ramen Lab, since the person making them is constantly changing. So rather, let me just say that the concept is excellent. No one can go to Japan every month on food tasting trips, so this is a good way for chefs to come, have a residency and get food.
Some of the featured chefs have gone on to create their own restaurants, and what is here is a sneak preview.
Whoever is here, the place is small and turns over quickly. The absolute best time to come is early in the week (even for lunch) on a good day. I went on a recent Monday and the wait was under 5 minutes. For those willing to brave the cold or rain, the line can look longer than it actually is.
Come, have a great bowl of ramen, and then leave a few minutes later. It's fast, efficient, fun eating.
Soo good! I had the cold black vinegar ramen and it was super delicious! Especially on a super sticky hot day in nyc this is very refreshing. They change their menu every week so thats cool and they accept credot card and cash so no worries. I'll definitely will be back.
Ramen Lab is a pretty cool concept. It is a pop-up kitchen in which each month a different well-known chef showcases their ramen creations. Therefore, it is difficult to give it a star rating since the menu changes every month. For this particular visit, I'd give it a 3.5 stars. I went here during Chef Naoka Miura's month (August 2016). Her ramen theme was HiyaChu, which is short for Hiyashi Chuka, a cold ramen dish typically eaten during the summer.
I went with the Green Sauce Hiyachu. It is green onions minced into a pesto-like sauce. The sauce had good flavor and the noodles were cooked just right. I didn't care for the sliced pork or the minced tuna. It was flavorless and didn't add much to the dish. I prefer ramen in broth.
It's a really small place. There's a counter and you basically stand while eating the ramen. They have stools in front of the store if you really have to sit, but then the place would be even more cramped. Not a good place for big groups or families with young children.
Chibayaki May 30-31 by Chef Kenji Chiba
Me & my friend came here because were both craving for ramen. Got there almost 7pm. We waited about 20mins to get in. I didn't expect that this place is very tiny that theirs no chair & you're gonna be standing while eating you're ramen. Actually its not that bad. Its fun!
For drinks we ordered their cold tea in a bottle drink. Ehh, I didn't like it because its unsweetend so I returned mine.
For food we got the tokyo shio ramen $16 & tokyo shuyo ramen $15- both looks semilar but the broth taste really good with different taste. So tasty!
It's really hard to give Ramen Lab a rating since they have different chefs that come in and take over the space. At first, I was confused by their concept – with the different chefs. I felt they didn't have an identity and it would be hard to make me a repeat customer. I've been here twice now and I can officially say I love this place! I love the different chefs coming in every few weeks. I like being able to sample different types of ramens and meeting different chefs, even if the ramen isn't great. I like the variety offered and I can honestly say it will keep me coming back in the future to check out new chefs and their menu.
My review for Ramen Lab itself is 4 stars. I am a return customer. There is a lady here with short hair and she is really nice! I've seen her during the Shoki Ramen and Hiyachu takeover. It really pays to have good service. The place is small and at first, I wasn't sure how that would work. I was dreading the standing and no seats too, but I actually like the concept a lot! It doesn't take long to eat a bowl of noodles anyway and I don't mind standing. I am a slow eater so being forced to stand helps my digestion and makes me eat faster, which is fine by me. I also think the row of bar seats is perfect since customers generally eat quickly and the turnover is pretty fast or as fast as can be. Having seats would probably encourage people to stay longer.
Hiyachu Popup Review:
Coconut Dandan – I loved this one. This was my favorite out of the 3 we tried. I was skeptical about the cold noodles' ability to cool me down, but after taking a few bites, I was feeling really refreshed. The noodles were nice and springy and tasted really fresh. I was afraid the coldness would make the noodles hard, but it wasn't. The coconut dandan flavor was subtle so it's not heavy at all. The chashu, even though it was cold, was very tasty. It wasn't melt in your mouth, but that was all right since I welcomed the bite. The egg, even though cold, was also very tasty. You could really taste the freshness of it and the yolk was even still slightly runny even though it was cold!
Green Sauce – everything was basically the same as above w the exception of the green sauce. The green sauce is good, but after a while, it is a little overwhelming and much. I enjoyed this, but I wouldn't order it again.
Black Vinegar – same for this one w the exception of the soy sauce. The soy sauce was delicious and I'd eat this again!
The Hiyachu chef is looking to open a b/m in Oahu. I wish her luck and success. Having a ramen spot that dedicates itself to hiyashi chuka in a hot climate is great and I think it'll do well provided they find their niche and come up with a worthy menu.
At last I was able to try Ramen Lab! I came on a Monday evening around 8 so luckily there was no real wait for a "seat". Note no seats exist. You stand while you eat on a counter facing the cooks while they prepare the ramen and it can only probably fit 10 people at a time. I actually really appreciated it because they say standing is better for your digestion anyway.
It seems typically they have 3-4 ramen choices and it changes seasonally. My boyfriend and I were going to do shoyu ramen with egg but fortunately, they had just started offering shio ramen with egg as well so we did one of each. Shoyu ramen was a soy sauce base broth and the shio was a salt base ramen. Both were absolutely delicious. Both ramens contained two halves of egg, bamboo shoots, nori, naruto and chasu pork. The shoyu sauce definitely had more of the deep darker look, with more of soy sauce taste to it while the shio tasted like a very clean, mildly salty broth. Both were a perfect balance of flavor. The eggs were just as delicious, cooked perfectly where the yolk is still a bit raw in the middle, really orange-yellow in the middle. They provide only one slice of chasu if it says it is included but the chasu is really well made. Super tender. If you are a big eater, I would maybe opt for extra chasu. The ramen itself was al-dente, great with the broth.
Everything was really delicious, simple with clean cut flavors that all individually popped in their own way. I left both full and satisfied.
Tiny little ramen spot near Chinatown with no seats!! It's a tiny ramen bar, where you stand and eat. We got there early, and didn't have to wait and ordered a special ramen and miso ramen. The broth is rich but not creamy. Love the broth here! They are a little pricy with add on and such. For 2 ramen and extra cha siu for the hub, came up to be about $35+ tip. Not your everyday ramen, but good.
You cannot miss Chibakiya-it's the best shoyu ramen I've ever had! The noodles have such a delectable texture: the perfect balance between al dente and soft. I could have eaten two bowls of just that alone. What amazed me even more though was the broth: normally I find shoyu bases to either be much too soy-sauce-y or just plain not interesting enough, but Chibakiya's was well-flavored but also very subtle at the same time. It wasn't overly salty but all of the ingredients within absorbed the broth to just the right extent to reach maximum flavor without being too heavy.
Would recommend going for lunch since they're now open for it on more days and the line is much shorter! I opted for the first option (without the egg) but I'm sure all of them are good!