Ivan Ramen Slurp Shop

So I’ve been putting off coming here for a while now because of the reviews. Let’s just say that my meal here pushed me to write my first Unilocal review. I’ve been using Unilocal for a few years now, and normally I don’t even try places below 4 stars but this place made me want to do my part as a fellow foodie and give it the review it deserves.
Tokyo Shio (Salt base) Ramen with an egg and some pork belly, awesome, rye noodles are the tastiest noodles I’ve had to date. Yuzu lemonade was great too, if that’s your kind of thing.
Was it authentic? Who cares. I spent a month in Fukuoka (supposedly the ramen capital of Japan) eating ramen almost exclusively, so I’d like to think that gives my opinion some credibility. My experience at Ivan Ramen was on par with some of the best ramen I had in Japan. Will definitely be back for more.

The ramen here is horrible. The noodles tasted like cardboard, the broth smelled funny and tasted just as bad, and the pork belly was undercooked. Surprised that this place is still open in an area with so many good options.

I really wanted to like this place… Especially because I love Gotham West Market. And this winter I’ve been on a bit of a ramen spree, so I was hoping I would find one more amazing place to add to the list.
It was so disappointing. The broth– which has to be one of the most important parts — was greasy and heavy. The meat serving was stingy. Overall, not very flavorful.
They have an interesting «breakfast» ramen on the menu that I would be tempted to try if their classic offering wasn’t such a let down.
Overall, the hype was too big. Ivan’s slurp shop put a temporary pause on my ramen spree out of disappointment.

Gotham west, near my hotel. If you’re cool with hipsters and fabricated feel of the jawn, I guess it’s fine. Went to Ivan ramen slurp shop in the morning after reading reviews about the rice porridge. They don’t serve it anymore. Went back for dinner to try the ramen. Salty, pork belly was tough, careless and unsophisticated ramen. Was excited to try, but it was really disappointing.

Alright so mostly I want to comment on the majority of people’s complaints about this joint.
First, the soup base. If something is soy based, it’s going to be a little salty. That’s how soy sauce works, it’s brined. And if you complain about the «fishiness» of the soup, it’s probably because it is dashi based –which means katsuobushi is a key ingredient– spoiler alert, that’s fish. Sorry guys.
Second let’s talk about the beautiful piece of pork that is included. There’s a reason that this cut, probably pork belly, is used. This reason? It’s fat content. That fat is supposed to be there, as is the fat in the soup. Ivan Ramen uses several types of fat, including schmaltz (chicken fat) and pork fat.
Why schmaltz? A similar reason that he uses rye noodles, in that he uses his background as a Jew from New York as inspiration for his ramen.
Now I can’t remark on how soggy people’s noodles were, but I can say that the noodles mine came with, were perfectly done, and while different than other ramen noodles, filled with good flavours. As was every other part of the dish from the broth to the pork. And I loved every single green onion in the dish.
Does this have to be your favorite ramen in NY? Obviously not. But don’t eat a package of .25¢ Top Ramen and call yourself a ramen expert.

I really love the concept of self serve, and eat at the bar, open kitchen.
I tried the shoyu ramen which I think it’s worth three stars, noodle itself was good, really good texture. The broth to me it was good but it’s almost like it was too simple.
My wife ordered the miso butter mazemen, it was much better flavor wise.
I think this place could be better if it pays more attention to details: scallion needs to be thinly sliced, plating was messy, service was lacked the element of hospitality-​which i get since the concept is probably self serve. There was no condiments that goes with your ramen, like togarashi, etc.
Perhaps i have a different view and expectation of what a ramen shop or bar or whatever you want to call it.
Comparing to all the other ramen shop in the city, this place would receive «Meh…» award.

My second time visiting slurp shop and I still remember being impressed the first time when the weather was equally freezing outside. Guess ramen made a perfect cure every single time!
I opted for the Tokyo shio ramen with three add-​ons, priced only at 15. Such a good bargain in this area! You could also choose the ramen, bun and drink combo at 20. The chicken broth was both light and flavorful, strongly recommend!
Would like to give a try on their pork belly bun next time showing up in the food court.

I was feeling a little under the weather today and thought some ramen would do the trick. It clearly did not. I decided to try the Tokyo shio ramen, thinking it had to be the most popular for a reason. It was ready in about a minute. Which shocked me because the first thought was that it wasn’t fresh. I was right. The ramen had such a terrible smell to it, that i couldn’t even eat it. I had a few noodles and gave up. My egg was cold, the ramen smelled, the pork was a slab of fat. This was a waste of $ 16 dollars. I definitely had better ramen elsewhere.

