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Kohoku-Ku Ramen

4.1 (56 reviews)
Closed 11:30 am - 10:00 pm

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KOHOKU-KU RAMEN ATMOSPHERE

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Casual
Dogs allowed

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Showa-era vibes abound with vintage signage
Shannon M.

My fiance picked this spot for lunch when we'd be in Edgewater. In a word, amazing! This tiny restaurant restaurant has quite a selection of ramen offerings, and based on our experience it seems like you can't go wrong no matter what you order, since three of us ate three different dishes (the Kumamoto Ramen, with black garlic tonkotsu broth; the shoyu ramen, with karaage fried chicken and a couple more dumplings; and the chashu Curry ramen, with pork and a curry broth) and they were all awesome, as were the gyoza we had for an appetizer: pan fried bottoms and perfect texture of the filling. Our waiter was so nice and the vibe of the restaurant is fun, with little booths decorated with Japanese toys and Showa-era-looking advertisements. We all left full, satisfied, and wanting to come back!

Wet Door (Humidity)
Mark T.

Reading some of these reviews, this was supposed to be at least a rock-solid ramen place. It's not far from me, and I decided to stop in. Unfortunately the experience was abysmal, and I do not see myself returning. Chicago has no shortage of excellent ramen places, this isn't one of them, not even close. I ordered the Chashu Bun and the Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen. Well, the Chashu Bun might as well be called Kewpie Salad. This thing was massive, and difficult to pick up without making a tragic mess. Somehow, using a fork, I was able to make some sense of this. The piece of pork inside was tiny, not larger than a half-dollar coin, maybe two if I am to be generous. Otherwise, it was lettuce and scallion sliced lengthwise that has a tendency to get stuck near the throat if not chewed thoroughly. This was combined with an overload of Kewpie mayo, which was layered on heavy and thus overpowered everything. Then came the Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen. Credit where credit is due, the broth was pleasant, savory, and had the right amount of heat. This is the only good thing I can say about this bowl. Pork? The amount was meager, and the quality was inadequate, it felt more boiled than melt-in-your-mouth and savory. Vegetables? The same scallions-sliced-lengthwise, and two large pieces of Bok Choy. Noodles? These felt more like spaghetti than something ramen-esque. The Menma (bamboo shoot) was pleasant, but I wish there was a little more, as it wasn't enough to restore a balance. Then, we come to the atmosphere. The interior was oppressively hot and humid. So much so that the floor was wet and slippery. I am trying to eat some ramen, not go on a tropical vacation! Adding to the discomfort, the seating was severely uncomfortable. The wooden stools are bad enough, but those who sit on the narrow bench with a coat hanging behind... I feel sorry for you. In terms of value, the Pork Bun was $5, and the Ramen was $18. I could be a little lenient, but given the scanty amount of pork and low quality, I felt somewhat ripped-off when the bill came. Where it comes to the service, I will give them some points for politeness and professionalism. However, it felt slower than in other ramen places (ramen is a kind of fast food, after all!) Also, when a server came up to ask how everything is, and I said "so-so", there was no reaction or response other than smiling and walking away. Finally, there is the question of cleanliness... the dining area was clean, and I didn't notice any red flags while walking through the kitchen to the bathroom. However, the door frame in the restroom looks like it hasn't been cleaned in years. A little 409, maybe a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is all it would take. Oh yes... I will spare you the details, but, a little after waking up my body couldn't wait to get rid of whatever was left, with vigor! I can't say for sure it was this place, but it is the most likely suspect! Thus, we are left with a quadruple whammy! Poor Food, atmosphere, value, and [possible] cleanliness. With all of this, a return visit isn't something that'll take place.

KOHOKU-KU RAMEN
Nergal M.

