Yoshi Ramen, the latest spot to enjoy authentic gourmet ramen noodles, opened in January in downtown Austin. Founded in January 2018 by Veggie Heaven’s Chef Stacy Chen, who has operated Veggie Heaven since 1998, opened Yoshi Ramen as her second restaurant.

The restaurant itself is a tribute to her own mother, who once had a ramen shop in Osaka, Japan. Walking into Yoshi, the first thing you see is all the Maneki-neko figurines, which are cats said to bring good luck. From small figurines of the cats to art on the walls they are everywhere.

The space looks very modern due to the big windows, open floor plan and wooden furniture. Spanning across the windows is an enormous curtain made out of paper cranes, adding to the clean, bright look of the restaurant. Star Wars decorations are also peppered throughout the building on the walls and tables.

The menus are not the are covered in cute pictures representing some of the dishes they serve. The menu ranges from edamame appetizers and to bao sliders to hearty classic ramen soup and to ramen burgers. Drinks include regular Coca Cola products , buble tea and mimosas.

On my first visit, I ordered the edamame and pork gyozas as appetizers, which I received pretty fast. Both were very good. I followed it with the “Old Classic,” a very traditional ramen dish. It consists of chicken broth, chashu, ajitama, menma, negi, roasted tomatoes and nori.In English, that means barbecue pork belly, soft-boiled egg, bamboo shoots, green onion and dried seaweed. The dish was served very fast and the server was patient when I wasn’t sure what to order.

He took the time to explain the menu as well, giving recommendations of his own favorites. Everything at Yoshi was actually incredibly delicious. The pork belly was perfectly tender, the broth was flavorful and the noodles were just the right amount of chewy.

My overall experience at Yoshi was a 10 out 10 stars. I didn’t feel rushed when ordering. The service was great and the food was even better. If you’re looking for a comforting bowl of ramen, I highly recommend Yoshi Ramen