Food: Modern Japanese ramen.
Vibe: Busy, noisy, slurpy.
Order this: Chili goma ramen.
Know this: There’s a lineup to get in almost all the time but it moves fast. Just write your name on the clipboard inside the door and wait until they call you.
Average Price: $13 per ramen bowl (cash or debit only).
This bustling Bridgeland restaurant is always busy and that’s because the ramen bowls are so bodaciously flavourful and consistently delicious it’s almost impossible not to crave them. The restaurant only serves approximately 150 bowls of ramen per day to maintain the integrity of the tonkotsu (pork) broth and the hand-rolled noodles, which are the foundation of the classic and new-school ramen offerings. The room has a funky, urban vibe, with an open kitchen that lets you see the steaming bowls being assembled with ingredients like char siu (pork belly), soft-boiled egg, spring greens and chili oil. And in no time your order is up and delivered by one of the really cool servers who work the room (and the thumping tunes) with masterful efficiency.
827 1 Ave. N.E., 403-454-2722, shikimenya.ca