I've been jonesing for good ramen ever since returning to the US, so I gave Kohoku-ku, a surprisingly hidden little ramen shop in Edgewater, a try. I ordered the Kohoku-ku Ramen, which is advertised as very spicy. It actually wasn't that spicy at all, and I would actually recommend it if you're trying to train yourself on spicy foods. It has good flavor, the spice neither lingers nor has build-up. The soft-shelled crab is always a yummy bonus. I also got the gyoza which was totally fine. I assumed the melon cream soda was an actual cream soda, but it was just melon cream flavored soda :) The decor is filled with lots of Showa-era vibes. It's very cute and gives it a bit more "authentic" vibes. Otherwise, a very solid ramen shop.

Chashu Ramen (close) and Tonkotsu Ramen (far).
Robert G.

Kohoku-Ku is the a call back to nastaligia for me. I haven't found anywhere in Chicago that has reminded me as much as noodle shops in Japan until I stopped here. The service was perfect and the atmosphere was warm and welcoming. Tonkotsu and Chashu Curry ramen were both amazingly balanced with the broth. Highly, highly recommend stopping here.

KUMAMOTO RAMEN
Alex C.

Solid ramen in a small kind of mom and pop feel space. I got the kurobuta sausage, Kumamoto ramen, and red bean paste taiyaki. All super tasty and would order again!

Eating area
Kayla W.

I love that this spot is so convenient. Right off the redline at Thorndale and it's super close if you reside on Sheridan. My boyfriend and I have been scouting this spot in the neighborhood for a while now so we finally took the chance to try it out and it did not disappoint. We came on a Sunday evening. This place is still kind of new from my understanding so the place wasn't full which I loved. Once Chicagoans get ahold of a new ramen spot they flood in. My boyfriend and I got to enjoy a nice evening here without all the raucous from other customers. We started off with chicken karage. You can never go wrong, but I would've definitely liked a lemon to squeeze on them just for added flavor. When it came to ramen I got the miso while my boyfriend got the shio. Both were soooo good. *inserts mouth watering emoji*. It's that season for ramen so it all just felt right. The broth on its own is amazing. And I really liked that the shio ramen contained chicken potstickers (at restaurants I've tried they're usually pork by default). It really made for a very nice meal. We were good and full so we opted to take our leftovers to go. We were kind of sad because we wish we had more room in our tummies to finish it right then and there. Lol even after getting home and settling in it was still good to eat. I really like the atmosphere of this ramen spot. The Japanese candy and toys on the wall make very nice for decoration and gives the eyes something cool to look at. Thumbs up for service too.

Spicy Tonkatasu Ramen extremely bland, tastes like salt spicy water
Paul O.

Seeing the reviews online I was excited to try out a new ramen spot in the city. Me and my girlfriend had the spicy tonkatasu and miso ramen. The miso ramen was good 8.5/10. The spicy tonkatasu was bland with no flavor. When we asked our server if we could add some flavor to our ramen she misheard us and added plain hot water to our dish. This diluted the flavor even more to something even tasteless and we told her again we wanted to add some more flavor. She took back our dish a second time with little to no change. When we asked again she just brought us salt. The meal was honestly laughable at how terrible it was and we (mostly my girlfriend) felt bad on returning the dish as we have already ate a good portion of it. It was not only the worst ramen I've ever personally had but probably the worst food I ever had at a restaurant ever. Would not touch the spicy tonkatasu ramen here with a ten foot pole. Food: 1/5 | Service: 2/5 | Atmosphere: 4/5

Curry rice chicken
Jason W.

Cute, quiet, and intimate shop with japanese comfort food like ramen and curry. Got the curry with rice and chicken. Chicken was tender and lightly fried. Curry was decent. The sushi rice was perfect. The service here was very polite and friendly. Will try the ramen next time.

Gyoza
Andrew W.

