Takumi Ramen

Was in the neighborhood the other day so I stopped in this place and got their chicken ramen. It was good for the price ($ 10) but it was nothing special. Upon being seated, the waiter asked did I have any questions and I said yes, recommend a good ramen that isn’t spicy, I can’t take much heat. He recommends the chicken ramen and says that it’s good & really mild so I got that. The ramen arrives and I start eating it and it’s hot as hell! But whatever, I’m starving and had somewhere to be in 20 minutes so I didn’t have time to send it back. I waved him over and said I thought you told me this wasn’t spicy! He says oh sorry, we add chili oil to all of the ramen right before it comes out. If a customer specifically tells you that they don’t like spicy food, wouldn’t you think that this would be something you need to mention to them!!! Duh!!! Plus the shredded chicken was a little dry. Overall it was cool but more like a last resort ramen place. Tons of other great ramen spots around.

Try the ramen! It’s surprisingly great here. They have reliable Thai fare as well. Good for lunch, though it gets crowded. The service can be brisk, but reasonably efficient.

Just randomly bumped into this place and thought I’d give it a try since I was craving ramen. It’s a pretty nice and cozy establishment overall and I was pleasantly surprised with the food.
It’s on the corner of Clinton and Monroe, so parking was really harsh to find so I recommend CTA to get there.
Upon entering, I was immediately greeted and seated. I ordered the Tonkatsu Ramen while my gf had the Pork Katsu Curry. Everything came out pretty quickly and it was all tasty.
For $ 10.95 I got a a pretty big bowl of ramen with menma, pork chasu, scallions, and a broth that was smooth with just enough saltiness. It was a definite steal. I got to taste the curry which came over steamed rice and it was pretty standard when it comes to Japanese curry, although the portion did not match the price (in a good way). There was a lot of curry for $ 10.95.
Def would recommend this place for a stop in during lunch. It’s a good twist on Asian fusion with great portioning for the price.

I live and work about 5 min. away from here and it’s the perfect place for a quick work day lunch during rainy weather or the morning after a night out. Nothing satisfies more than a bowl of ramen in those situations and Takumi really hits the spot. I’ve only tried the tom yum ramen (twice) and I would definitely recommend it if you’re wanting a hearty meal packed with flavor. Highly recommend this place for its convenience and hours, especially with so many restaurants closed in the West Loop during the weekend.

A coworker told me about the fabulousness that is T.R./My Thai so while I was out and about the other day, I decided to stop by; so glad I did!
The restaurant appears to have two restaurants so if you see My Thai locked up, check T.R. I was so happy that the staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. The were eager to help me find the perfect vegan dish — the brown curry with veggies.
The dish came with a perfect portion of steamed white rice and a large bowl of delicious curry. The flavor was spot on, plentiful and well balanced.
I will definitely be back, soon!

Came in with my kids on a Sunday. 3 star at best. Ramen wasn’t that tasty and I got the sense that something was missing from the ingredients. I’m not a chef just an aficionado, so I don’t know what it is. Kids agree that Strings in Chinatown is still tops for ramen.

I agree with some other reviews — this place is at the very least a 3 star venue, and given my recent visit, as you can see I’m bumping it to 4 (it’s Friday, I’m gonna spread a little love). It’s conveniently located just two blocks from the Ogilvie Train Station. My review is going to mainly focus on the Ramen dishes and Bento box we got.
While ramen’s popularity in Chicago is on the rise, I’m still in search of a really great ramen place. Having just moved back to Chicago and into the heart of the city, I’ve still got a ways to go…
We got the Tonkatsu Ramen, the Tontoro Chashu Ramen, and the Teriyaki Chicken Bento Box.
I thought both the Tonkatsu Ramen and the Tontoro Chashu Ramen were tasty. Richer than what you’d find at Slurping Turtle, I honestly thought it tasted a little better. It’s not as memorable as Ginza’s Tonkatsu Ramen, but Ginza is closed now. :(It’s also not as salty as Mitsuwa’s either…
The Teriyaki bento box was pretty big and came with miso soup. All our dishes were very filling.
I stil have a ways to go in my ramen search, but I would agree with J N’s review was accurate.
Overall, it’s not badly priced ($ 9 – 10) for most main dishes with generous portions which means you WILL leave full. It’s in a good location (there is metered street parking). The food is tasty (sushi is just OK), and better ramen dishes than some other places I’ve had. There were a good number of other Asians dining here, so I think it speaks to some authenticity of the place. I just thought the menu was a little weird. It features both Thai and Japanese dishes. But either way, I would come back.

The sushi is so gross. Thai is still edible but sushi is disgusting and pricey for cheap sushi.

