Aodake Ramen

I was in the mood for some ramen and my favorite spot near by is permanently closed(forbidden noodles). I decided to try this place. Pretty disappointed with how my food tasted. Undersalted. The three shrimp I was charged $4.50 for were the biggest disappointment. Not worth it at all. Not even an egg was included in my ramen. 😑

This ramen place is top tier! My friend and I came in and received excellent service and food. We each ordered the Chicken Paitan and it came out straight away. We were checked on once on how the food was. The food was out of this world! Can’t wait to return soon!

I did a takeout order of the tonkotsu. Maybe Chicago spoiled me, but the ramen tasted like watered down "pork pepper broth" compared to the rich stuff I'm used to at quality spots in the city. The pork chachu was decent. Definitely tasted like canned corn added on. The mushrooms were plasticy not chewy. The noodles are very thin and don't have much chew. Overall I would say skip. I hope I can find something better local. Between this and Shang Noodle next door owned by the same folks, I've been disappointed both times. There's better for the same money in LG.

Our first time there last night, beautiful location, food was amazing, gyoza and coconut shrimp as appetizer was delicious. My family and I all had different ramen and they were all delicious. We had peach and passionfruit Iced Tea that were out of this world... Owner was our server, she was super sweet, it was busy and she was the only one at the time. I work in the industry so completely understand she's busy. My family and I will def come back.

I had a wonderful experience during my visit. Sheley was incredibly kind and patient as she explained the menu to me and helped me choose a meal that turned out to be absolutely delicious. She was sweet, attentive, and made the whole visit very pleasant.

If you have kids in a van and you wear sweatpants, this is the place. Not at the level of Chicago downtown. Great choice if you’re in the suburbs. This is a wonderful place if your primary car is a van and if you have three kids. Strawberry Boba milk tea was very good a bit too sweet, but they were able to accommodate and water it down.

The food was just average, and the service was honestly disappointing, especially considering the prices. There were two servers: the male waiter was completely indifferent and didn’t lift a finger from the moment we walked in until the moment we left. No greeting, no check-ins, nothing. If it weren’t for the female waitress, who was genuinely kind and attentive, the entire experience would’ve been terrible. Her service was the only bright spot in an otherwise frustrating visit.

i came in w my boyfriend and my best friend and her fiancé met us there, we ordered our food and my friends food at 12:45 and they met us there around 12:55. our food didn’t come out until 1:30 and when it did my order was incorrect. i ordered the spicy tantan and i was served a completely different ramen that had multiple types of seafood. when i told our waitress that i ordered something different and she tried to tell me that my order was correct and that was the spicy tantan. when i said no, the food i ordered didn’t have seafood that’s even she said she’d then replace it. it was replaced in a few minutes which made us curious as to why it took close to an hour for our food to come out the first time. food was good but service could use improvement tbh.

I had the chance to dine here for lunch and here's my review of Aodake Ramen. I arrived during the weekday, right when they opened at noon. I made my way inside and they sat me right away. Upon the review of the menu I knew the gyoza and garlic miso level 2 spicy was the ticket for this day. The atmosphere is nice and clean and has a hip Tokyo vibe to it. The gyoza arrived and it was cooked perfectly. One side was pan fried and it was steamed in such a way to give the dumplings a nice chewy addicting texture. Shortly after the ramen arrived and I'll never get why you serve the ramen with a ladle. It's so weird and very awkward to use. But this review isn't about how it's served but how it taste! If you checked out my other ramen reviews you've seen that I break my reviews up into four parts. The broth, noodles, protein, and toppings. My train of thought is if you don't have good broth then you don't have good ramen, so that the most important part of the dish for me. I go in and take my first sip of broth and it's good. The broth is flavorful and has a good spicy kick that does not last long. Good broth! Next up are the noodles and they were good and had a nice chewy texture and are those of your typical ramen shop. The minced pork in the dish was flavorful and complimented the dish perfectly. The toppings were good as well, they were fresh and crunchy and the egg, you'll have no complaints from me. Overall, it's a good bowl of ramen and I'm glad I had the chance to stop by and try Aodake Ramen. I'll see if I can get in and try the other ramen dishes.

Hubby and I came away from this place very disappointed. The gyoza was your standard steamed out of a freezer bag served with a ponzu sauce that didn't improve the flavor. Had to ask for the soy sauce. Fried rice was probably the best part but was just okay. The teriyaki chicken was mostly steamed white chicken meat drizzled with a sauce which didn't taste teriyaki. Ordered the pork bun which was a white bun filled with VERY dry meat that was tasteless as a bunch of twigs. Very unsatisfying meal. Service was impersonal. Nice decor but not much of an ambiance.

