Ippudo Ramen is one of the mainstream franchises from Japan that is taking the world by storm. With its first Australian shop running on a high in Westfield Sydney, there is no doubt that we will see a similar trend happening in Perth. But before it comes, is Ippudo Ramen really all that good? Well, I was in Hong Kong last Christmas and had the opportunity to try the franchise a little closer to the home of ramen, Japan.
Pork belly buns is an appetizer bun that seemed really popular,so I followed and decided to order one! The pork was soft but to say “OH! It melts-in-your-mouth” would be an overstatement. Steamed buns were soft and fluffy. I found myself not understanding the hype. Back in Malaysia, I would sometimes see a generous slice of pork belly sandwiched between fluffy buns that really hits you like BAM! This was nowhere near that in comparison. The meat was just so little! But for most people, it must have been enough. If not Momofuku would not even be half as famous as it is now.
The little darling ordered some Gyoza for us to share too. It was perfectly cooked on the outside as the picture shows. But what it does not show is the filling which were OK but it could have been juicier on the inside. 
Ramen is what we were here for and for their December special, Ippudo HK had a special Ramen on promotion. The soup tasted great and noodles still had enough resistance when clipped out using chopsticks. To make it easier maybe I should just call it Chinese Al Dente? haha. The oozy center of the egg was very yummy but when I look at the ramen package as a whole, what is so special about Ippudo? I struggled to find my answer.
From this bowl of delicious noodles, I did not see how it differentiates itself enough to make an impact in town. I would rather go to Nao or Dosukoi over this anytime. However, if we had something more unique like Menya Musashi or Santouka Ramen in Australia, then we are talking! Conclusion? Ippudo is OK only.
Check out my other Ramen posts:
Nao Ramen @ Murray Street, Perth
Ramen Lab @ Mount Lawley, Perth
Genki SET Japanese @ Den Haag, Netherlands
The Little Ramen Bar @ Little Bourke Street, Melbourne
Nao Ramen @ Murray Street, Perth
Ramen Lab @ Mount Lawley, Perth
Genki SET Japanese @ Den Haag, Netherlands
The Little Ramen Bar @ Little Bourke Street, Melbourne
WenY
