Ikigai Ramen in Edinburgh, City of

Restaurant de ramen présent en plusieurs endroits en ville d'Edimbourg. J'ai commandé du kimchi, ainsi qu'un ramen au poulet bien épicé. Un peu dommage que la composition des ramen ne soit pas détaillée sur la carte, mais rien de bien grave. Après dégustation : Kimchi top... Poulet bien tendre... La portion de poulet aurait pu être un poil plus grande... Nouilles savoureuses... Portion de nouilles généreuse... Bouillon trop épicé selon mes préférences, pas d'équilibre de saveurs en bouche... Un ramen de qualité, juste dommage pour le bouillon, mais il s'agit là de mon choix que j'assume complètement vu que la carte signalait clairement l'assaisonnement très fort. Je repasserai volontiers et commanderai leur nouveau ramen avec le bouillon curry-coco qui avait l'air bien gourmand. Des prix quand même un peu plus doux qu'en Suisse, du coup on ne regrette pas les 10% demandés pour le service. Cela dit en passant, un service efficace en période d'affluence, idem pour le plaçage à la table avec une file d'attente de 15 personnes j'a attendu 5 environ , merci.

We went there several times, on Google maps it says it's open but that's not the case at least change the status so people don't go there randomly.

Got tonkotsu ramen and karaage. Tonkotsu had no flavor. Chashu pork was ok but overall lacked salt and any flavor. Karaage with mayo and siraccha was tasty but definitely not Japanese. Pass.

Met some friends for a wee dinner at Ikigai ramen. The food came fast, and was absolutely delicious. I think chicken ramen might be my new favourite food. Zu made excellent drink recommendations, the manager I believe he said his name was Abhi was very kind and helpful. The young woman who took our order was very funny and personable. Overall great meal and a great experience. Will definitely return.

Arguably the most flavorful bowl of ramen I’ve had in Edinburgh. Pretty chill spot, even with the roundtable-style dining table which I find odd. But my go-to is the chicken tantanmen, with the karaage. Just the best!

My very first Ramen and im already a fan of it ! Itadakimasu!

Unfortunately have to change my opinion. Less ramen options than before, the added tantan sauce is really not good. The burgers are ok but very expensive and tbf quite weird to have them sold in a place with ramen. Such a shame as the previous place was amazing with a larger variety. Although the people working there are still very kind!

Food is delicious! I'll be visiting again.

One of the best ramen I have ever had! Fast and careful service and utterly delicious food at reasonable prices. Highly recommended!

Delicious ramen ruined by cold, condescending and outright rude service (to other customers too). Sunday 26/11/23 Update - see kind reply from owner, however has not replied to my email yet (18/01 and 06/02), so empty words at present sadly.

Best Ramen in Edinburgh! Awsome.

Their Hakata style Tonkotsu ramen is one of the best in Edinburgh

Terrible grumpy service, got out order wrong, broth nowhere near as good as the other ikagai

Leímos que era el mejor ramen de la ciudad y no me quiero imaginar cómo deben ser el resto. Pedimos el de seafood (contiene cilantro) y el de beef, comestibles? Sí. Repetiríamos? No. Las patatas a la sal, no tienen sal LOL. Lo bueno es que nos aceptaron súper tarde y nos dejaron pedir poco antes de cerrar. Personal muy amable.

The food was incredible! My husband and I had dinner here for his birthday. We each got ramen and shared the sweet potato croquettes and the spicy chicken teriyaki. Delicious! Unfortunately, the service was terrible. I got there a little earlier than my husband and told the server that there would be two of us to which he said “just sit at the bar” to me very rudely. When we ordered, I asked for the wings and he cut me off before I could finish, saying shortly, “we don’t have wings tonight.” He never brought over water, and he didn’t respond to us after we complimented the starters when he brought out our ramen. He then audibly groaned when more guests came in to eat and he had to clear the open table for them. I don’t know if he was having a bad day or something but it was no excuse to treat customers like they’re a burden for wanted to have dinner at his place of work.