You can get a good bowl ramen in many places in Chicago, but it's hard to find a ramen shop that is more fun than Kohoku-Ku Ramen Chicago. The thing that immediately struck me is the how different the interior of this ramen shop was from others I've been to in Chicago or all over the world. Walking in here felt like stepping into 1960s Showa Era Japan. They have a lot of retro decorations like signs and posters, a wall of sake barrels and even dagashi hanging from one of the walls. It's a small restaurant, with not to many seats, but they definitely have made the interior fun. Also, the food was excellent. I ordered Gyoza, the Kohoku-Ku ramen, their house made pandan leaf custard taiyaki and a melon cream soda. The Kohoku-Ku ramen was delicious. One word of warning, it's spicy. If you don't like spicy ramen, then this is not for you. It's a bit expensive, $25.00, but worth it. You get a ton of tempura seafood, including soft shell crab and shrimp. You get a big bowl worth a lot good making it a decent value, despite the high price. I also enjoyed the pandan leaf custard taiyaki. All of their taiyaki is made in house, so it came out piping hot a fresh. It also had a very good pandan taste. The service was amazing too. My food came out super fast and hot. Also, the staff were was friendly and responsive. I also like that it's right off the redline, the 36 bus and there is plenty of parking in the neighborhood. So, getting to and from there isn't an issue. In sum, this is must visit ramen shop in Chicgao.

VEGETABLE TEMPURA RAMEN
Bronte H.

We came here for vegan food, and they have delicious and impressive vegan options. Started off with the blistered shishito peppers, they were delicious - excellent texture, perfectly seasoned, salty and sour from the yuzu. We got the vegetable tempura ramen, which includes tofu, enoki mushrooms, zucchini, corn fritter, sweet potato, and onion, rested on a dish situated atop a simple bowl of ramen with a flavorful soy sauce broth and topped with green onion and lots of pickled ginger. The atmosphere is nice, the little booths are sweet and great for a more intimate experience among a group. We'll definitely be coming here regularly.

Traditional details
Adam K.

Ramen is the macaroni and cheese of Japan. In Edgewater, there are several options. A new entrant is Kohoku, a hole in the wall conveniently located next to the red line. The place is clean and tidy with nice little stalls for four people. One person took our order and did the cooking. The menu is what you would expect and slightly pricier than other ramen places. The ramen was good and well executed. Give this place a try.

Spicy and delicious. Right amount of heat.  FYI it's BYOB

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Cute little spot with nice decor for really good ramen...The tempura ramen is fantastic and my go to...Yum!

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Food Service Ambiance! I would recommend you try it out. It felt like being in Japan.

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Great food, great service, & lovely ambiance. I highly recommend it. The ramen is fantastic and delicious.

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RAMEN-SAN - Lunch combination with 10-hour tonkotsu ramen and vegetarian fried rice.

RAMEN-SAN

4.0(3.3k reviews)
7.1 miNear North Side
$$

Stopped here for dinner on Thursday during our first night in town. Located in the downtown area,…read morethere are several places nearby. We had a reservation for 8:30 and checked in at 8:10. The hostess, who seemed like she was having a hard time negotiating it all, informed us that it would be closer to that reservation time. They pump loud hip hop which was fine. We were sat about 10min late at a center high top table. We ordered drinks and some buns. I also had a wild hair and added a salad as well. The bao bun was seriously the best I have ever had. No exaggeration at all - the meat was tender, not chewy, and the outer skin still had a perfect crisp to it. Wow. MUST HAVE, The salad was also incredibly good with the carrot ginger dressing. The ramen was solid - but I wish bamboo shoots were listed on the menu so I could ask them to hold them. Ramen was standard. Only issue was the wait time between ordering and items coming out. I noticed people who came in after us being served very quickly - not sure if our waitress wasn't putting in what we ordered or not picking up our orders. In a wild turn of events - I ordered dessert at a ramen house - the Cinnamon Toast Crunch sundae which was pretty good. Overall - very good place.

