How Japanese does that bowl of ramen need to be?

Like pizza, the noodle dish is an ever-evolving cross-border work of innovation.

- Howard Chua-Eoan

One of my favourite London restaurant districts is about to welcome an outpost from a storied ramen chef — news that makes me nostalgic for New York City.

That’s because, for weeks, I once lived on the brothless noodles — a style known as mazemen — luxuriating in a thick roasted garlic sauce, sold at the Gotham West Market foodcourt in Manhattan.

It was a tumultuous time in my life: I was churning out book chapters on my laptop while dealing with a combative coauthor.

The purveyor of the mazemen — and a slew of other ramen delights - was Ivan Orkin, a New Yorker who had mastered the art and business of ramen operating two popular shops in Tokyo for more than eight years. The Slurp Shop at Gotham West was his first US operation, and it provided me with the nourishment - and perhaps enough garlicky distance - to punch through the manuscript without coming to blows with my collaborator.

On Nov 19, Ivan Ramen - a name shared with the Lower East Side restaurant Orkin established in 2014, a year after Slurp Shop - will open in Farringdon Road, just up the block from Quality Wines, one of my London foodie hangouts. It’ll be a culinary mashup of my two beloved cities.

You shouldn't be surprised that I fell in love with ramen in New York, not Japan - a country I didn’t visit until 2023. It’s a testament to the geographical range and appeal of ramen; after sushi, it’s Japan's second great contribution to the global menu, a lineup that includes pizza, burgers, fried chicken, tacos and doner kebabs.