Really good ramen with a very rich broth, really friendly waiter and very cosy restaurant. More people should come! Nice conversations with the chef and overall great vibes

Perfectly cooked egg - but wish it was stained 🍜

A really nice intimate Ramen shop

진한 국물에 빠른 서비스 하지만 아쉽게도 공간이 너무 좁아서 조금 불편했다. 탄탄면은 국물이 좀 넉넉했고, 땅콩이 없는 매콤한 맛이었다.

Volevamo una cena diversa a Edimburgo, e cercando online abbiamo trovato questo ristorante. Uno dei migliori ramen mai provati in diverse città. Il brodo è diverso da quello a cui siamo abituati, molto più saporito! I ravioli niente di speciale, ma da provare anche quelli. I prezzi sono contenuti rispetto alla media della città. Unica pecca: non accettano prenotazioni, abbiamo aspettato 20 minuti ma ne è valsa la pena!

The food was OK and the service was not the best, atmosphere was nice tho. Can't say I really recommend this one.

服務態度好，地方很整潔，碗內的流心蛋非常美味，但豬骨湯底有點鹹，要添加 開水 後味道非常美味，所以比四星

great food, really good spice level in the broth

Great little place for authentic japanese noodles soup, nit much varties but do ahve vegetarian option and a few starters. It has limited seatings but broth is the best, it does have another branch down the road but i feel the broth is not as good as this one. No free parking and stree parking is so expensive.

Visited here on Sunday 26/11/23 and the member of staff working there was less than hospitable. We weren’t greeted and waited 20 mins at our table before i went ask politely asked if the order was taken at the table or we came to the till. I were told abruptly “I’ll get to you when i’m ready”. This was the the running theme for the evening as we could see him being blatantly rude to other patrons, who appeared to be tourists, what a shame that they could think that this is what service is like in Edinburgh. My friend and I both work in hospitality in Edi and this behaviour is frankly inexcusable, as we know what it’s like to have a bad day, but this felt like we were in one of those gimmicky rude service restaurants like Karen’s diner, we left laughing about how rude he was. I have seen other reviews that have mentioned this same member of staff, and I wasn’t going to leave a review but if I owned this restaurant I would really want to know this was going on. Its a shame as we were both really looking forward to it and to be fair the food was good, but this is by far the worst/rudest service I have ever had. Hope you guys get it sorted!

One of the best ramen i had so far. I had tonkatsu ramen n the broth was the best.

Had a tantanmen, yasai gyoza and takoyaki as well, all were amazing. Will be back for sure.😋

Poor management. Even though we got the table reserved we still need to wait for long time.

Used to be my fav ramen shop, unfortunately quality and service are declining…

We had two ramen vegan version with an egg on top on each and two bottles of beer for 45 pounds. Last time we went there about a year ago we had a better overall impression. Broth was not that rich as we expected to be honest. But still it’s quite okay and good quality! Service is nice and fast. Prepare to queue without a reservation

Fantastic food and fantastic service. Thank you!

UPDATE: I have found out that this man was in fact the owner of ikigai and has also acted similarly to a black woman, making comments about her size and not being able to fit into the bathroom or something along those lines…. Again, this behaviour has never been observed by her white friend who went in many times before with her white boyfriend…. Honestly don’t give your money to this place, go to noodles and dumplings instead!!! ❣️ Deeply shaken up and scared after a harrowing experience with a nasty member of staff at ikigai ramen today. I entered the restaurant with a friend around 2pm and felt instantly awkward as the male brown haired staff member completely ignored me despite it being empty. I then politely said hi and asked if we could have a table for two - to which this horrible man spoke to me in such an aggressive and rude tone ‘I don’t know, CAN YOU? You can BORROW a table for lunch but you can’t take one’. I was so taken by surprise and confused so I just said uhhh okay great thanks so much! He then said ‘just go anywhere’ as he gestured aggressively, rolling his eyes at me. He then proceeded to reach over the bar and SLAM the door behind us very loudly, causing us to jump. I straight away was about to cry from this experience and felt myself panicking from this abusive behaviour. We had no choice but to just leave without getting any food as the atmosphere was very unsettling and I was about to burst into tears. I’m not sure why this man was so unbelievably nasty to me, I’d hope not but it felt like it could have been motivated by racism/ homophobia. It just was so jarring and unexplainable as I am very softly spoken and polite - I’m not sure what else could have drawn out such aggressive behaviour from this man. I hope he receives at least a warning so he can no longer continue abusing customers 👎👎it’s a massive shame as I have been a regular customer of ikigai for some time, bringing many friends along. I have never left a google review before but this man truly ruined my week and led me to have a physical panic attack. Unfortunately I do not feel I will be able to go back to ikigai again despite enjoying the food as I am too traumatised and terrified :((