For sure there's a lot of Asian restaurants in LaGrange. In a downtown alley is another one. Aodake is a cafe that specializes in ramen and noodle entrees. Go at lunch for the specials and get a bowl for a pretty good price. They even have a few vegan choices including miso ramen. Came at lunch and we were cheap. It's the best time to get something from here. There's quite a few of the lunch specials. It's about $16 and there's a lot. The one I got was the Spicy Veggie Miso. Hot shit it was for certain. This was vegan miso broth topped with jalapeños, seaweed, tofu, and soft vegetables. Really felt the heat in it. The regular spice level is enough for most. Great selection of ramen and other noodles to choose from. It's certainly better than the packs you cook in a microwave. There's plenty that's okay for vegans and vegetarians.

The restaurant is so cute inside, the waitstaff are very chill, I showed up early and they were very nice with me just chilling their. The Blossom Cocktail is great and the vegan miso ramen is the best I've had! I definitely recommend this restaurant

This was my first time trying Aodake Ramen. I came here on a super cold Saturday night and the place had a few tables occupied. I noticed that they were a lot of online delivery and take out orders though. The servers/staff were pleasant but maybe they can try to be a little bit more welcoming and friendly to the dining customers. For this visit, I tried: PORK BUNS-big pieces of meat and the buns were soft SPICY SEAFOOD TANTAN RAMEN- tasty broth with ample serving of seafood SPICY GARLIC TONKOTSU RAMEN- the broth was delicious and I liked all the components in this dish CUCUMBER SALAD- it was not worth the $7 Overall, the ramen dishes that I have tried were both delicious and satisfying. The place was clean and the service was efficient. It was the perfect choice of dish for a cold evening. They have other ramen dishes that looked delicious on the menu, so maybe I'll try different ones next time.

Popped in on a chilly winter afternoon for lunch. Friendly prompt service. I started with the gyoza pot stickers, quite good. The Tokyo ramen bowl followed, and I enjoyed that as well. Hearty portions and flavorful servings, reasonable prices too. I would return!

Every dish we try surpasses our expectations. Absolutely have to try the Taro Thai tea w passion fruit Boba And the heat level is no joke and I love hear so take it easy start low. My fav was Tofu Buns. You'll want a double order. Service was a little slow first time but food came out so quick it was almost forgotten. Went back again and the The two ladies were killing it. Order after order as the kitchen cranked em out. Small unassuming but casual and comfortable.

This is a small, clean restaurant with the Japanese ramen shop vibe. Very welcoming, we were greeted on entry and seated at our preferred table, glasses of water delivered to our thirsty party. Menus were perused and all our questions were addressed and answered. Appetizer orders were taken and promptly brought to our table. Gyoza were perfect. Shrimp tempura was crisp and light. Yum! Additional questions regarding the ramen were answered, orders were taken, and again promptly brought from the kitchen. My spicy vegetarian ramen was very tasty, lots of freshly cooked veggies (including broccoli and a baby bok Choy), tofu cubes, and a flavorful broth, not overpowering on the jalapeños. Love the egg, worth the extra charge. I asked for moderate spiciness, and the chili flakes came on the side. I added a few for extra zing. Wine, beer, and sake are available. Prices were moderate. I loved the dine in experience here, and will likely be back!

Id give zero stars if that were an option. Called in an order to go, theybdidnt start making it until i got there, 2 bowls of ramen, hour and 25 minutes at 3 oclock on a weekday. Shoddy ramen at best

Outstanding! I had the seafood ramen bowl. Excellent with just the right amount of spice. The stuffed tuna bowl appetizer and dumpling appetizer were outstanding. Great service. This is a great choice.

I ordered takeout once from there. The spicy chicken Ramen was delicious. I will definitely order again.

This is a neat ramen shop with nice seating and color. The lunch special is the golden ticket here. I feel like the menu is too big, the owners could get away with removing the build-your-own section. I ordered a bowl of tonkotsu and a bowl of Tokyo shoyu. I've recently had a few run-ins with tonkotsu that have been sub par -- but this bowl was okay, the hakata noodle was fine. (I think I'm just over tonkotsu/paitan). The shoyu was brilliant. The chintan broth and smoky dashi hit exactly what I was after. I will be frequenting for this bowl when I am unable to make my shoyu ramen at home.

