#wasabichicago

So ramen seems to be exploding in Chicago lately.  It has been trending from an upscale meal back to its roots, as more casual dining.  I recently visited Ramen Takeya, which is the second ramen shop opened by the people at Wasabi, and also the second ramen spot in the west loop/fulton market area.

I originally was going to write up an article based only on Ramen Takeya as the hot new place, but I wanted to encompass a lot of different things besides just Ramen Takeya.  I thought it might be fun to touch briefly on Ramen Takeya, then go into the whole topic of which are the best ramen spots in Chicago.

So as you can see below, the inside of Ramen Takeya is pretty quaint and charming.

I was looking for the Tokyo street feel that so many articles keep talking about, and I feel like it has some trinkets that link that atmosphere, but it would contribute immensely if they worked on the lighting in that corridor next to the kitchen.  If it were just a bit dimmer, it would give a better ambiance.  Otherwise, I didn’t really get that Tokyo street feel as much, and was expecting more after all the hype.

I ordered the Tokyo Classic Shoyu Ramen, and a Sapporo.  Pretty straightforward order, just to get their experience.  I know that their ramen spot is supposed to be chicken based, so all their soups would be centered around the chicken broth flavor, but no part of this meal reminded me of a Shoyu broth.

Granted, I think that is a pretty marginal gripe.  Overall, I really liked the familiarity of chicken soup fused with the ramen. It was a decent portion, though the cost comparison to some of the other places that have opened recently, such as Furious Spoon, outshines what you are paying for and what you are getting.  While you can pay $12 to get what is pictured above, you can pay $8 at Furious Spoon to get slightly higher quality food, and at a much better portion.

I am also puzzled at why Ramen Takeya opened up a few blocks from High Five Ramen ... considering that they have to share their clientele.

Side Note: I actually snuck over to High Five Ramen a couple hours after going to Ramen Takeya, just because I knew there was a chance that there would be no wait due to it being midnight and during the NCAA Final Four.  So pictured above is the No Spice High Five Ramen.  You may not be able to tell from the picture, but I felt the portion size was much bigger than Ramen Takeya.

This is where the discussion on which spot has the best ramen starts.  I base my opinion solely on taste and experience.  So, from that perspective, the argument that “Ramen Takeya is trying to do something different from High Five Ramen” doesn’t prevent me from comparing them.  Unfortunately for Ramen Takeya, High Five Ramen overall has the superior broth, better toppings, and better noodle quality.  You also get more bang for your buck at High Five Ramen.

The one thing that Ramen Takeya has over High Five Ramen (for now) is that you don’t have to wait in line for 2 hours in order to get a seat, since High Five Ramen is such a tiny venue.

But wait a second Food Ronin ... what about the other spots? 

So here is my preliminary tier list, which is solely based on taste:

Top: High Five Ramen High Mid: Furious Spoon, Wasabi Mid: Slurping Turtle, Oiistar, Ramen Takeya Low-Mid: Ramen-san, Ajida Low: Yusho

The one very notable miss is String Ramen, which i have yet to try.

Don’t get me wrong.  Every single one of these spots are pretty decent, and some of the middle tier spots could be interchangeable.  If someone wanted to argue that they thought Slurping Turtle was better than Oiistar, and thought Oiistar would be higher up.  I probably wouldn’t spend the energy to argue that.

However, there is a clear difference between some places:

- I think Wasabi is much better than its sister restaurant.  - I also think that Furious Spoon is much better than most of the ramen players in Chicago.  - I also don’t really like Yusho’s ramen.

Yusho is kind of the fanboy of Ramen in Chicago.  They are always the forefront of running Ramen related events or promotions, but sorry to say, I don’t think their Ramen stands up to the rest of the ones I listed.

The Ramen Battles that they do every month are a lot of fun though.  A lot of great atmosphere and a solid fan base.  Here is the flyer for their most recent Ramen Battle.

Granted, the competitors are extremely talented chefs, they don’t do ramen better than any of the high to mid tier spots on my list.  Still delicious and a lot of fun.  I highly recommend going to at least one ramen battle.

Note that my tier list is solely based on taste.  Some of these spots are better suited for different occasions, like Slurping Turtle is probably the best upscale date spot out of all of them, and Furious Spoon and Ramen Takeya are probably the best spots for quicker casual dining.