Quick and the service is great. Small place, which I figured was a green flag (I was right). The ramen is on par with some of the best I’ve had. I asked for some chili oil on the side and it was PROPERLY spicy. Delicious, no notes.

AMAZING ramen! We wanted something quick for dinner and happened to pass by. The best discovery of our short trip to Edinburgh!

Very tiny ramen place close to the city centre. Delicious chicken ramen, friendly staff, sadly no green tea available and WC was not clean.

I used to live in Japan I can tell the Ramen might be authentic but the service is defo not - actually, one of the most awful experience I have had. I would never recommend this restaurant to anyone and even suggest Asian-face people to keep away from it unless you want to experience being ignored/discriminated in the surrounding of your own/familiar culture, as I found the staff guy being very rude specifically toward East-Asian face customers for unknown reasons🙄

Still the best (ramen) in Edinburgh, but not as good as it used to be

Best noodles I've had, and super tasty broth! Best ramen in Edinburgh for sure and the place is super cozy! It's a real chill vibe

Ramen here is so good! Good service as well!

Well this was great, tiny place that makes it a great experience but be prepared to wait as yiu get about 8 people in max. The food, the service the place was quiet something. Excellent.

Delicious ramen dishes! However, I wish this restaurant had black garlic to add to their ramen. The staff was friendly and willing to customize orders. They were open later and the prices were affordable.

Good ramen, albeit slightly tense atmosphere in the kitchen (which you are right next to) when we went at the weekend - maybe just busy.

We arrived early and politely asked if they were open. A brusque “no” was their response. On top of that, they were playing aggressive music. We walked around the corner to Maki Raman and we were attended to in a warm pleasant manner. I can only imagine their boss was not there.

Un ottimo ramen, atmosfera tranquilla e posticino carino vicino al Parco, consigliato il tantanmen. Tornerei volentieri!

Had a ramen and payed cash they did not give the change back and they were staring . It was an Asian guy who served me , the customer service has gone down very badly,the food was soo good They are not treating people if you just buy a single item , so bad that please teach your staff about customer service

Small place and had to queue for a bit. Simple menu. Had the pork and veggie Gyoza, yum yum and the ramen was fantastic. Only downside was like a beer with my Japanese!

Small shop serving simple ramen and a few appetizers. The tonkotsu ramen was okay. The broth was on the bland side, but remarkably not just an instant powder, and toppings were generous. Overall, decent for a quick stop on a chilly day.

It's a small and delicious ramen restaurant. I found the ramen broths surprisingly good for a resturant outside Japan. They have a student discount.

Really bad service. Waited 15 mins for water and only given to us after urging. The waiter forgot to put our order through and only after I asked for an update after 20 mins did he realise after which we waited a other 10 mins. All the service staff wouldn't make eye contact with us when I was trying to get an update. The food was pretty good but definitely not worth the wait and rude service. In the end, they still charged us full price.

Amazing ramen restaurant and fantastic service!

The wait took longer than usual, for 2 ramens and 1 gyoza we waited 45minutes. Ramen itself was good, maybe the egg a bit under-marrinated and very little meat, but still tasty.

