The part of Hell's Kitchen that is on 11th avenue is clearly not the best to satisfy an appetite. Or should I say was not, since the Gotham West Market is definitely changing everything! Some say that this place was created to lure renters to the Gotham West building, but they definitely did not stop there, as people start to know this place. We went on few occasions and, on the week end, it gets crazy crowded and it is difficult to find a spot to sit.
It is like a food court where you can either sit at the counter of the restaurant or take your food and eat it on one of the tables in the common area(s).
There, you have plenty of choices: Ivan ramen for some delicious Japanese dishes (ramen or donburi), The Cannibal for the carnivores or The Sandwich Shop for...sandwiches.
Ivan Ramen:
We went to Ivan Ramen couple of time after Jodi's cousin, Jessica, recommended it. The stakes for ramen restaurants are high considering the number of places that are present in the City, some successful, others just average. Adding to that that the owner, Ivan Orkin, is not Japanese, I was definitely curious. His story is fairly interesting: originally from Long Island, he discovered Japanese culture and cuisine at age 15, when working as a dishwasher in...a Japanese restaurant. After majoring in Japanese culture and literature, he lived in Japan and opened a restaurant there, before opening the location at The Gotham West Market, perfecting his soup recipe and testing it on his Japanese wife!
The menu is fairly straight forward, with three non vegetarian ramen and two vegetarian. If soups are not your thing, they also propose rice balls calls donburi with either fish or pork, as well as curry rice with rib-eye. We decided to try their ramen.
The menu is fairly straight forward, with three non vegetarian ramen and two vegetarian. If soups are not your thing, they also propose rice balls calls donburi with either fish or pork, as well as curry rice with rib-eye. We decided to try their ramen.
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| Shio Ramen (left) - Vegetarian Shoyu (right) |
You first order at the counter, give your name, and, shortly after, they will call back your name giving you your order.
Each time, Jodi went for the Vegetarian Shoyu:
It is composed of enoki mushrooms, arugula, bathed in a soy sauce and vegetable soup.
The eggs, perfectly cooked, are add-on ($2).
And the noodles are rye noodles. I admit that I liked it a lot, the broth being very flavorful and the noodles slightly al dente. What I also liked is that it is a pretty simple soup, combining not too many ingredients, but still tasty.
On my side, I tried the Shio ramen:
The broth is made with sea salt, chicken and dashi broth. It has pork chashu and I added an egg also.
The last ramen I tried was the Roasted Garlic Mazemen :
It is made of chicken and dashi broth, roasted garlic, nori. I ordered it "fully loaded", meaning with extra pork chashu, an egg and roasted tomatoes ($17).
The broth was a bit thicker and definitely saltier and very garlicky (we probably were protected from vampires for few days). I was so thirsty after eating it! Not sure I would take it again. However, the "fully loaded" formula was great: their pork chashu is delicious and the roasted tomatoes superb.
I really liked Ivan Ramen: it might not be the cheapest, but it is definitely very good.
Enjoy (I did)!
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And Remember: I Just Want To Eat!
| * Restaurant Name | |
|---|---|
| Ivan Ramen | |
| * Overall | |
| ★★☆☆☆ | |
| * Neighborhood / Cuisine | |
| Hell's Kitchen / Japanese | |
| * Street Address | |
| 600 11th Avenue (Bet. 44th & 45th St), New York, NY 10036 | |
| * Phone | |
| (212) 582-7942 |
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