My review hovers between 3 and 4 stars.
3 stars: pricey sushi, ramen broth was a bit salty
4 stars: best ramen you’ll find in the area. Great selections. Good service. Nice location.
My tonkatsu ramen was very generous, with lots of pork and other toppings. Very much like what you’d get in Japan, though a tad saltier. Unlike another reviewer, I found the pork to be quite delicious. This soup was so filling I had trouble staying awake the rest of the day at work.
The sushi is a bit pricey, but pretty good. Considering the downtown location, not too unexpected.
Overall it’s a great little lunch spot, and I recommend it.

I was having a craving for ramen and my usual spot is closed, so here I was at Takumi. Tiny place, not particularly busy at lunchtime on Sunday. The tonkotsu ramen wasn’t fantastic but it satisfied my craving. The broth was a bit thin and one note. The pork was terrible, if was like chewing on wet cardboard… not sure if they took previous reviews into consideration and ended up using a leaner cut of meat. Chasu in ramen is all about glistening, melt-​in-​your-​mouth fatty pork! So please use the proper cut of meat! Service was efficient.

Just go to slurping turtle for ramen and save yourself from this lack of flavor with over cooked noodles. Bleh. Service was meh also.

Regular readers know I love ramen.
For this review, I’d like to introduce the Ramen Purist and the Ramen Realist. The Ramen Purist will tend to stress their credentials, and bring up examples of legitimate ramen and how this isn’t cup of noodles. The Ramen Realist will note that ramen is essentially street fast food and that authenticity doesn’t ultimately trump taste.
I had the Tontoro Chasu — a tonkotsu with kakuni (braised pork belly), celery, onsen tamago, and garlic oil and fried chopped garlic. I am a sucker for tonkotsu (pork broth) and the appeal of the garlic oil and fried garlic.
The Ramen Purist will point out that the broth may have been a bit light, and the noodles missing a bit of spring to them and lamenting over the quality of the kakuni for tenderness and juiciness and visual appeal of the eggs. The Ramen Realist will note that despite its looks, the flavor of the broth combined with the garlic hit the spot quite nicely. The amount of noodles and topping were balanced and the food came out fairly quickly.
Overall, I’d say that if you needed a place to impress your foodie friends, you’d likely take them to a different place. But, if you have a craving for tasty ramen, and would like a variety of options, definitely give Takumi a shot.
Keep in mind that the ramen shop portion is only open for extra seating during lunch hours. Otherwise, you can still get ramen in the main Takumi restaurant outside of lunch hours.

So, this needs to be said after I looked at all the reviews and low ratings, this is a true ramen shop, not a sushi bar. If you are looking for anything but ramen (and maybe some small sides) then just keep walking.
The Tonkotsu Ramen, their #1 dish, was amazingly tasty and reminded me of an incredibly popular ramen place in Osaka that always had a line out the door. I highly recommend coming for this dish.

1. This place is confusing because there is a another Takumi Thai place close by. So after much confusion, I now interpret this as Takumi’s ramen shop/​sister restaurant.
2. Came around 12:30 on a Wed, it was pretty packed, but our group of 4 was seated pretty quickly.
3. Had the Tonkatsu ramen ($ 10). It had decent noodles, ok broth, fatty pork belly, a plop of roasted garlic, and CELERY?! That was weird and not kewl. At first impression, the bowl just seemed not complete, like they hastily put together a bowl of this ramen. But I ate all of it and it grew on me since I was really craving warm broth. Not bad in the end.
4. I give this place a 3 star not 2 because it’s a decent place for the Loop, enough to satisfy your ramen cravings and they have a diversified thai/​japanese menu as well. I’d probably go back if I had another craving.

Stay Away!
I came specifically for Shoyu Ramen ($ 10) to compare to Takashi’s Slurping Turtle ($ 13). Yikes! Awful. The meat had a smell. Soup based lacks flavor. Cabbage on soup can get soggy.
The bathroom path is an accident waiting to happen. Bathroom is disaster with at least 6 gallons of Windex, cleaning agents under the sink. When is this place going to get cited for health hazard by the food inspectors?

Pros:
1. It’s ramen, it’s hard to go wrong with ramen… unless it’s that 50 cent Maruchan garbage.
2. It’s relatively quick only if you come after the lunch rush from 12−1PM.
3. They’ve got interesting combinations of different noodles, soup bases and meats.
Cons:
1. Bit more pricey than it should be.
2. Tasty but don’t expect Momofuku-​quality ramen cuz that definitely is in another echelon of it’s own.
3. Service can lag during the rush b/​c it’s only 1 person taking your orders and serving the food.
4. They don’t offer any ramen with a vegetable soup base. Not a great option for vegetarians or vegans.