Wow the ramen was very good, the broth was really rich and creamy, the jammy egg and springy noodles made the dish all the more delicious, this was a perfect lunch spot that exceeded all expectations (Definitely check it out!)

Muy buena comida japonesa. 100%

Food was good but wanted to give top marks to the young guy serving today at lunchtime, doing the work of 3 people on his own. Extra stars for him!

Tasty little gem! Only seats a few people but charming and delicious.

As a group of friends we ordered almost everything on the menu and it was great! Service was good, food was excellent and I highly recommend it!

Best ramen I’ve ever had in the UK! The broth was very rich in flavour and the egg was perfectly cooked. The chef torched every single piece of pork. Love the Takoyaki too, haven’t had such a good one in so long. There are not many seats so would recommend to go early.

Ramen super bon ! On était ravis, les ingrédients sont de super qualités et nous étions bien installé même si l'endroit est assez petit.

Posto veramente veramente bello e il cibo è fantastico, prezzi ottimi (57€ in tre), non serve dire altro!

Tasty Japanese ramen in uk( so good that I forgot to take picture of my ramen, I finished after remember)

Went here on a date night, great ramen, cool little space

The tonkotsu ramen and the gyoza are so good, but the best part of this place are the waitresses! Nicest people met in Scotland

Excellents ramens, beaucoup de choix, assiettes copieuses, super service. Par contre, bancs de bois peu confortables et musique pop un peu forte et pas très « asiatique ». Parfait pour le midi ou un repas rapide, mais pas pour une soirée romantique.

Good, but not great! The seasoning was off it seems

Best Ramon in Edinburg. Amazing quality and great atmosphere

Update Apr 2023: unfortunately it's not the same anymore. I went there many times in the past 6 months and it's not so great anymore. I loved this little place. Both the ramen we tried were great and reminded us of Japan. Staff was very helpful and kind. Price on the average. There is also a 10% student discount!

The Ramen here never disappoints! We are here many times and loved it since Ikigai 1 where Gabriel always prepared our orders with a lot of passion.

Tasty. Good, but small place. Only have 10 chairs so gets full quickly.

Over priced , Food was average , payed 3 pound extra for 3 sugar snap peas , Not cool.

Delicious! Hole in a wall, some of the best ramen we’ve had so far. Well worth a visit.

Very very very very good ramen!! We loved it! And it has many great vegetarian/vegan options!

Love it! The waiters were quick and so friendly. The ramen was flavourful, you get a whole egg as well! And it was so cozy inside, it's quite small so you might not a have spot immediately. Highly recommend!

You get to check out the open kitchen on arrival which was spotlessly clean. It's a fairly small space (I believe there may be more seats downstairs) that's modern and has a convivial atmosphere as a result. Food arrived fairly quickly. Chicken ramen was delicious: broth had depth of flavour but still like with crispy chicken, tasty egg, crunchy green beans and plenty of noodles. Chicken wings were crispy and grease-free with salty and spicy flavours as promised. Pork gyoza were plump and delicious. Chicken karaage was sticky with the sweet teriyaki sauce that was well cooked and delicious. Service was very friendly, great with my allergies and fairly efficient.

Great place for amazing Ramen and great cooks who make you feel welcome and for having a laugh.

Nice little place, great atmosphere with delicious ramen, gyoza and karaage.

Malísima experiencia de ramen. Fideos sin hacer al igual que la verdura , se pide poco pincante y ni se fijan. Cocina pésima, eramos 5 personas y 3 ramen no estaban bien hechos. Protestamos y nos quisieron preparar otros de nuevo, pero ya era tarde. Nos descontaron tan sòlo un 15% cuando como mínimo tendrían que habernos descontado 1 ramen y medio. No volvería en mi vida.

