If you’re looking for the most delicious, rich, and flavorful bowl of Ramen you can eat in Amsterdam, you’re in the right place.
We went out and tried dozens of ramen places – good and bad – so you don’t have to, and we’ve picked the very best ones. We looked for authenticity, great price-quality ratio, good service, but most importantly: tasty.
1. Ramen Kingdom (Best in Amsterdam)
Prins Hendrikkade – City Center
When I first heard about this place and the location I was very skeptical because the restaurant is located in one of the most tourist areas of Amsterdam. But after the first sip of the warm broth that has a very deep taste, I definitely realized I was wrong!
What for me makes Ramen Kingdom number one is that the broth has a very deep flavor, it’s very tasty and versatile. Besides the flavour of the broth it also has lots of different toppings (not the standard like: corn or fried onions
Bonus: They offer you a disposable apron so you won’t mess up your clothes while slurping your noodles. And another great thing is that they offer extra free noodles when you only have your bowl with broth left.
Price for a ramen: 20 euros
2. Dun Yong Kitchen – Powered by Taka
4th floor Stormsteeg – de Wallen
This is what you call a real hidden gem.
On the fourth floor of this Asian supermarket you can find a little restaurant where they serve the most amazing ramen, made by Japanese chef Taka.
While eating your bowl of ramen you look out over the canals of Amsterdam.
The store itself is also interesting if you are into cooking and Asian food.
The ground floor has all kinds of food, the second floor has kitchen things and tableware, and the third floor has all kind of asian traditional gadgets.
Price for a ramen: 15,95 euros
3. Takumi Ramen Kitchen
Ferdinand Bolstraat – De Pijp
One of the most popular ramen places in Amsterdam with a very cozy Japanese interior. The owners are Japanese and also own Umaimon (another great ramen place we listed below).
Their chain exist for almost 15 years and even have their own merchandise. Nowadays they are expanding more locations over six countries. They are based in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, and the Czech Republic.
Their broth is incredibly delicious, creamy, and rich, especially the black garlic one.
Price for a ramen: 15,50 euros
4. Hinata Amsterdam
Westerstraat – Jordaan
This cozy restaurant in Jordaan is well known for their home-made broth and noodles. Their chef is trained as a traditional Soba Master (a master at making noodles).
They make their dishes in the most authentic way but also according to their own words ‘unique and distinctive taste’. If you want to avoid prefabricated food you are at the right address at Hinata. On their website they mention several times that they don’t use MSG in their food.
Price for a ramen: 15 euros
5. Sora Sapporo Ramen
Marcopolostraat – Mercatorbuurt
Sora Sapporo has two locations, one in the west and one in the Pijp area. They are introducing ramen from a specific place in Japan: Sapporo.
The chef at Sapporo is a famous chef with years and years of experience working in France. He decided to bring his expertise to the Netherlands. He will make sure you get a bowl of the highest quality and authenticity possible.
Price for a ramen: 19 euros
6. Umaimom
Korte leidsedwarsstraat – Leidseplein
Umaimom is a cozy spot, where you can enjoy large portions of delicious and creamy ramen up until 10 PM. The place is run by the same Japanese owners who own Takumi and other several restaurants in Dusseldorf.
Their star dish is their creamy chicken ramen (#1 on the menu), perfect if you’re not a fan of the classic pork broth. They even have fried chicken as a topping.
The chicken is succulent, the broth is creamy and flavorful, and the toppings are generous.
Some wanted more noodles in their bowl, but for us, it was just enough to leave us satisfied. If you want more, you can ask for extra, but it would cost you around 2.5 euros more.
As it’s a popular place, expect queue lines and a longer waiting time. But once you’re in, the service is top-notch.
Price for a ramen: 16,50 euros
7. OTEMBA
Kinkerstraat – Kinkerbuurt
Located in Oud-West, Otemba is your go-to neighborhood ramen place you should try if you’re in the area. They serve generous-sized bowls of decent ramen.
We ate there 3 times, and the experience was good but not spectacular. The broth sometimes can be too salty, and the noodles you get can be a bit too much. However, the mushroom toppings and the pork were really delicious.
The atmosphere is cozy and we liked that they’re open until late (11 PM).
Price for a ramen: 17,50 euros
What to avoid: Men Impossible (Overrated Vegan “Ramen”)
Hazenstraat – Jordaan
With high expectations, we decided to give Men Impossible a try.
You either love it or hate it.
Let’s just say this: we didn’t love it.
Men’s Impossible is a place known for their magnificent chef’s kissed vegan ramen.
After reading the “almost” perfect reviews on Google, we expected the ultimate fine-dining experience with scrumptious vegan food.
Unfortunately, what we got was a very disappointing and expensive dinner.
First, it was hard to make a reservation, as the place is always booked.
But we finally did it on their website.
The first shock was that before confirming our reservation, we needed to agree beforehand that we will commit to their entire 4-course menu of 34 EUR per person without drinks included (only tea and water are on the house) – and on top of that, to agree that we won’t stay for more than 1 hour and a half.
The place is small, and crowded, with lots of humidity in the air from the open kitchen and you can see some mold on the walls. The most disturbing thing was the smell of fried oil that we couldn’t get out of our clothes for a week!
However, it felt also good to be so close to the kitchen and see how the chefs are preparing your food. It surprised us that even if they are aware that most of their dishes are either fried or boiled, they didn’t invest in a proper ventilation system; to make sure that the experience of the guests is not altered by the highly intense humidity and smell.
During our one-and-a-half hours there, we witnessed two couples who came in, checked the menu, and then ran away. We were very surprised that after all the Terms & Conditions you need to accept when making a reservation, there were still guests who changed their minds once they got in.
The tables are actually not tables: it’s just one large common dining table that you will share with the other guests. This is why they are always booked because the place is small.
Felt cozy and nice, but you also miss the privacy. We felt like we were participating in the first date of the couple who sat across the table. 🙂
If you want some other drinks than tea or water, you need to pick it yourself from the fridge and pay for it at the end.
The cold and warm starters were looking very good but after a few bites, they all kinda tasted the same.
The only things we loved were the cashew nut mousse and the fresh wasabi paste. They were very special.
The fried starters (eggplant tempura, abura-age chips, vegan shrimp katsu, chips) were very oily and felt very heavy and unhealthy. The first bite was very crispy and then you were overwhelmed by the filling – a heavy paste – that felt like a rock in your stomach.
After eating 6 of those, we realized we didn’t even start the main course (the star of the menu: ramen).
It was NOT ramen.
It was an average, heavy, very creamy & thick pasta dish. You need to mix it together with the toppings (mostly corn & mushrooms) and everything turns into a mushy dish with the same texture, and nothing crunchy.
The staff there is amazing and you can see they’re very passionate about what they do. The chefs come to you and explain what you’re about to eat – which feels very nice. In the end, we were gifted with some origami paper favors, which was very nice.
If you’re looking for ramen, this is not the place. If you’re looking for a vegan restaurant with interesting dishes, this place is worth a visit.
Price: 34 euro