It was fine, average ramen. I've had better, I've had worse. It is truly average, in my opinion. I will most likely try again if I'm in the mood for Ramen, but I wouldn't make a special trip. I don't think you'll be disappointed but won't be over blown away.

Stopped by with my friend for the first time Android place did not disappoint! We tried to Ramen bowls, two appetizer (lunch special!) and everything was delish! The ramen food use a little spice and the chili oil we asked for did the trick. We also tasted the pineapple ice black tea...new favorite summer drink! Finished off with dessert yummmm! The staff was so kind and patient. The decor was simple and beautiful. Will be back ASAP and will recommend!

I was really hoping for this place to hit the spot. Unfortunately Bland at best. Small portions. Was not impressed.

Food is fresh. The dining area is bigger than it first looks like. I have come twice and really enjoyed the food I got. Both times, I drove home to eat it. The food easily withstood the 10 minute drive home. They do have beer and wine. Very clean. Parking right in front is limited due to the outdoor dining BUT, there is a huge lot a half a block away.

Best spicy vegan ramen bowl ever! The produce used in the ramen bowls always taste fresh and have the best spices. There are options of ramen noodles. The spicy glazed Brussel sprouts are also amazing! I definitely recommend this beautiful place.

Delicious! Great pork. Great egg. Worth the drive from Oak Brook at lunch.

This place is so cute and great atmosphere! I was lucky enough to get some enoki mushrooms in my ramen and they are my favorite mushroom!!! The tonkatsu ramen was so good and the waitress was so sweet. She really cared about what we enjoyed about the meal. Tonkatsu is a great ramen for people who aren't sure what to start with. This place is also generous with the noodles which is a huge plus. The fried tofu with spicy mayo was amazing and I could eat ten of them!! The plum wine mochi is a flavor I haven't ever seen so I had to try it. It was so sweet and delicious and beautiful layed out. If you haven't tried mochi it's a must for dessert.

I like ramen but the reason I gave this place 3 stars is the offerings are not optimal. When I have ordered ramen at any other ramen restaurant, the bowl comes with certain standard fixin's besides the noodles, like green onions, or a type of vegetable like baby bok toy, half boiled egg, sprinkling of flakes of miso crumbs...I'm sure you get what I mean if you've eaten ramen. But here they serve you mainly the noodles at a base price of $13 or $14 with nothing else. Every side you pick to add to the bowl costs about $2 so your bowl can cost over $20 (not Kosher with me!) I can't even remember what kind of drinks they served and it's a small place and we came in late so not very busy. I would not recommend this place and there was nothing special to their broths.

This is a quiet small ramen noodle restaurant. It's a hit or miss restaurant. I've had better elsewhere. We wanted soup and tried it in reading some of the reviews thought it was good. The staff greeted us and was friendly. We tried the Takoyaki which was octopus balls. I had a little bit of octopus in the two I had. Wish there were more pieces in them. It could use some seasoning. Then the gyoza ordered the kids liked. Kids always eat dumplings. I ordered Kaiden Ramen which had clear chicken broth with shrimp, calamari, crab sticks, baby scallops, fish cake and seasoned egg. Literally was only 1 piece of everything listed. The clams and scallops were small so they could have added a bit more. The broth was too salty for my taste. The garlic miso ramen had miso, veggies and ground pork. My bro in law said it was good and not salty. My sister had the signature Tonkatsu Ramen. She liked the taste and the broth was rich and flavorful. There are others in the area to try. May give this a try another time.

Finally! A ramen place has opened in the suburbs that is somewhat nearby...beats going to downtown Chicago any day! Very quiet, clean and friendly ambience when you go on a slow, off time/day. We ordered the takoyaki as appetizers and it satisfied my needs well enough. It seemed authentic enough with the chewy texture, but I needed more octopus. I loved the bonito flakes though! I've eaten at Japanese places and not many of them serve takoyaki especially in this area so I was surprised to find it here. As for our main entrees, I got the tonkotsu ramen and my SO got the spicy miso. The tonkotsu ramen is pork based with a blend of soy sauce and garlic oil for a more savory taste. It had a soft boiled egg that was still runny which I prefer to a hard boiled one. Some ramen places don't make it right...but Aodake does! My ramen was topped with pork charshu, mushrooms, scallions, and dried nori seaweed. A pretty simple ramen that I devoured! I got a taste of the spicy miso ramen and I'm glad I didn't get it...apparently ramen places here in Illinois make it very spicy compared to what I'm used to back home. I'm just glad my SO has a high tolerance for spice and he was able to handle and enjoy it. Next time we're in the area, we know where to go for ramen!