超级咸这个汤，但面不咸，看起来很好看，闻起来很香，猪肉和笋不腥气。就是太咸了，要喝很多水。

I had dinner there a few days ago and the food was incredible! There were so many vegan friendly choices and they were all clearly label. The staff were super lovely and helpful too. The food was absolutely delicious and served very fast despite the restaurant being full. Thanks for this lovely dinner, I'll be back. ☺️

とんこつラーメンを頼みました。初めは美味しかったのですが、食べ進めるうちにしょっぱさが目立ち、しんどくなってきました。 一緒にいた人が同じものを頼んだので試しに交換してみると、私のだけが異常にしょっぱかったようです。結局最後まで食べることができませんでした…。 たれの量が安定してないのかなと思いました。次は適量で食べたいです。 学割があり、0.2ポンドくらい安くなりました。

Very few seats but good tasty food at reasonable prices.

Nice wee ramen shop. No frills. Had Hokata Tonkotsu Ramen with very tasty soup today. Not for staying long but recommended if one wants a quick, hot and delicious meal.

Absolutely incredible food - easily the best takoyaki and ramen I have tasted. Absolutely recommend a visit here if you are in Edinburgh (and definitely book your table, they are very busy and were fully booked the night we came)

Best ramen we've had in ages! Fresh and full of flavour, would definitely recommend the pork ramen especially, the meat was so tender. The staff were lovely too 😊

Hands down the most authentic, flavourful and genuine ramen shop in Edinburgh. Reasonably priced (as much as it could be in Edinburgh) and offers student discount. Wouldn’t get ramen in other places since I’ve had Ikigai. Made me miss Japan

If you’ve tried ramen before and you’ve enjoyed it. This is the place to come! Great noodles and tasty broth. Service was super prompt. Come and try for the real deal. Lots of different options and nice alcoholic cocktails too!

Fantastic food, nice atmosphere and service 😍🤩👍

The ramen was good with good broth. We ordered the tonkotsu and special ramen. The broth of tonkotsu was good while that of special was a bit too much for me. But overall it’s good ramen. Defo recommend it!

Je voulais manger des ramen depuis le début de la semaine et c’était vraiment très bon. Prenez aussi un karaage, parce qu’il est aussi très bon. Dommage que j’ai vu les takoyaki à la carte une fois mon estomac plein !

Estuvimos mi novia y yo para cenar. Nos gustaron mucho las gyozas y las croquetas de batata. También pedimos un ramen que estaba buenisimo y abundante.

Excellent ramen! Ordered a tonkotsu ramen and the broth was packed with flavours however it was a tad bit salty, chashu pork was delicious and tender sort of melts in your mouth, good texture with the ramen and generous portion!

Nice little spot to have an excellent ramen!

Small tiny place with delicious food, you need to be lucky to get a seat but it is totally worth it. Everything freshly cooked on the moment by these two busy hard working guys. Totally worth it

The restaurant is atypical of a Tokyo ramen shop, but they got food out timely and it was good. The ramen had the right springy touch, and kudos to the team of two who got things going right. If anything I think only the ramen preparer looked stressed out, but he was cooking on stop all the time we were there.

So Japanese feeling. Taste also.

We had been walking past this restaurant all weekend so decided to try it on our last night in Edinburgh. Was only after we had been seated and ordered drinks that we were told there was only one vegan option available and that was the tofu ramen. Nevertheless we ordered it to try it! It wasn’t bad at all, but wasn’t great either! The tofu was cold and the broth did not taste of very much! We still ate it all and paid the full bill, however I assume the options for meat eaters are much better! X

I went to the restaurant in June 2022. The place is tiny but welcoming and you really feel like you are in Japan. Ordered Tonkotsu ramen and it was high quality and tasty. Having tried multiple ramens around the world, this is definitely one of the best. A Japanese gem in Edinburgh. Recommended.

Very tasty and friendly. Quite big portions.

Food was delicious, we would return

Really great little place, owners are so friendly and you can see they cook with passion !! Food was amazing !! Would definitely go back on a cold day !

Nice ! Made a friend call : Justin