Ippudo (一風堂)

Being loyal patron of Ippudo Ramen makes us hesitant to share this information with you guys. Why? Because even without many publications, we rarely get the chance to slurp this “claimed the best ramen in Taipei” without holding our hunger just for the queue.Well, we guess Ippudo is not a new player in Japanese ramen league, so we believe there is no need of pointless introduction. Maybe I will just share a bit how I came to know this ramen chain. During my stay in Singapore, there was a big news of the coming of a super popular ramen chain as their second country stop right after U.S. Back then, it was really a struggle to get to taste it – imagine more than an hour queuing just to get about 20 mins reward of “ramen time”.

When I finally got the chance to visit (of course I waited for the hype to lower down a bit and went on a weekday evening – I merely queued for like half an hour  :-|), it was sad to say the whole experience was disappointing. I was not so sure why, but the ramen was just normal, the broth was okay. Furthermore, items like buns and desserts were below average – we ordered quite a long list of items from their menu to make a good use of our queuing effort 😆 . It was enough of a disappointment for my first and last visit.

Luckily when I eventually landed here in Taipei and saw Ippudo does exist (it opened in first half of 2012, so considered new at the time I came), I have completely forgotten the bad memory and made a deal with my partner to drop by and see. It just came through and hit me. That was the best ramen I had upon my arrival in this beautiful city. The noodle, broth, Chashu pork, soft-boiled egg made a memorable experience. Of course, as we are in Taiwan, queue is unavoidable. Anyway overall we would love to come again at the end of the day.

Ooops, so much of the talking and I haven’t shown you any proof (read: pictures) yet?

With fairly justifiable price and varieties of appetizers, ala carte, ramen, buns & rice, and desserts items, Ippudo has made a difference to Japanese ramen here in Taiwan. Our small tips for you readers:

  • Zhongshan Store (中山店) capacity is bigger than Dunhua Store (敦南店), so it slightly helps in reducing the line
  • Come on odd-timing if you want to avoid the queue by all means
  • They provide smaller seating arrangements hence it will be more appropriate for 2-4 people in a group
  • Latest news is they are opening their third branch in Taipei in this month of January 2014 (check their website for further information and also their menu)

 

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