Literally every time i come here the food is freshly delicious and I always leave satisfied, the service is great I don't feel pressured or rush and the staff is always close by to help, my food choice is always both the spicy chicken miso and the chicken karaage for appetizer, this Ramen has definitely set the bar and expectations of how I would love to enjoy my ramen.

Fantastic! This cute ramen spot has big ambitions, and it shows! Locals may find it pricey but it's well-priced from my NYC perspective. Good diversity on the menu with a passionate and knowledgeable staff. The food is superb and even more impressive considering the shop is run by Hong Kong staff trained with a Japanese chef for almost a decade! Unlike the ramen shops in NYC, this shop has purist flavors with a modern attitude--they are open to ramen changes to meet your needs. This might seem like an obvious thing but it's not. Many other ramen shops keep a firm hold on their dishes which can be challenging for customers with food sensitivities/preferences. As for my meal, it was a much-needed self date. And BOY was it decadent! I had the black tonkatsu ramen with expertly fried, delicate tofu and a healthy dollop of chili paste. Even their chili paste tastes fresh! I topped off my meal with a sweet yet dry, cloudy cold ramen... perfect way to cool the body on a hot spring day.

I was driving around in Lagrange and had a taste for Ramen, located near the main strip, we parked and stopped in. Interior is clean and warm. We sat by the window and ordered a few kids meal and a bowl of pork based broth ramen. My ramen came and was decent, I was surprised the broth itself was warm and not hot. The kids mean was nice, it came with your choice of ramen or rice bowl, the dish was nice for the kids - they enjoyed it especially when the meal comes with dessert.

Every time I've come here, I'm never disappointed. Whether on a cold night or just a deep craving for Ramen, the different Ramen options on the menu are all delicious. Mix the delicious food with wonderful service means many return visits. And that's just what I've continued to do. The Tonkotsu Ramen is delicious, but my favorite is Spicy Garlic Tonkotsu Ramen, as I enjoy the spicer side with food. The edamame is good, but because I like spicy, the spicy edamame is also really good! And the owner.... she definitely loves her business and her guests!

VAMPIRICIDE: DEATH TO TWILIGHT One bowl of this restaurant's spicy garlic ramen will keep away any unwanted Cullens......for good. After a brief round of pinball and pool at Brixies, my girl and I stopped at this place for dinner the other night (2/4/19). It was a nasty February evening and I was familiar with the Aodake name, having eaten at the (related?) Darien hibachi & sushi spot many times. Once seated, a small bowl of edamame ($5) got us started. My more-than-significant other loved her Kaisen Ramen ($13), a clear seafood broth with loads of calamari, shrimp, baby scallops, crab sticks, seasoned half egg and scallions. I'm not a big fan of briny soups, but she gave this a thumbs up. The spicy garlic tonkotsu ($17) did NOT waste time f*cking around. In addition to a MASSIVE cluster of freshly minced garlic, a homemade chili paste was swirled into the broth along with garlic chips and 3 kinds of hot peppers, including some decidedly nasty varieties "strictly for garnish purposes". Yowza! For dessert we got a couple of mochi: green tea and plum wine ($2 each). I loved that they had a bunch of different choices, not just the typical mango/chocolate/vanilla/strawberry. Check out their special Yelp deal of $15 for $20, essentially a $5 discount. Bread = 4.5 Circuses = 4.5 To top it all off, there's a check-in offer for a "complimentary beverage". This can be something as simple as a Japanese soda or even a small bottle of beer! Yep, FREE BEER. That hasn't happened to us since we took a Miller brewery tour in Milwaukee last Labor Day. * TL;DR * I'm proud to say I never joined Team Edward (mostly because no one apart from 13yo girls swoons over a pale, brooding Robert Pattinson). Thanks to this place, now I never have to worry about those emo creatures ever getting within a mile of me. Leave the wooden stakes and holy water at home, people. Just eat some of Aodake Ramen's spicy garlic tonkotsu and you'll never again have to endure another mopey Stephanie Meyer character. Recommended for lovers of ramen bowls and haters of sparkly vampires.

