Kippo Ramen — Restaurant in Baltimore

This was my first time in this restaurant. Please keep in mind, I have never had Ramen Noodles in my life. Not even as a college student. We were here to celebrate my nephew's birthday. He loves Ramen Noodles and was new to the area (freshman in college). After doing some research, we thought we'd give this place a try. As a plant based eater, I was a little concerned about my options and choices. That's the story of my life if I want something more than dry toast, a leftover forgotten leaf, bland rice, or a salad. I was trying to see what was available for me and went with the birthday boy's suggestion for a newbie. When I say this food was delicious, I am not exaggerating. The soup was hot, flavorful, well seasoned, and filling. The noodles tasted like they were made fresh and not from a box. I did not even wait for it to cool down before continuing to dig in. Who has time to cool off hot soup when it's so good??? The portion size was not bashful. It was hearty and I ate the whole thing. No carry out "to-go" bag for me. I don't live in Baltimore but would make that two hour drive back for another meal and of course to see my nephew.😉 I should've ordered another soup to go. Seriously. After returning to NJ, I kid you not. I was still thinking about that soup. So much so that I've been looking for a similar place in my area (South Jersey/Philadelphia). It really left an impression. I also want to mention that the waiter was working so hard that night. He seemed to be the only one of the floor from what I could see. He was very patient and accommodating with our large group. He was very attentive to our table. We arrived as soon as they opened, and we were very pleased with the overall experience. I saved our receipt so that we will know the name and address for the next time that we are in town. There will be a next time, and we will...

TL;DR: it's very good ramen for Baltimore area and its taste has improved over the past year that I've been a customer. My favorite item to order is Spicy Miso Chicken Broth with Chicken. I'd give this a 4.5, but definitely worth rounding up.

I've a long history with trying Kippo ramen. For at least four years of my life, I've tried different ramen places in Los Angeles. So when I moved to Baltimore, I definitely explored Kippo. I've always ordered Spicy Miso Chicken Broth with Chicken. At first, I was not a huge fan of the taste because it tasted watered-down. I tried it a couple more times, but every time I spent about $17-18 and wasn't satisfied with the taste of the ramen. I also tried a couple of other ramen places nearby, and I have to admit that Kippo is the best ramen in Baltimore (that I've tried). HOWEVER, I went to Kippo today after avoiding it for at least half a year and surprisingly I loved it. The broth was rich and creamy, I could actually taste the spice as I drank the broth and not as a after taste, the noodles were plenty and the chicken was very moist. I'm so surprised it tasted amazing. It may mean that I've been super ramen deprived or it may mean that Kippo has really stepped up their game. I'm willing to bet on the latter. Highly recommend that you at least try this...

Kippo Ramen is good. The pork broth is rich but not heavy or oily, very light on the saltiness yet flavorful. The chashu is thinly sliced as it should be, making it very tender to the bite. Their ramen fare has two kinds of noodles, thin straight noodles and what they call the wavy kind. I ordered the Tokyo Tonkotsu ramen with the wavy noodles and my wife got the basic Tonkotsu that came with the straight noodles. Very little difference in terms of fixins and flavor; the nuances are in the noodles, I think. The wavy noodles are more al dente and yellow in color and you will notice a slight tanginess at first bite, they stand up against the broth with their own flavor till the bottom of your bowl. The straight noodles are a bit more tender and they tend to absorb the flavor of the broth. For appetizers, we got the Takoyaki which are deep fried veggie balls with bits of octopus (tako, they're just like squid or calamari). We also tried the karaage (chicken nuggets) with honey mustard. They're quite filling, enough for three people. If you're going for dinner, come between 5 to 6:30pm so you can park and get a table easily. We got there at 6:20pm and by the time we left around 7pm, the place was packed and parking was much harder to find. Oh by the way, last...