​Stopped in for a quick snack to join friends who had already finished dinner. I ordered the chili…read morecrunch cucumbers and the sticky Thai wings. ​The cucumbers were covered in an addictive, garlicky crunch topping. It was only mildly spicy, but I wish there was way more cucumber to balance out all those extra yummy bits. ​The wings were excellent--the batter seemed like it might have rice flour, giving them a perfectly airy and light crunch. I was desperate for vegetables after eating out for a few days, so I ate the radish expecting it to be a throwaway garnish, but it was actually a delicious pickled radish soaked in sauce. It was a welcome bite. I also tried the rose mallow mocktail, all of the ingredients are ones that I like and it made for a nice refreshing drink.

Photos
RAMEN-SAN - Chili oil, low sodium soy sauce, chili flakes and furikake on each table

Chili oil, low sodium soy sauce, chili flakes and furikake on each table

RAMEN-SAN - Express lunch

Express lunch

RAMEN-SAN - Signature 10 Hour Tonkotsu.

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Signature 10 Hour Tonkotsu.

Ramen Wasabi

Ramen Wasabi

4.2(2.3k reviews)
5.2 miLogan Square
$$

A great spot to grab a bowl of steaming ramen on a rainy Sunday afternoon in Chicago. Note they…read moreclose sharply @3pm probably for a lunch break for the staff. The Alaskan cod sandwich was served on a bed of cabbage covered in a sweet teriyaki & brown mustard sauce with maybe a squeeze of kewpie sprinkled in between. The Berkshire pork eggrolls had microgreens & shaved radish on top of a crema type of sauce that balanced the heat of the kimchi nicely!! For the main attraction I ordered the spicy garlic ramen that was such a delightful mouth experience it really hit all the taste buds! The noodles were perfectly bouncy with the right amount of chew. The jellied egg was perfect and rounded the soup very well! The red chili threads enhanced the spicy miso broth just enough to slurp all the delicious goodness down! My husband ordered the Sapporo miso soup which had more of a creamy type of broth vs the spicy garlic. The noodles were also thinner than regular ramen & had a bouncy springy texture that just hit the spot! Since it was kinda chilly outside we also ordered hot green tea to accompany our spectacular ramen dishes. This place also offers delicious seasonal cocktails on the menu or hot sake if that's what you are hankering for. Definitely try this ramen joint if you are in the Logan square area your tummy will be so happy that you did!!

Surprsing no one, I love Ramen Wasabi, which is why I keep coming back! Before heading to Wrigley…read moreto see a friend's band play, stopped into RW for dinner, and although the wait was an hour just due to the sheer volume of people who wanted something warm on a very cold and snowy night, the wait was worth it. I always go basic tonkotsu with warm sake, and it always hits. HOWEVER, this time I also did the espresso cheesecake, which is this tiny, little, bite-sized thing, which I loved. Ol' reliable

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Ramen Wasabi - Spicy Roasted Garlic Miso Ramen

Spicy Roasted Garlic Miso Ramen

Ramen Wasabi - Inside

Inside

Ramen Wasabi - Tokyo Spicy Wings Small Plate

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Tokyo Spicy Wings Small Plate

Kyuramen - Downtown Chicago - (1) Tonkotsu Shouyu Ramen - IG: @thebaoeats

Kyuramen - Downtown Chicago

4.2(624 reviews)
7.1 miNear North Side
$$

First time having Ramen and we LOVED it…read more The seating is very unique and private. We will be eating there again.

Came here as it was close to where I was staying downtown. I went on a Sunday and there were only 6…read morecustomers in the restaurant at 545pm. I was seated at a table and they brought out water right away. But that's where the service stopped. I was handed 3 menus... food, drinks, cocktail. It took forever to get one of the servers to come over and take my order. They were all huddled by the kitchen and hostess stand chatting with each other and on their cell phones. Finally one of them walked by my table and I had to get her attention and told her I would like to order. She brought out the iPad then looked around seeing if someone else should probably take the order. I felt I inconvenienced her. Got the tonkatsu shoyu ramen with black garlic and the takoyaki. Food came out fast. Takoyaki after the ramen but the takoyaki was delicious. Soft and creamy on the inside with the octopus was very tender. It was topped with plenty of katsuoboshi. Ramen was another story. Noodles had a really good chew as they advertised using sun noodle company. However the broth tasted very watered down and did not have the rich flavor and usually fat globules that make the soup. Cha siu was charred beautifully and portion size was good. Hopefully they can focus on the front of house service and the team can pay attention to customers. Maybe this is why there were only 6 customers at prime dinner time.