Very tasty ramen. I recommend a little heat, as it does add a nice flavor. I didn't get it in mine, but my husband got it in his and his was even better than mine. You can add all kinds of toppings if you want, but as a base the various ramens come with the works. Cocktails were nothing to write home about, we got the Halloween ones though so it may be different for the others. Ambiance was comfy, and service was good!

I'm not a ramen expert but I know what I like. And I like Aodake Ramen. The spicy ramen in excellent and I appreciate the a la carte add ons. The service is polite and friendly. Aodake is casual and although I did not see nor did I expect a kids menu, they are kid friendly. Very clean, modern design. Love the TVs with food prep on the wall. Yelp app check in gets you a free appetizer. Street parking.

Very expensive for the small amount of food you get. Also the teriyaki chicken was sooo dry was a dap of sauce splashed on the top. Not worth the quality for the price. Panda Express for Benihana prices.

one of the best ramen i had in a while. all ingredients are fresh and tasty. Gotta be careful with spicy entries. All i can say: They are really spicy !!

Love this place so much!! Not only is the service great, but the food is absolutely fantastic. The place is a quaint little shop and I would highly recommend.

Service is really nice and great. I didn't really enjoy the ramen though. The appetizers like Takoyaki and the Pork buns rule, but the ramen didn't wow me to be honest. I appreciate everything. But I have some high standards. I've been to Kizuki Ramen, Wasabi, Misoya, and Santouka Ramen inside of Mitsuwa Market. Those spots have incredible ramen. It's unfortunate we can't have a place in the suburbs will really great ramen. This place isn't bad though.

I think they got new owners?? Or a new chef? It used to be not bad for not having Japanese owners, but the last 2 times it has been almost comically horrible especially for the price. Their "seasoned eggs" are quite literally hard boiled eggs without any seasoning what so ever, they're just plain white. Typically Japanese eggs in ramen have a jelly like consistency for the yolk and are deeply flavored with soy sauce and other ingredients. The paitain broth was almost clear, and again flavorless, additionally it had ZERO toppings aside from the ones I paid extra to add on...usually there's the standard toppings that come with. For $18 for one bowl that was truly a joke of a ramen. I have no clue what happened to this place :(

Waited an hour for a flavorless over salted broth My wife and I love ramen and this is by far the worst place we've ever visited. Forbidden noodles is about one block down and even tho it is more Americanized it's still much better

Horrible ramen and service took 30 minutes to get tea and we never received our appetizers. The ramen we ordered was suppose to be spicy and it had absolutely no spice. Slow service seems very unorganized and many teens working there with no service skills. Do not recommend.

The food was excellent. The noodles taste homemade, and the broth has amazing flavors!! I ordered the spicy tantán and really enjoyed my dish. My husband ordered the spicy miso and he liked it but was not able to eat it because it was too spicy. It was so spicy it made him vomit. It was his fault however because he has GERD, the waiters was nice enough to accommodate and change the broth for him to take home. The pork buns were okay, i have had better. The bun was good, didn't really enjoy the filling. I would recommend this place!

This was our first time visiting a ramen restaurant so we weren't sure what to expect. The restaurant is very clean and nice. Service was prompt. The appetizers were delicious. We got the pork buns and spring rolls. We both ordered the black tankatsu ramen bowls. They were just okay. The chicken in it was very tasty but the broth itself really didn't a a lot of flavor. While everything was good as a whole it isn't somewhere I plan to revisit. The main dish just wasn't as flavorful and we hoped it would be.

We decided on Aodake because of the reviews. My husband and I both had the ramen- Different versions of it. The broth is as tasteless. It was evident it was not homemade or bone broth. The noodles were also tasteless.

Server was super duper nice :) The ramen itself was 4/5. The broth was a little too salty for my tastes and not quite rich enough. However, the the chicken karrage was simply excellent. Next time I'll get the karrage bowl. Price was a little steep, nearly $20 with tax just for the ramen. However, I really had a hankering for authentic ramen and this hit the spot. I'll definitely be back.

Have been looking for a ramen spot to try close to work and thankfully came across this one. I enjoyed the lunch time special that included an appetizer and ramen entrée. I really enjoyed the level 2 spicy Miso Ramen dish, will definitely be back for that level 3 spicy Miso Ramen. Also, the Gyoza was a little crispy on the bottom but had a good taste. Will be back for sure to try other broth flavors.

