RAMEN IPPUDO QV — Restaurant in Melbourne

Parents and Elderly BEWARE. Extremely unfriendly treatment. We had lunch on Sunday, the 9th of October and a particular staff name ZAC was really unfriendly since the beginning we entered the premise. It was a cold and windy day and we were a group of 4 adults with 2 toddlers (6YO&3YO), and 2 of the adults are over 70years old. The first occurance happened when we asked if we can wait inside while the table is being prepared. There was only 3 occupied tables. He was shouting at us and said we can't, after arguing for couple of minutes he let us in to stand in front of the counter in the entrance. The second occurance, we were having our lunch and our elder daughter was touching the sesame seeds plastic container. He suddenly loudly shouted at her "Stop playing with that", without even checking if our child really played and messes up the place with it. Daughter was quite shocked and cried straight away not wanting to continue her meal, so we decided to pack up and go home. In the entrance, we met the guy who shouted and asked him why he spoke that way to our daughter, he mentioned that he doesn't want to clean the table with sesame powder since its messy and hard to clean. The issue is he shouted to an underage while the parents are there and accussing without any proof. He could have talked to use to deal with our kid, but that he suddenly was shouting and talking in angry tone for no reason is really unacceptable. He was not even apologizing until we said you made someone cry for not even knowing if that person messed up the table or not and reluctanly said he didn't mean to without properly saying sorry. We are really disappointed on what had happened given Ippudo is a family restaurant and not a take away only service, they should have trained their staffs better how to trear customers. If they don't want anyone making the table dirty they shouldn't have provided anything that can contributute to any dirt in the first place, I'm quite sure even adults can mess up a table. And if they are really opposed to have kids on site, please deliberately put an announcement outside that no kids should enter the premise! Mind you we are paying 10% extra service charge since we dined in on Sunday. We have been to Ippudo Sydney westfield and Doncaster Westfield, both were really kids friendly. That was our last time being Ippudo customers and will surely warn friends and family to be careful on that particular...

ORDERED: 🍜  Akamaru Modern: Ippudo's original tonkotsu broth, thin straight noodles, pork belly chashu, black fungus, spring onions, bean sprouts, fragrant garlic oil, secret miso paste and half egg ($20.00) spicy miso on the side (free) weekend surcharge ($2.00) card surcharge ($0.33)

I paid $22.33 here

REVIEW: The menu scanned through the QR code isn't as detailed as the hand menus and table service provided before the pandemic. I remember the Akamaru Modern used to give you the spicy option straight up, but the closest I could find on the QR was adding in spicy miso on the side. Not quite the same. 😢 Nonetheless, it's still delicious.

Ippudo is still my favourite chain ramen restaurant in Melbourne. The food is consistently flavourful, with a savoury creamy broth, choice in noodle texture noodles (I like mine hard), and pork belly chashu that is umami and so tender that it breaks apart in the bowl. They've also got delicious toppings, with my favourite being a half boiled egg that has been marinated in a soy based sauce that can hold its own power in the broth. You can't go wrong, and the medium sized ramen is still affordable.  😍

Atmosphere is able to host large groups (I've been with a group of 10 here), as well as sitting as little as 2 people. Its versatility makes it appealing, and the efficient service also makes it ideal. The decor is square and blocky, with really warm vibes coming through with its yellow lighting, and brown and red nuances. They've also got thoughtful little handbag baskets on the floow for you to leave your handbag in, so it's a little more sanitary. Overall, Ippudo is comfortable spot where a whole range of people come here: from students, to workers on breaks, to families and friends....

This used to be my go-to ramen place, but it's my first time back since restaurants have opened for dine in again. My friends and I sat for two minutes, and we were approached by a staff member and we were asked if we would like to order. We said, give us five minutes. Another staff member arrived in less than a minute after and asked us if we wanted to order. At this point, we were getting annoyed and so we said two more minutes. After less than another minute, another staff member asked us to order! I understand management trains staff to be efficient, but asking your customers three times in a row in a span of less than five minutes is very offputting and rude. We finally gave our order, and after that, food arrived.

Ramen tasted inferior to the previous ones i've had at this restaurant. One of us ordered the vegetarian ramen, and it tasted like nothing! If you can't make it taste decent, don't offer it. It tasted like one of those 99 cent clear soups. Just a bit of salt here and there.

Towards the end, a staff member gave us the bill without us even asking for it. Again, another point for efficiency, but very offputting. I understand if the bill is brought after all orders are made, but this one, it was just given to us, as if to rush us.

To the management, you have to do something about this. There is a difference between efficiency and pestering customers to leave asap. Perhaps, assign staff to certain tables only so that customers don't feel pestered to eat and leave! Our evening was ruined because the service felt like we were at a...