The food here is really two stars, but I’m adding an extra star for effort and for being really close to my work.
Ramen is not Chicago’s strong suit. The only decent bowl I’ve had was at Santouka, which is a Japanese chain. Takumi is not changing Chicago’s ramen reputation.
I’ll start with the good. The tonkatsu broth here is not bad. Better than Wasabi, worse than Santouka. Decent flavor and body to the soup, not as thick and unctuous as Santouka, but very few are.
The shoyu broth is also not bad. One note is that when I think of shoyu, I think of a lighter pork broth flavored with soy sauce. Here, the broth is vegetarian (kombu, I think). Different but decent.
The chashu here is pretty terrible. There are two different kinds, one is loin, the other is pork belly. First of all, chashu should not be made with pork loin, as it is too lean. Second of all, chashu is supposed to be braised in soy sauce, sugar, mirin, ginger, green onion and some other stuff, sliced, and then placed on top of the ramen. My very strong suspicion is that the pork here is simply boiled as part of the process for making the broth. A very basic kitchen rule is that when you boil meat for broth, flavor leaves the meat. The chashu here tastes like all the flavor has been drained from the meat. It certainly has not been braised the proper way.
The noodles are overcooked, from mildly to incredibly. I once had a bowl where the noodles were practically disintegrating.
Some of the toppings are off. Celery on ramen? Weird.
So the food is far from great, but I will still eat here. Hangovers and salty broth go hand in hand.

The Tontoro Chashu Ramen ($ 9.95) isn’t bad. The kakuni is good as pork belly usually is in all it’s soft fatty glory. It had a lot of garlicky flavor, so it didn’t disappoint. I love garlic so that’s why I picked this one after looking at the pictures and description:
«The original ‘Tonkotsu’ noodle soup topped with kakuni, celery, onsen tamago and fragrant garlic oil.»
The cute waitress lady (with their uniforms and red bows on their head) suggested the Tonkotsu Ramen, Tontoro Chashu or Tom Yum Ramen. Those are highlighted on the board and also have a «thumbs up» sign on the menu. From looking at the menu, the shoyu ramen looks really dark and salty so I stayed away (I know, insightful of me). The Kara Miso (spicy miso) ramen I heard is quite good according to my coworker.
BTW:
Chashu Pork = braised pork loin
Kakuni = Braised pork belly
Menma = seasoned bamboo shoots
Onsen Tamago = poached egg
Nitamago = seasoned salt boiled egg
What brings me back to this place is that it’s the only place in the loop that has STEAMED RED BEAN BUNS! I don’t know why I keep craving them… but I don’t want to trek all the way out to chinatown just for some buns.
They also have steamed lotus paste buns, shumai pork (3 pcs), and bbq pork steamed buns. The bbq pork buns ($ 1.50) are VERY good. The fluffy dough and sweet pork was amazing. They run on the small side but they’re good like the real thing. Anyway, the lotus and red bean buns are kind of small (2.5 inches in diameter?) and are $ 1.25 but they’re good. I’ll probably frequent this place whenever I want a steamed bun for a snack.

Okay, okay, twist my arm… it’s really 2.5 stars but I want it to succeed… Little Takumi — you go out there and earn your 3 !!!
Why? ok, for purely selfish reasons.
– It’s just so gosh darned great to have a ramen shop in the city in easy distance from me!
– Aaand Santouka, which I’m dying to try based on Yanyao’s and others’ reviews, out in Mitsuwa, is so friggin’ far from me. This place is right here in the West Loop!!!
– I need my ramen shop to be near me, you see? This will go a long way in appeasing me when I miss the authentic ramen joints in NYC’s East Village or LA.
Weeelll.yeah, ok, it’s the little noodle shop that could… but yet hasn’t…
Confusing corner. The space was a fairly popular Japanese restaurant with the same name, and has recently reinvented itself into a noodle shop.
The pluses…
It’s a heck of a lot less crowded than the merged My Thai/​Japanese monster where there isn’t a seat in the house during some lunch hours. (?!@# what are these ppl all eating? the place isn’t worth it peeps!).
At Takumi, you can actually converse with your lunch dining partners without crashing elbows with neighbors, and serves the purpose of going out for a retreat from your hectic day.
$ 11 w/​o tip gets you a heaping bowl of the Shoyu Ramen. The broth was a tad on the simple and salty side, but with 2 generous scrumptious pork slices and all the ramen trimmings.
Yes, yes, I know, there were some minuses… shhh!
My coworker had the nicely spiced miso ramen but so salty that I didn’t find it edible. My other coworker ordered the the tempura buckwheat noodles which was solid, with great flavor and genorous portions of tempura.
Here’s the last tidbit from our so-​so visit… an issue that irked my dining partners but I was pretty oblivious about. Around 2.30PMish, the staff in the neighboring My Thai area were using some malodorous Pinesol-​like ingredient to clean their floors. And of course the fumes wafted over into our dining area.

So finally there is a ramen place close by downtown where the old Takumi used to be (the sushi has moved to be consolodated with My Thai.) Unfortunately, as of right now, this place is just ok.
Shoyu ramen didn’t have enough saltiness from the soy sauce and was a bit bland. The chashu was decent though in the ramen.
I did like how the girl there checked on me and was really nice. I guess I am a sucker for that stuff.
For around 11 bucks after tax this feels like a normal priced lunch and I can see it being more crowded when colder weather comes.
I will be back to try again. 3.5 stars overall.