I've lived in downtown Chicago for the past 20 years but last year we relocated to the 'burbs into one of our rentals temporarily. What I miss most about the city is the food and the ease at getting anywhere fast to get a great meal. In the city we eat Ramen at least once a week. Now that I'm in the 'burbs I haven't found any good Ramen places until I found this gem while driving through LaGrange. Visited with my kids who were home for Christmas. It was late and cold and maybe Christmas Eve (?) the night we visited and for a while we were the only ones there. The service was super friendly and I ended up ordering a Sake that was recommended by the server. It was a light Sake and I enjoyed it. We ordered Gyoza and Fried Chicken Buns. Both were tasty and bite size. I ordered the Chicken Paitan, and the kids had the Spicy Tantan and Tokyo. The spicy was apparently very spicy but not so overpowering that you lose the flavors of the ramen. It was tasty and well prepared and not too much of one thing over powering the other. Glad we found this place and we will be back!

It's refreshing to see more variety coming into downtown Lagrange! With that said I went to Aodake Ramen last Thursday and it exceeded my expectations. I ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen and Spicy Brussel Sprouts. The ramen was not overly salty and the broth was rich and robust. The noodles were that perfect combination of soft and firm. Overall it was a good bowl of ramen. The spicy brussel sprouts really knocked things out of the park though. They were lightly battered similar to tempura and have this amazing chile sauce on them. I will be coming back for these alone! I love ramen and frequent Misoya, Strings, Furious Spoon, and Santouka. With Aodake being local it will save me a drive! Lastly, this place has only been in business a couple weeks and I can appreciate how difficult it is to open a restaurant. There are some growing pains such as slow service but I attribute that to it being newly opened. I believe it was the owner or manager that came up to our table at the end of the meal and asked about our experience and was genuinely asking for feedback. I thoroughly appreciated this. I hope this restaurant does well because they bring variety to the area and variety is the spice of life!

This place is great! We got the takoyaki, gyoza, and the tonkatsu ramen (his spicy, mine regular). The flavour of the takoyaki was just how I remember them from when I studied in Japan, and the gyoza were tasty! We both loved our tonkatsu ramens, and I think the black garlic oil was the best touch! The broth wasn't too creamy, and I did add a little extra salt on mine! All-in-all, we'd return and recommend!

So excited to find a ramen place in the west burbs! Definitely worth a try. I had the spicy brussel sprouts and the spicy tantan ramen. The brussel sprouts were amazing while the ramen was good as well. I plan on coming here and trying more things on their menu once the weather gets colder. Nothing says comfort food like a large hot bowl of ramen! The staff was very friendly and the service was fast. Also please note when they say spice they mean spicy not like the some places where it is barely noticeable. I'm a lover of spicy foods but someone who has a low tolerance for spicy should avoid their spicy dishes.

Decided to try this place out since it is close to my job. Both waitresses were very friendly and welcoming, made sure to check in with my table every now and then. The food was also great, tried two dishes from the appetizers and was shocked at how much I enjoyed them. Will definitely recommend to friends and go back!

This place is an actual joke. The quality and freshness leaves a lot to be desired. Instead of offering the best quality ramen noodles, they must have opted for the cheapest. The flavors and textures left my family in search of literally anything else.

Second time here and brought my husband this time. He had the number 1 noodle dish and I had 6 and it was beyond good. The broth is on fire! My husband said he's going to bring his work buddies here for lunch. We will be back. My favorite new place! Yum!! Sorry about the noodle pic! I was so hungry I started eating it as soon as it arrived and took picture a little after I had eaten some.

My first time here and one of the worst ramen places I've been to compared to Chicago and California. I usually order a tonkatsu ramen and the broth lacked flavor, but was huge on saltiness. My friend and I were craving ramen but didn't feel like driving to the city. She had already been to Aodake previously and wasn't satisfied but thought to give it a 2nd chance and it still wasn't great. The waitress was kind enough to suggest a different dish but nothing was appealing. As hungry as I was, I ate the noodles and pork. Sadly no broth to slurp with. The broth is everything and makes the dish!!

Talking about ramen in Chicago everything comes back to how it compares to Santouka at Mitsuwa. This place is no comparison what so ever. We both got tonkotsu and the broth was super bland and lacked depth. I've had better instant ramen. They use thin straight noodles which can be good if done right, they were not, texture was not there (Strings Ramen). Pork was grilled, chewy, and bland. Egg for forgettable. We also had gyoza and shumai which was good and server was nice/attentive. I didn't even finish my ramen and to quote my husband "it gets worse as I keep eating it". At $14 a bowl we expected much more.