Shun Fa Noodle House: Super Slow and Forgettable Service

Shun Fa Noodle House is a fairly forgettable place located on Victoria Drive (close to Mui Garden). I had to actually dig deep into my notes to help me remember anything about this place (yes, I keep notes about the places that I visit).

Marutama Ra-men (Metrotown): Super Duper Busy

If you’re a ramen lover in Vancouver, you’ve probably heard of Marutama Ra-men. This iconic chain founded in Japan back in 2001 has spread across the globe and is known for their signature creamy chicken broth with aosa seaweed. Recently, they opened up a new location near Metrotown (in the former Ramen Raijin spot on Kingsway) and I visited during their soft opening.

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TerraCotta Boyz: Oodles of Noodles

TerraCotta Boyz is a Chinese noodle shop located in the Old Orchard Shopping Centre in Burnaby. This smallish shop has a few tables on one side of the store and a stand-up counter on the opposite side. Their menu is fairly basic but odds are that you’re coming here for their noodles.

Hokkaido Ramen Santouka (Fairview): Shio Ramen and Melon Soda

Like the sushi joints that proliferated the Vancouver dining scene years ago, the same trend appears to have happened with ramen houses. In addition to independent ramen restaurants, popular chains, such as Hokkaido Ramen Santouka which originated in Japan back in the 80’s, have made Vancouver their home.

Chengdu Spicy Restaurant: One Dimensional Flavours

My first attempted visit to Chengdu Spicy Restaurant didn’t go as I had planned (what else is new?). I’ve been wanting to try this little restaurant located at the corner of Wilson and Kingsway for a while now so I made a point to visit earlier this year. Unfortunately, I relied on the hours that were listed on Google (they didn’t have a website that I could find) and arrived just past 11:30am only to find that they were closed and the hours they were displaying in their shop said they open at noon (Mondays-Friday). So, after reporting the new hours on Google, I headed to another nearby restaurant and waited for my next attempt to try out Chengdu.

Tian Shi Fu: Liang Pi Noodles

The northwest corner of Kingsway and Marlborough in Burnaby has been a rotating spot that’s seen many restaurants come and go (from Happy Day Metro to Black Dragon Sushi, to Chef Corner and now Tian Shi Fu). All the previous restaurants that I listed weren’t that bad so it kind of makes you wonder why they couldn’t make it and whether or not Tian Shi Fu (which appears to specialize in northern Chinese cuisine) will fade away as well.

Ramen Danbo (Kits): Fukuoka-Style Tonkotsu Ramen

There’s no disagreement, Vancouver has some seriously good ramen joints around town (most of which are located in the downtown core). Ramen Danbo is one such ramen joint (they have 1 location downtown and 1 in Kits) and they are frequently busy.

Ramen Hachi: Ramen in New Westminster

Ramen Hachi is one of the many new ramen joints that seem to be popping up all over the Lower Mainland. This cute noodle joint is located on Carnarvon Street in New Westminster, behind the New West Skytrain station.

Tokyo Tonkotsu Ramen: Another Ramen Shop in Town

It looks like the latest food craze to hit the fickle Vancouver restaurant scene is ramen. It seems like there’s a new ramen joint opening up every week. Recently, Tokyo Tonkotsu Ramen opened up on Kingsway, across from Metrotown (and about a block away from Yaguchiya Ramen.

Yaguchiya Ramen: Iekei Ramen

Last year, a new ramen shop opened up in the former location of Seoul Cafe on Kingsway, across from Metropolis at Metrotown. I know that’s not too unusual since 3-4 new ramen shops opened up in this area around the same time, but in this case, I’m referring to Yaguchiya Ramen which is a small chain of iekie-style (house-type) ramen originating in Yokohama, Japan.

Grand Chinese Restaurant: Soupy Pork Dumplings

Grand Chinese Restaurant (such a typical name for a Chinese restaurant) is a newish restaurant that opened up near Brentwood in a small strip mall. We stopped by on Christmas eve because we were in the neighbourhood and quite enjoyed the food here.

Ichikame Shokudo: Pretty Bowls for Ramen

Disclaimer: I originally wrote this review back in late October 2017 but I’m just getting to posting it due to a backlog in old posts and our Japan trip)…

A new ramen shop has popped up in Vancouver. Yes, I know, that’s not exactly earth shattering news given the number of ramen shops around town. Ichikame Shokudo is a tiny shop located on Victoria Drive in south-east Vancouver.