Taste Test: Ippudo Cherry Blossom Ramen!

Ramen lovers rejoice! We’re blessed with cherry blossom inspired ramen. Ippudo, one of the most famous ramen restaurants in Japan, released limited seasonal Spring ramen. 

Ippudo’s Spring Ramen is a hipster health-conscious twist on tonkotsu ramen. Its broth is a light cherry blossom color made from a mixture of tonkotsu and beetroot. It is topped with pickled purple cabbage, broccolini, onions, roasted potato, chicken breast, sakura shrimp, and pink shrimp cracker.

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We head to Ippudo’s new 1/2puddo branches in Tokyo to find out what this concoction is all about. However, only 30 bowls of the sakura-color ramen are available per day. A single drop of sweat runs down our forehead as we ride the elevator 7 floors up. We can only hope we came early enough to be one of the lucky 30 of the day.

We head inside to be seated at a table. Shortly after we hit the waiter with the “Sumimasen!” and order the ramen in hopes it’s still available. “Yata!” It’s still in stock and all is going according to plan!

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The ramen tastes relatively healthy. Well, as healthy as ramen can taste. The broth is a smooth light tonkotsu flavor with a sprinkle of pepper and basil. The pickled purple cabbage added a surprising but tantalizing sour contrast to the heavy noodles.

The shrimp cracker floated like a ramen boat housing a pile of sakura shrimp. They both added a crisp and crunch to this Spring fusion flavor trip. It was fitting considering sakura shrimp matches the cherry blossom theme. Even the egg was a pastel pink color and the perfect consistency of oozy goodness on the inside.

On the flip side, we were a bit hesitant about having chicken and potato all mixed up in the ramen. However, we allowed it and don’t regret it. They suited the other vegetables and were simply seasoned.

 

Make sure to check our Ippudo Ramen on Sugoi Mart.