Long lines mark the opening of Berkeley's Ippudo Ramen
Published 3:41 pm, Friday, July 28, 2017
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
As evidenced last year with the opening of the first U.S. outpost of Mensho Ramen, Bay Area ramen devotees are not afraid to stand in long lines for noodles.
With the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen -- yet another Japanese ramen chain with a huge following that spans the globe -- there's a new queue to stand in.
The ramen chain, which got its start in 1985 in Fukuoka, Japan, has locations around the globe, including two shops in New York. The Berkeley store marks its first West Coast location (look for a San Francisco outpost to open by the end of this year).
Oakland resident Timothy Dorran was the first in line for Friday's opening. Having visited Ippudo outposts in Singapore, Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan, he wanted to see how the noodles at the Berkeley shop would compare. He arrived at 7 a.m. His reasoning for standing in line for four hours: "People do it for barbecue in Austin."
Other folks, like Berkeley's Joey Shoji, arrived around 10:15 a.m., a slightly more reasonable time. At that point there were about 40 people ahead of him in line. Like Dorran, Shoji has also visited other Ippudo locations on his travels and is a fan. "I'm a carb boy," he joked.
Chatting with Shoji while waiting for the doors to open was Carol Karalekas, who was also waiting for her husband to find parking. The opening proved to be lucky timing for the couple, who were in Berkeley to visit their son, as it's one of their son's favorite restaurants.
"I'm hoping they open one in Naples," said Karalekas, who lives in the Florida town.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
A look at the lines and food at the grand opening of Ippudo Ramen in Berkeley.
Who knows if a Florida shop is in the cards, but the chain, which is partially under the corporate umbrella of Panda Restaurant Group (Panda Express), is in rapid-expansion mode.
According to Ippudo spokesperson Tomohiko Hara, the company expects to have 300 outlets outside of Japan by 2030.
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If Berkeley's location is any indication, you can expect to wait in line at all of them.
(Visit Inside Scoop's Facebook page for videos of Ippudo's grand opening.)
--Sarah Fritsche, sfritsche@sfchronicle.com
Important to keep in mind if you visit Ippudo Ramen:
- The specialty here is Shiromaru Classic Ramen ($14) -- made with a light and not too salty tonkatsu broth, pork loin chashu, sesame kikurage mushrooms, menma, red pickled ginger, and scallions -- but there are plenty of other versions to try. All the noodles are made on-site and customers can choose what kind of texture they want, ranging from soft (yawa) to very firm (bari kata).
- In addition to ramen, there are other bites like steamed buns, available with pork belly, chicken or vegetable ($8-$9 for two buns) and unagi rice ($6). Check out the full menu here.
- No reservations are taken. The restaurant also has a no take-out or take-away policy for leftovers, so be sure to come hungry and finish your food.
- There will almost definitely be a wait, so arrive early. For now, hours are 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Monday-Thursday; until midnight Friday-Saturday; until 10 p.m. Sunday.
Ippudo Ramen, 2011 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. (510) 666-8807. http://ippudo-us.com/store/
