Ninja Ramen — Restaurant in Houston

I stopped by late night to try Ninja Ramen because a friend of mine rave about this place all the time. However I should have just stayed home and saved myself the calories and $30. To call this place a noodle shop is a misnomer, it’s a bar that happens to serve mediocre ramen. Overall 2.5/5.0, rounding it up to 3 stars. Definitely not eat here again, but would love to try some of their whiskey selection instead.

The restaurant is very niched in its appearance, catering more towards the grungy hipster crowd with dim lighting and a full bar. The door was propped open by a chair letting in flies that were instantly attracted to the smell of the ramen. There wasn’t much of a menu, just two printed sheets of computer paper displaying the food and drink. There was an impressive selection of Japanese beers and whiskey, however the food menu was disappointing listing a grand total of about 5 items (if you count spicy and original soup as two separate entrees). If you don’t mind a little dirt and the causal look this may be a good place for you. Setting +0.75 star.

I ordered the original ramen and it was fairly presentable. Standard soft boiled half egg surrounded by a few slices of marinated bamboo shoots and topped with green onions. Aside from the two sizable sliced pork belly pieces, nothing spectacular stood out. Presentation +0.75 star.

The soft boil egg was deliciously made, and the bamboo shoots were well marinated. However the broth was tasteless and lacked the umami taste of the Japanese Ramen. The pork belly was generously sliced in thick portions. It failed to taste even to be half as good as it looked because it was tough and overcooked. What really surprised me was how terrible the ramen is. They do not make their own ramen, instead they buy it from a factory. Taste +0.5 star.

It was just one table tonight. The server was nice and very helpful. She came to refill our drinks. Then forgot about us about 20 minutes into our dinner. The management was busy socializing at the bar so I had to go ask the busboy for my extra noodles and then eventually the cheque too. Felt bad for the server due to the slow night, so I tipped 20%. The best thing about the place is that it is opened late to 2 am every night. Service +0.5 star.

The original ramen comes at $12 a bowl, adding spices increases this cost by $1-$2 depending on the broth. Compared this price to Soma Sushi which is more expensive at $16 a bowl (above average ramen) and Tiger Den at $10 a bowl (best in Houston). The menu is very misleading as it makes you think you are getting a good deal because they give you extra ramen (if you finish the first bowl) but I was still hungry after I finished the first bowl (in literally 3 minutes). I usually can barely finish the ramen at Tiger Den or Soma. Afterwards while writing this review, I can say that the ramen was so bland it was literally like eating instant noodles from Chinatown....

Ninja Ramen is a late-night neighborhood dive-bar/restaurant on Washington Ave. It was opened in 2014 by Christopher Huang (AKA Ninja Master). This is that guy who ate SEVEN Don Juan Tacos in one-sitting at Austin restaurant, Juan in a Million (a challenge that Man V. Food’s host could not beat)! The menu is composed of a few items including ramen, mazemen, aburamen, spam musubi, and ice cream. They also have a large assortment of alcohol including Japanese whiskey and imported beer.

Their ramen is composed of a few choices including the original ($12), spicy ($12.50), miso ($13), and spicy miso ($13.50). It’s made with an Asahikawa-style broth, pork belly, egg, bamboo shoots, and green onion. If you don’t want much flavor or spice, go with the original. If you want more flavor, go with the miso. If you want the best of everything, just get the spicy miso. It might burn your assh*le, but it’s good going down! I’m not being immature, I’m just being real. Did anybody say, “fiarrhea?” Ok, I’m done.

The place has mucho charm to it. It’s small. It’s inviting. It has televisions that constantly play the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, anime, and many other interesting series that remind you of the 90s. The lights literally have dry ramen noodle squares built into them. It’s honestly one of the most unique places I have come to know. It’s also open reeeallly late! It’s open until 2 am every night (and 3 am for Friday’s and Saturday’s).

I find myself coming here late nights when I am too lazy to cook or drive anywhere. I hop in on my skateboard, decompress, sit at the bar, grab a steaming bowl of ramen, and head out. This place may not have the best of the best ramen (for all you newly snobby ramen enthusiasts who were spoiled by the amount of ramen places that popped up in Houston over the past few years). However, you can’t bash a place that started the trend. This place is OG to Houston, and I am proud to have such a fun little gem in my neighborhood. ...

Found this place by recommendation of a local and previous employee. I originally came to visit the day of the snow-- but it was overwhelming, so I left and returned today. Had the original pork belly ramen for dinner on my way out of town, did not disappoint. The bartender Alex was extremely accommodating and friendly, even went out of his way to help with parking. I'd recommend paying for valet parking or Uber, as I did end up getting a parking violation (that's on me) as parking in the Heights can be quite tricky-- but it was worth finally getting to check out the place. Alex is the only reason I stayed and wanted to try the place out. The ramen is fresh, authentic, good, genuine food pork belly ramen. Some of the best ramen I've had in Houston, I travel frequently so I always appreciate a good bowl of fresh ramen.

The vibes from one of the staff members was extremely weird, I walked up and he smoking while on duty IN FRONT OF THE RESTAURANT-- unless he's the owner, that's weird and against TABC but considering the conversation he had with me, I doubt he was. This particular member even told me to park at a tow away zone-- wouldn't be surprised if he was on something, you could just tell this dude was wired on something. He couldn't make coherent words or phrases. If it weren't for Alex & the Chef, I would have left. But, regardless of how uncomfortable that staff made me feel, I decided to stay since I was there for the food not the people.

It's worth making the drive to check out this hole in the wall. I was even excited because they had a fairly large selection of Asian whiskey, would have tried it if I weren’t driving. I often find if great restaurants can conquer the simple meals, they can conquer more elaborate ones. Definitely will return if the road brings me...