Went here with really high expectations, but so left extremely dissatisfied, not with service or ambiance, BUT with the Ramen, not hot enought, not spicy enough, less flavorful, ground pork was so ground that i could not taste it but found thick goopy mass at the bottom of my bowl towards the end.
Sorry Ivan i will not be returning.

Great pork buns, great original ramen.
I tried this place after seeing a special on tv that said Ivan had a successful ramen in Japan, maybe even tokyo, as a white man. Sounded bold.
I tried the Ramen that was labeled rich. It was ok. My sister had the original, that was labeled on the menu «made Ivan famous», this one was great. Great flavor.
The pork buns and the pastrami buns were also very good.

I can’t imagine why this has such mediocre Unilocal reviews… while Ivan may not be what you’d imagine when picturing an authentic bowl of ramen, the flavors are out of this world.
Firstly, I would like to commend their decision to go with Caviar as a delivery service. Caviar is making a huge breakthrough in New York City take-​out and it’s apparent with this collaboration. The soup and noodles/​fixings come in separate containers with instructions on bringing the broth up to room temperature or hotter when it arrives. The utensils and packaging were thoughtful and make the extra money spent easier to swallow. The food… equally impressive. We ordered two bowls of very different ramen, one Tokyo Shio and one Miso Butter Mazeman, both shined in different ways. The Tokyo Shio is closest to traditional ramen with a medium-​thick, smokey-​flavored chicken-​dashi broth. The rye noodles had a great texture and taste and all the toppings were of stellar quality (we added egg, toasted nori, and pork belly). The Miso Butter Mazeman is more like a sauce than a broth and tickles my fancy in particular because it’s how I doll up ramen at home (adding cheese, butter, and draining most of the extra broth). While it may not feel like you’re eating ramen, again the flavor profile is incredible, albeit very rich, and the mushrooms, scallions, and add-​ons were all fresh. Lastly, I am not sure why there are so many complaints about pricing when the majority of trendy or upscale ramen establishments are charging this price or more for the same quality or lesser food (and hardly as creative). There are few joints I can think of off the the top of my head with price points lower (Naruto chain is the only thing that comes to mind).
Clearly, I’m crazy about Ivan from their business practices to inventive menu. I would gladly order from them again and look forward to patronizing the location on the Lower East Side, regularly.

Gotham Market is located near Ink48 where i stay frequently, so I often end up at Ivan.
The ramen is good, don’t get me wrong. I just don’t understand it. I’m referring specifically to the spicy red chili ramen. The pork at the bottom is minced, but by the time you get there, it’s just a thick goopy texture. The taste is really good, but I do not like that part of the ramen.
I also generally like poached eggs instead of soft boiled, so that’s another ding for me.
I spoke to someone working at a different vendor in the market and they told me I had to try the breakfast all day ramen, so that’s next on my list!

Stick to tradition. Although I quickly grew tired of my rich, one-​note Breakfast Ramen, I couldn’t get enough of my brother’s Spicy Red Chili Ramen with dashi-​chicken broth, minced pork, smashed eggs, scallions and rye noodles. (Sorry, Tim.)
Three and a half stars, but rounding down for the steep price tag in a cafeteria setting.

We were in Gotham West Market for Ample Hills, but wanted something with a bit more substance. I suggested my boyfriend try the ramen.
He ordered the Shio Ramen with Pork Belly. Simple bowl with scallions, noodles, broth and the pork (too much fat for my taste). I didn’t care for the broth flavor but the rye noodles were interesting. Appreciated the different take on ramen, but wasn’t for me.

The ramen at Ivan’s slurp shop is not bad, but a little bit expensive for the serving size and quality.
I would say the quality is slightly above average for ramen in the area, but for the size of the bowl the price is a bit steep. About $ 13 will get you a small bowl with scallions and a small piece of pork + one additional topping of your choice.
Over all its an OK ramen, but it doesn’t live up to the hype around this place. Not bad if you have some extra dollars to spare.

