RAKKAN Ramen - Chicago Uptown — Restaurant in Lake View Township

This may make sense to those who are of my generation and perhaps even older; have you ever experienced wanting a good old fashioned simple and greasy hamburger or cheeseburger but have found it difficult to find one? Too many places you go, they have created 'gourmet' burgers with 'inspiration' from various places. While these are good/decent, you just want your good, old, original, simple hamburger! That out of the way, imagine the same for Japanese food.

I'm not a Japanese cuisine specialist by any means however I do know some flavors since I grew up in Tokyo. I so miss the tori no karaage (chicken karaage) but everywhere I have been to (not too many to be fair), it's way too Americanized which is ok but come on, someone's got to have authentic or close to authentic chicken karaage.

I honestly gave up on Japanese food (Japanese curry rice, ramen, chicken karaage and takoyaki) in the US till I came across Rakkan Ramen.

The founder, Ryohei Ito brought the idea of Rakkan Ramen with one goal in mind; bring authentic Japanese food to the world. Is the chicken karaage exactly how I remember having it in Tokyo growing up or on my various trips back there? I'd say 98% yes. The 2% is probably the type of chicken available here, the oils, water, etc. No nonsense specially made aolis drizzled on top and topped with tiny things to make it pretty; Rakkan Ramen's chicken karaage is as close as it gets to what you get in Japan.

So let's get on with it. It was about 2 or 3 months ago, a friend and I visited Rakkan Ramen based on reviews and I figured let's check it out.

You enter and you are transported to Japan with the word, Irrashaimase coming out of the staff's mouth within the first 2 seconds that you enter the door. OMG. I AM LOVING IT SO FAR.

We are seated way back in the corner (which I don't mind. I'm an introvert anyway). We ordered the takoyaki which was outstanding. We also ordered a side of the chicken karaage (which I have already described above).

We each ordered a ramen. I ordered the Amber. The broth was a BOMB. While vegan, the flavor profile it had was so Japanese and outstanding. The seasoned egg was PERFECTLY done. The bamboo shoots, hmmmm, that crunch in your mouth and lastly the chachu (grilled pork). The chachu I will say I've had better at other spots in the US. The actual noodles too I think there are spots that have better ones. Overall, this ramen HIT THE SPOT and I felt like I found a JACKPOT.

Fast forward a while later, I went in solo for a lunch special on a Friday afternoon and ordered the Pearl ramen AND of course, my chicken karaage. The karaage again was exactly how it was the first time I had it. The ramen too was so amazing. Salty (not too salty but just right) and truly umami.

One additional thing I wish Rakkan would do is to start adding wakame. This is the wet/soft seaweed that is a common ingredient across Japan in ramen, udon and miso soups. I have yet to come across a Japanese restaurant in the US that serves wakame (again, I have probably tried at most 50 Japanese restaurants in the US and I know there are thousands)

I am so glad to have found this place. Now that I'm back, I plan on having my ramen fix every other week for a...

I tried out a total of 4 things, their takoyaki, pork belly bowl, chicken bowl, and garnet ramen.

It wasn’t anything special, i tried out their garnet which is their recommended ramen on the menu and i’ll be quite honest it tasted disgusting. The broth ruined the overall flavor as it left a bitter aftertaste after every bite.

The noodles itself weren’t that amazing, the taste was average while it was a bit too firm for my liking.

The pork belly in the ramen wasn’t too bad, it wasn’t too chewy but it wasn’t melt in your mouth watering pork belly. You can tell this wasn’t marinated for too long but then again it’s grilled pork belly.

The takoyaki was good but they didn’t have bonita flakes on them which i’m a big fan of. the presentation for it was pretty and the taste is fairly good. I think it’s nice to get once in a while but for $8 it’s a joke.

Now the actual good hitters are the pork and chicken bowls. i think they’re probably the best thing on the menu in terms of food so far. They’re flavorful, it’s cooked amazingly where the juices from the meat blends in well with the rice. For the chicken bowl i would prefer having more meat as 5 pieces is a bit too little, but overall i would easily just come here to buy those bowls.

The service was pretty bad, there were about 3-4 servers available and you could tell there wasn’t a proper waiting system in place as some servers were confused on who to take care of. The table next to me and I had to walk up to grab someone’s attention after 20-30 minutes of waiting to at least get water. We initially waved at them and thought we’d be taken care of after they’ve looked at us but that wasn’t the case.

The servers weren’t bad but i think they’re quite young, management should’ve given them more support to help redirect customers and focus on what’s important.

After our order was placed the food did come fairly quick which was nice. Maybe less than 15 for everything to arrive.

I think with the consideration of it being a chain restaurant and one of the only few ramen spots in Uptown, it lacks a certain quality that most people would expect. Argyle is a prime location for Asians, if another ramen spot were to open up with more depth of flavor and care. Rakkan would end up being on the short end of the stick.

Rakkan has some great qualities in that the location is great and the building itself is well built along with its food options. It’s very considerate of vegetarian options which makes this a great place for people with limited dietary...

Update April 2025 Still of quality Doesn’t warrant long distance trip If you are craving quality ramen this may suffice

Pro Quality ramen Beer selection. The have Japanese beer trifecta (Sapporo, Kirin, and Asahi). They don't keep it cold enough, but still pretty cool

Con Price. $17.50 per bowl. $20+ after tax and tip Sake. Sake menu is a joke.

Pearl Fish stock broth Nice deep broth A bit saltier side like typical ramen ship in Japan. Noodle is cooked firm. Might be too hard for some. Let it sit couple minutes noodles will loosen up. Bamboo shots have too much funk Pork chashu has a bit of funk, but soft

Amber Vegetable broth + Soy sauce Looks practically same as Pearl Much milder than Pearl Has some smokiness. Might be pro or con depending on taste. Con for me Chicken chashu had good seasoning but was tough

I liked Pearl over Amber

Last visit April 2025

Old Review March 2024 An actually solid ramen.

Food It's probably one of the best Ramen in the neighborhood. If quality is what you are looking for, this place might be it. Broth has good flavor and depth and noodle isn't over cooked and retain good firmness. Food is could be a bit salty for some. Chashu is super thin but has nice char on it.

Beer They surprisingly carry holy trinity of Japanese beer on tap. Asahi, Sapporo, and Kirin are on tap in addition of guest craft beer. Price ain't bad either, but beer wasn't ice cold.

Price Price is rather steep for a ramen at $15+ a bowl, but it is quality Ramen that could compete even in Japan. If price is adjusted that is. I spent around $30. 1 Ramen, extra noodle, 1 beer.

Tip Noodle can be too firm for those who are not experienced in authentic Ramen. Don't be afraid to ask to reheat noodle. Staff will gladly will take care of it.

Menu tried Salt...