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Kyuramen - Downtown Chicago - Honeycomb pods

Honeycomb pods

Kyuramen - Downtown Chicago - Matcha Pudding W. Red Bean

Matcha Pudding W. Red Bean

Kyuramen - Downtown Chicago - Thai Iced Tea

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Thai Iced Tea

Gyuro Ramen - Steamed Bun w. Crispy Soft Shell Crab

Gyuro Ramen

4.4(274 reviews)
7.3 miWest Loop, Near West Side
$$

Ordered pick up for lunch during the week. My order was ready at the estimated time…read more I got the gyudon and the wontons. The gyudon was a tad sweet and the ginger made it sweeter. I was hoping for a little bit more savory. The wontons were delicious and I would definitely get it again. I will continue to explore the menu and come back as it's near work.

I would've given it a four star if it wasn't a staff giving us attitude for being surprised that…read moresteamed dumplings come with spicy powders as a default (who does that?). We ordered steamed dumplings for the kids, but they couldn't eat those cuz of the spicy powders. The staff came over and told us they can't remove the spicy powder from the dumplings. But, like, they could've just not sprinkle the powder on top, it's not like it's part of the filling?! She left for a while and eventually came back and said they could give us another one without the spicy powder. But seriously, who sprinkles spicy powder on steamed dumpling? I don't think any Asian cuisine does that as a default. We had a large party and two household ordered extra noodles, they only brought out one initially. When we asked for the second one, they got all confused, and they had to check all our bills to make sure they didn't give us extra noodles and that we were billed properly. Seems a bit disorganized if they can't handle a party of 10. We correctly guessed that it was non-Japanese people running the shop based on the dialect they spoke... but alas, it's expected that Asians from that region would give us that type of attitude lol so we forgive them for it. Now onto the actual food, it was just OK. My husband ordered a yasai and my oldest ordered a kinoko. I ordered a rosu for the kids. The flavors are not bad but nothing really stood out. The duck meat wasn't as tender as it could be. The kids didn't really like the dumpling/gyoza fillings either. For the price, I really expected better. I got the wakame seaweed salad and the hiyatakko. The wakame salad is just your store bought wakame mixed with some leafs, and the hiyatakko is nothing like the Japanese flavor, it's more Chinese and the tofu they selected isn't even the silky one, so it's actually bland and chalky with very weak chili oil flavor. The presentation is all pretty good tho. Looks good, but tastes are all just mediocre. We probably won't try this place again, at least not this location.