Well… I guess Ivan the Terrible started a ramen shop. There was no slurping, only regret. I sipped on both the shoyo and shio based ramen. The broth had no depth and the (rye?) noodles were limp. I also consumed the Warm Rice Porridge consisting of Japanese breakfast sausage, shio kombu, shell-​poached egg and aged shoyu. Let’s just say, I prefer the Chinese version at the fraction of the cost. Don’t order The Seriously Traditional unless you seriously like overwhelming natto flavor.

I would give the noodles 5 stars for its springy texture. A great bite.
The shio soup — 1 star. It tasted funny. Quite bitter too.
Also had the butter miso noodles, which has less broth and more cream. It was kinda overly salted. The mushrooms made it more of a pasta than a ramen. I still liked it.
The corn is a waste of money.
Don’t know what the hype is all about since this wasn’t mind blowing. I’ve had better bowls.
One more important thing: all three of us who ate the noodles that day fell ill quite soon after. It could have been that day’s broth? Who knows…

I have tried Ivan Ramen slurp shop in the LES and this is not up to par at all. I would think Ivan would not like what is going on at this site if he knew. The noodles are wayyyy overcooked.
We got the special appetizer of baby bok choy. It had something pickled and it was a little weird. The shoyu tokyo ramen is nothing special at all. Noodles, two pieces of pork belly and a lot of scallions. The broth is underwhelming. The spicy ramen had a better broth. We made this one fully loaded and the egg was disgusting. It was lacking the yolk and the whites were rubbery. We could not finish our food it was so bad. And to top it all off it’s rather expensive. $ 40 for two bowls of bad ramen and a few pieces of bok choy.

**This is a review for weekend brunch only at Ivan Ramen** Gotham Market is popping for lunch, but pretty underrated as a breakfast stop. Went to Blue Bottle Coffee first, then over to the Slurp Shop to complete a solid breakfast.
Ordered the Buckwheat Pancakes ($ 9) and a Roasted Barley Iced Tea ($ 3). The pancakes are super fluffy and served with an interesting black sesame butter. The syrup that came with it was lackluster however, so stuck with smearing the butter on. Roasted Barley iced tea was not very good; not sure what I expected but I assume it’s an acquired taste.
As with everything else in the market, the prices are pretty high for what you’re getting. I still believe this is a good an option as any in the area though.

I didn’t know ramen could be so bad and cost so much until I came to Ivan Ramen!
The good:
Food was served promptly.
Noodles were al dente and delicious (but far too few, and buried under layers and layers of weird toppings).
The bad:
Not authentic at all. More like «hipster» ramen.
No service; counter style seating only.
I ordered a pork tonkotsu ramen — the broth wasn’t white and creamy; it was brown and greasy.
The ugly:
Broth was too thick! Both me and my friend called it a sauce…
One piece of charshu I received was tough as cardboard.
Expensive as hell. $ 25 for a bowl of ramen? No thx.
If you suddenly want to walk to 11^th Ave, order at a counter, bus your own food, and pay $ 20 – 25 for a smallish bowl of ramen that isn’t even that great, then Ivan Ramen is your place to go. Me? I’ll head over to Ippudo (even though the wait is long).
PS. They don’t even serve the full Ivan Ramen menu here!!!

I know NYC is not cheap. But seriously for $ 13, I do expect a little more from Ivan Ramen Slurp Shop.
Tokyo Shio Ramen ($ 13)
sea salt, dashi + chicken broth, pork belly chashu, rye noodle
Rye noodle has a more heavy and chewy texture which was quite interesting. The broth was a little over salted. The single piece of pork belly was paper thin. And I was lucky I love green onion…
Portion wise, the noodle was snack size.
Located inside Gotham West Market might not be bad choice if you want some Asian food while your friends having other food options from other vendors. I doubt I would have another bowl of Ivan Ramen.

I’ve been wanting to try Ivan Ramen for quite some time after watching David Chang’s show «The Mind of a Chef». So I was a bit surprised that this shop had low reviews.
I ordered the red chili ramen and my bf ordered the shio ramen. My ramen was very different from any that I’ve tasted. The noodles were extremely soft (almost soggy) but I did like the type of noodles (buckwheat perhaps?) .I have a thing for thin noodles. My ramen had a good amount of kick and spice to it while still remaining flavorful. The broth was reminiscent of a Korean-​like type of spicy, almost like it had kim-​chi in it. The pork was ground and not like the regular char shu. My bf’s broth was very light and clean, like a typical ramen. Nothing exceedingly special but the flavors were still very tasty.