How To Skip The Line At Ippudo

Ippudo's ramen (Flickr user Gabriel Li)

Hands down, some of the best ramen in the city can be found on Fourth Avenue in Manhattan at the only American outpost of Japan's Ippudo chain. But to slurp down their noodles coated in that delicious, delicious porky broth diners often have to deal with an endless wait at a crowded bar that can stretch for well over an hour. There has to be another way, right? There is.

Though the house of noodles emphatically won't take phone reservations or let you take their food off site, they will, we confirmed last night, let you make a same day reservation in person. Just drop by in the morning or mid-afternoon and tell the host or hostess that you'd like to make a reservation for that evening. Give them your name, party size and time and as long as you return at the time you said with your full party on hand they will do their best to accommodate you as soon as possible.

But do be kind when you ask! The gatekeepers at Ippudo deal with hundreds of often obnoxious people all day and the last thing you want is to have them "lose" your name because of some attitude. Because really, walk into Ippudo and skip the line and you'll feel like a (very full) rock star all night.

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By Garth Johnston in Food on December 15, 2011 12:15 PM

Comments [rss]

jisnotused

I'm out of words for this place. Are people who go there and wait 1+hour in line masochistic or they're somehow addicted to something they put in the noodles?

After getting in line and greeted by the non-chalant and sometimes downright rude hostess, you get in there and 20 white people shout some of what they consider japanese in your face. Great. After waiting 1+ hour that's what I want to hear.

All the waiters/waitresses should get a fake sincerity award because their sincerity is really fake and sometimes disturbing.

Then you pay $15 bucks (most expensive in NYC as far as I know) for half a bowl of sub par noodle. You can tell it's sub par because of their traffic and the amount of effort they put into cooking it. The pork is even more sub par (too lean and dry).

I think the point about authenticity can be valid, to me authenticity is when they put heart and effort into cooking each bowl, not this bs.

angry_pickle

I agree. 1+ hour wait is just plain dumb for what is basically fast food. I do get the fake sincerity vibe all the time from young female Japanese staff.

jisnotused

oh i think i know who you're talking about. Shes like extra fake. haha.

(I've only been there 3 times since the beginning but the last time was last month).

Kevin_Kramers

Minca, Totto, Rai Rai Ken is so much better

Pixelwhore

Fuck this, I'll just pass em a hundred.

David Nguyen

I know a way to skip the line. Don't go there in the first place. I rather go to Totto Ramen which I think has a better richer flavor broths and no annoying EV hispters eating the $15 pork buns and slurping ramen like eating spaghetti.

Gothamist_Cynic

Totto ramen is fucking terrible. It's even more overrated than Ippudo.

edgie168

by EV hipsters you mean white people? because every time i've walked past i've always seen crowds of asians lined up halfway down the block, as well as inside packed like sardines by the "bar" area.

Eddie M ︻╦╤─

ippudo sucks. expensive and really not that great as far as tonkotsu goes. for a more 'authentic' tonkotsu ramen experience, hide-chan ramen is by far as close as you will get without going to the yatai in nakasu.

hellfire

unless they're replacing their ramen with spaghetti or something, please don't ever use the word 'authentic'...it means so little in the context of things. it's also under the assumption that 1. you know 'authentic' and the ones making the ramen don't, and 2. that there is only one 'authentic' style.

angry_pickle

Have to agree with your points. But I find Ippudo underwhelming for the price of food and admissions.

hellfire

right...don't get me wrong, i don't go to ippudo either. but not for any 'authenticity' reasons. i'm a minca type of person because i like broth that churns my stomach.

in other news...this time next week, i will be starting my ramen expedition around kyoto and tokyo (word).

edgie168

pics. lots of pics.

edgie168

WEEBO

Dee Phunk (Derreck)

Old news for Ippudo vets. But I'm glad you guys posted this. More people should know. My girlfriend and I have walked in, made a reservation for late dinner, went up the block to catch a movie and come back afterwards.