I have never met anyone who didn’t like ramen (Japanese noodle soup). After all, what’s there not to like about it? Rich broth, chewy noodles, tender slices of pork…it’s the ultimate comfort food that’s sure to make your day better.

I’ve had my fair share of delicious ramen while visiting Japan (especially at world-famous joints like Ichiran), but *unpopular opinion alert* I’ve found the ramen I’ve had growing up in Los Angeles to be on-par with what I had in Japan. Now, I respect and love the ramen in its country of origin, but given that my hometown has a sizable Japanese-American community, I would say you can get incredible ramen here as well. Even if I can’t return to Japan anytime soon, I can still enjoy a solid bowl of noodle soup!

There are hundreds of ramen joints all over Los Angeles County, especially in historically Japanese-American neighborhoods like Little Tokyo, Sawtelle, and the South Bay. I’ve tried numerous spots over the years, and I’ve never had a bad experience in any of them. I’d like to share some of my favorites with you, in the case you come to Los Angeles someday. These are ones I’ve tested and love, the ones I would go back to again and again. Hope you get to try them out as well!

5 Favorite Ramen Spots (outside of Japan)

1. HiroNori Ramen (multiple locations)

20190928_182021HiroNori ramen (September 2019)

This is a chain restaurant that spans all of California (from San Francisco to San Diego), but there are two locations in Los Angeles– Pasadena and Long Beach. Although it’s a chain, it’s an absolutely delicious one. A fellow foodie friend, “S,” recommended it to me a couple of years ago, and I’ve been hooked since then. What makes their ramen so good is their chashu (pork slices), which is grilled, instead of boiled. You get that lovely, charred flavor on top of the al dente noodles and runny, soft-boiled egg. Highly recommend!

2. Rakkan Ramen (multiple locations)

20220102_124201Rakkan ramen (January 2022)

Not only is Rakkan Ramen located all over Los Angeles County (e.g. Santa Monica, DTLA, Long Beach), but it also transcends out of state to cities like Chicago (Illinois), Houston (Texas), and Boulder (Colorado)! Rakkan’s claim to fame is their “vegan ramen,” which is unheard of given that traditional ramen broth is made from beef or pork. Although I was skeptical that Rakkan could pull off a “vegan broth,” I was amazed at how delicious it was! For those who are vegan, it’s possible to have an incredible bowl of ramen at Rakkan.

3. Tsujita LA Artisan Noodles (Sawtelle)

20160530_112748Tsujita ramen (May 2016)

Tsujita is exclusively located on the Westside of Los Angeles, and it’s specifically confined to Sawtelle, aka “Little Osaka.” You can get delicious ramen here (including some SPICY ones at their Killer Noodle Tsujita location), but I usually come here for their tsukemen (dipping noodles), which are legendary. Imagine cold, chewy noodles to be dipped in warm, earthy broth, and you have a match made in heaven! One of my favorites I’ve gone to since my university years, and it’s definitely worth a go!

4. Shinsengumi (multiple locations)

20200128_173715Shinsengumi ramen (January 2020)

You can find Shinsengumi all over Los Angeles County, particularly in Gardena, the Eastside (Alhambra and Rosemead), and West LA and DTLA. It has also expanded to Orange County (Irvine and Fountain Valley). Shinsengumi was one of the first ramen spots I tried and really enjoyed, and its fresh noodles were the highlight. I’ve had Shinsengumi in Gardena and West LA, and it has been consistent not only in the quality, but also the affordable factor ($11 USD per bowl), which blows its contenders out of the park.

5. Marufuku (multiple locations)

20210829_113146Marufuku ramen (August 2021)

Okay, so technically, there aren’t any Marufukus in Los Angeles yet (the closest being in Irvine). However, I had to include it in this list, as its chashu is god-tier. The noodles are also perfect, just thin enough for the thick broth to cling to them and soak up its rich goodness. The bowls are deceptively small, but actually deep and full of food, which given the $18 USD price tag makes it worth it. My friend “S” also recommended Marufuku to me, and I would encourage you to try, too!

Do you like ramen? Would you try it out? Let me know!

— Rebecca

Published by Rebecca

Blogger, world traveler, poet, foodie, part-time penguin. Welcome!

46 thoughts on “5 Favorite Ramen Spots (outside of Japan)”

  2. Ramen is the ultimate comfort food, I agree with you. Plus unlike most ‘comfort foods’, ramen seems relatively healthy. Japan is such a foodie heaven, but LA must surely be a genuine rival. So I’m not surprised you were able to find ramen on par with what’s served and consumed in Japan. I love the sound of tsukemen (dipping noodles) which I haven’t tried before and will attempt to rectify soon. Sounds too good to be missed. Great piece, Rebecca. A bit of local food knowledge is always welcome.

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    1. Yes, it’s that healthy Japanese diet (no wonder the Japanese have one of the highest life expectancies in the world)! Tsukemen is delicious, although kind of hard to find (even here in LA, not a lot of restaurants have it), so I hope you come across a place that serves it!

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    1. Isn’t it wonderful that there are so many alternatives to gluten? Even just a decade ago, it was a struggle to find gluten-free options! Considering that there’s vegan ramen these days, I can imagine there must be a gluten-free version around, too!

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  11. I absolutely love ramen and so this post was such a delight to read! Ramen really is comfort food for me any day. I’ve rarely heard of a place that does grilled chasu, so HiroNori Ramen must put a lot of attention into their food. A runny egg is always a must-have for me when having ramen, and honestly sometimes I want more than one runny egg! I also get what you said there about ramen bowls looking small but actually pack a lot. There’s been times where I’ve thought, oh, that’s too little meat or noodles, and end up feeling very full after.

    This is a pet peeve of mind but I really don’t like it when the seaweed comes soaked in the soup. I like my seaweed at least partially crunchy 😊

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    1. Same here! Ideally, I’d want the nori to be completely crispy when served with ramen. Guess that’s kind of impossible, but regardless, it adds extra umami flavor to the already-umami dish!

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    1. There is vegetarian (even vegan) ramen out there, and vegetable stock is used as the broth (I think with mushrooms, carrots, and sesame as the base ingredients). Hope you can find a place that serves it!

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  15. ive had good ramen here in Melbourne and also poor ramen, and last week had some karaage ramen in Queensland that was really good from a real proper Japanese place (A lot of Japanese restaurants here are not run by Japanese people) but honestly, nothing QUITE is the same as the Ramen in Japan, and the atmosphere in the ramen shops is impossible to replicate! These look like good options though!

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    1. Yeah, I find it strange that some ramen places in other parts of the world (e.g. France, and apparently Australia) aren’t run by the Japanese, because the places I’ve gone to in California are exclusively run by them. Then again, we have a sizable Japanese/Japanese-American community, so I suppose that’s a given! I’d love to return to Japan someday, too!

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    1. That sounds awesome! I don’t recall having ramen in Paris (although I’ve had Japanese food there), but Neko Ramen sounds wonderful. I actually had vegetable-broth ramen last night, and it was really good! Will have to go to Paris to check out the ramen scene. 🙂

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