Touring Japan in my mid-twenties I quickly clocked that the easiest, heartiest and often most affordable meal was ramen (worst-case udon soba). The end product of hours of broth-boiling, it’s not so much fast food as soul-food, brimming with comfort and love. When Wagamama brought the idea to London the queues were around the block. And while you could also find ramen on the menu of Japanese restaurants it took another 20 years before purely ramen shops arrived on our streets, first with Bone Daddies, later Kanada Ya. Then in 2025, after a few tester pop-ups, Ivan Ramen set up shop on Farringdon Road, just off Rosebery Avenue.
Ivan Orkin’s tale is that of an almost obsessive passion for everything Japanese since childhood, especially food. Having learnt the language he moved to Tokyo, establishing his own ramen restaurant in Setagaya ward. And returning to New York, Ivan’s Ramen on the Lower East Side quickly became a dining institution.
The façade of the London shop is modest with a narrow L-shaped layout. Aesthetically simple, there’s a Manga-meets-American diner vibe. Tables are small and practical, and it was great to see several sole diners – always a good sign.
New York jazz music mixed with Japanese rock n roll set the scene. Drinks wise, Asahi is available on tap at pub prices, and you can have white wine or sake by the glass, plus soft drinks.
We were keen to try two smaller dishes, two ramen and the legendary fried chicken. The chicken gyoza with an almond chilli sauce arrived with bellies nicely pan-tanned, and I adored them. At £7 for 6, they are fantastic value too. Soy garlic fried chicken is buttermilk fried and is nice and crisp with toasted garlic caramel, togarashi (chilli) and spring onions, though the buttermilk sauce seemed superfluous. It was as crunchy and morish as it looks.
As a vegie side we ordered Crispy Nasu – Japanese aubergine, white sesame puree, burnt garlic oil, chilli and spring onions. Lovely scorched chunks of aubergine, and the sesame paste brings an oomph of nutty umami.
And so to the main event, ramen, starting with veggie spicy miso red chilli. A combination of chillies, miso, mushroom-vegetable dashi, coriander, bean sprouts, pickled garlic, roasted tomato, togarashi, tender stem and spring onions – there’s plenty going on here. The veggie broth flavour leans towards tomato, spicy-hot, with lightly blanched and crunchy tender stem broccoli. Standard Ivan noodles are a bit like vermicelli, and I opted for the non-vegan version with soft egg. This was great ramen.
Currently there are seven summer specials on, including cold sesame noodles so this was the second ramen. Made with thick mazemen noodles, they are tossed in a cold, creamy sesame broth and topped with pulled chilli chicken, red peppers, coriander, spring onions, and sesame seeds. The chicken’s texture is almost salmon served this way. Very sesame, there’s a gentle warmth compared with the veggie dish, and each are equally delicious.
In spite of the one dessert being Yuzu Cheesecake by this stage I was beaten. Beaten by a really delicious meal crammed with flavour and entertained by the cultural journey. When next I am in the area I know where to go for my Japanese fix. Nice one, Ivan!
Ivan Ramen is at 98 Farringdon Rd, London EC1R 3EA – Ivan Ramen
Opening hours: Mon – Tue: 12:00 – 21:00, Wed – Sat: 12:00 – 22:00, Sun: 12:00 – 20:00 – Walk-ins only
