Baka Umai
Restaurant · Sunnyside ·
House-made noodles, spicy ramen specials, and extensive sake list
House-made noodles, spicy ramen specials, and extensive sake list
"Open since 2020, this ramen house prides itself on using homemade noodles and broth — as well as ingredients from local suppliers like Ota Tofu and Carlton Farms — to craft over a dozen complex and exciting versions of the soup, including yuzu miso and mala lemon, or specials like Carolina Reaper ramen. Beyond the bowls, Baka Umai (meaning “stupid delicious” in Japanese) also serves bourbon-marinated chicken karaage and over 20 varieties of sake." - Katherine Chew Hamilton
"Spice lovers, this one’s for you. Baka Umai offers big, blazing bowls including habanero tonkotsu and ghost pepper miso, with add-on pepper “mashes” to bring additional spice to any given bowl. Baka Umai’s commitment to improving and fine-tuning every aspect of the process moves its offerings forward year after year, and those improvements and tweaks are noticeable even in non-spicy bowls like the yuzu miso or lime shio. Baka Umai also makes its noodles in-house and often runs specials, such as a Carolina reaper pepper, tonkotsu, and shoyu bowl topped with candied jalapeños." - Zoe Baillargeon
"At Baka Umai on Hawthorne, vegans and vegetarians will find shiitake-vegetable broths and toppings like spicy cabbage, fried tofu, and candied jalapenos. The shop is known for its distinct offerings, like the smoky-spicy-savory soy chorizo ramen with pickled daikon and cilantro, but ramen traditionalists can slurp shoyu and miso ramen here, too. Those looking to crank up the heat can try broths tinged with ghost pepper chile oil or fermented habaneros. Other entrees include mazemen brothless ramen, tsukemen dipping ramen, and bento bowls." - Waz Wu
"Spice lovers, this one’s for you. Baka Umai offers big, blazing bowls ranging from habanero tonkotsu to Carolina reaper miso, with add-on pepper “mashes” to bring additional spice to any given bowl. Baka Umai’s commitment to improving and fine-tuning every aspect of the process moves its offerings forward year after year, and those improvements and tweaks are noticeable even in non-spicy bowls like the yuzu miso or lime shio. Baka Umai also makes three different kinds of noodles in house, and often runs specials, such as the beef noodle soup pictured, a ramen spin on the classic Taiwanese dish niu rou mian." - Ron Scott, Eater Staff
"I consider this spot my top pick — they offer vegetarian and vegan versions of many standard menu items and play with bold ingredients like smoked tomato paste, apple, ghost pepper, and honey-roasted peanuts. The menu is split into broth ramen, brothless ramen, and tsukemen, and I particularly recommend the vegetarian chorizo-men: its spicy tantan broth (you can pick your spice level) is full of flavor and comes loaded with toppings like a jammy egg, a pile of soyrizo, spicy cabbage, pickled daikon, cilantro, and green onion. Their house-made noodles are some of the best in town, and although the shop sits a bit further out on Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard, I think it’s worth the trek." - Janey Wong