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Gyuro Ramen - Interior

Interior

Gyuro Ramen - Truffle fries

Truffle fries

Gyuro Ramen - Wagyu bone marrow

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Wagyu bone marrow

Monster Ramen - The Monster

Monster Ramen

4.3(187 reviews)
5.3 miLogan Square
$$

I'm sitting here in my living room, mired by an early, uninvited awakening. It was not a thud. No…read morealarm. Just a gentle frazzle of sunlight stealing me from night. In no way had my body rested. Donned in dawn, my underwear-pajamas slightly slid down revealed a sad vision of man, sloppily tangled in ruffled sheets. Exposed. There is nothing pretty about me, I thought, as I pondered if the sunlight were judging what it saw. Before reaching my current perch on the living room couch, I sat in bed flicking through news in search of something good, but simultaneously only pausing on the bad. Glorifying in the doom, really. It was the pinch I needed to prove I was indeed awake. All day I seek the pinch of pain to prove I am not dreaming. Coffee, cats, clothes, splashof water, and 20 steps later I find myself in the planning pose, here in the living room. The planning pose is very much like the wake-startle, sans the sheets and exposed crack. It involves me laying here on the couch actually reading the articles I perused earlier. I like to rationalize that the information gleaned is to set me up for a day of human interaction. Perhaps it is a study session to get up to human-social-speed. Right now it is dawning on me -- my second uninvited dawn of the day -- that perhaps behavior isn't responsible humanity, it is prolonged self torment. The tighter pinch. The proverbial purple nurple of challenging my awakened state. Cats gather around me. One at my feet and the other curled beside my thigh. Am I king to them? They are fed. Surely they are not here in need of something. Have I done something to warrant this attention? My affection toward them is inconsistent. It ebbs in startling fits of overly attentive playing or petting followed by long droughts of disregard. My ambivalence as their king gives me this luxury, and supports my theory that they may think I am indeed king. This is the type of cyclical example loop I am using as evidence to propel me from the underwear'ed fat man the sun observed moments ago. Evidence that says: "See, Sun, I am more than the larva you spotlighted. I am a god! The cats are evidence! And they sleep in your sun-puddles in undisputed, recognizable perfection, not the ugly crack-exposed heap you found me in. You love them. They love me. So, pinch yourself, and stop judging me!" Obviously the coffee is working, or maybe the cats are doing their trick: making me feel accepted in the universe. Whatever the case may be, I pet my cat. Dander floats into the sun's beams and crystallizes in the air. If you've ever seen dust in a thinly sliced light beam at dawn you know: Hope is the accidental luck of shadows bouncing off of the chaos but always cutting through. Always meeting a surface. Penetrating the thickest of atmospheres and colliding on flowers and alleys, on well planned solar panels, on potholes, through any crack, on my crack, projecting obtuse triangles, acute bi-angles, and isosceles quad-tangles, even while penetrating deep into the sea, revealing all the magnificent details of art, and occasionally falling on me. Trees bend to it. I give the cat closest a good scratch behind the ear and look out the window at the trees greening in spring. A dog walker pauses to pick up excrement. A squirrel cowers behind a branch. The ramen restaurant on the corner is cut through by light warming empty tables; tables preparing to slurp up hungry, hopeful lunchers into the belly of contentment. Dark, seemingly an antagonist to light's hero demeanor, sheepishly slinks away, humbly realizing it is not the opposite of light, but the absence. "Beautiful," I think as I see the spicy broth of life warming in the sun glow beyond the glass. Yes. It is beautiful. It really is. I couldn't see how much in the dark but the rhythm out the window is now clear. I turn to my cat, who is winding down a purr. We share a slow-blink gaze at one another as the last sliver of dawn is replaced with shadow in my house. He moves to the window sill to soak in every second as it departs. "Welp, buddy. Nothing left now. Time to bend to the light"

Beef based ramen was perfect for our friend who cant eat pork! We came wednesday night and it was…read morepacked! We had no reservation but when i checked the latest was 7, so Im guessing this is a popular late night bite. We waited about 40 minutes for a table of 5. Was slightly disappointed that two party that came after us got seated first at the bar. There were a lot of seats open as the dinner rush died so I wished we were asked if bar over table was fine because our 5th seat at the table ended up being a stool anyways. Miso Ramen: I could taste the difference between pork base and beef base for sure. I prefer pork, but if you like beef flavor this will be great. The beef was tender, but not too flavorful. The egg was PERFECT. Noodles are thin and while thicker noodles are my preference they were cooked just right. 7.3/10 the chili oil is made with ghost pepper FYI! I know they try to warn us with 3 spice sign but my friends were not ready and wish we were told this before and not when it hit our table. Overall not my taste profile and a bit more expensive than I like, I can see myself coming back for friends who cant eat pork.

Photos
Monster Ramen - Seating

Seating

Monster Ramen - Miso Wagyu

Miso Wagyu

Monster Ramen - Menu as of 9.20.25

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Menu as of 9.20.25

Kohoku-Ku Ramen - ramen - Updated May 2026

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