It might surprise you, but I think your assessment is exactly the same as bigmadden's - Your perspective is "glass half full" (not the best, but a good safe choice) and his is "glass half empty," (consistent and better than the average ... [but there are] so many better options).

Perhaps the difference lies in how much you value predictability in your choice of restaurant.

I think that’s the key. When you have a short time and limited opportunities predictability can shield you from unhappy experiences. Unfortunately it blankets you from feeling any great ones.

Thinking about it, I can see a tendency in myself to lay a safety net padding of predictability and I’m lessening my exposure to surprises. The mediocre experiences feel like they are overcrowding the great ones as we go accumulating them. Still, my young companion is getting more and more adventurous, so I hope I (we) can reverse this trend.

MrLapLap goes to extraordinary lengths to visit Ramen shops in the global cities he is sent to and readily indulges his adventurous side. But for his short visits back home to Tokyo, he falls back on a very short list of dependable favourites

I don't want to get off topic, but have a question about Ichiran. I look at ramen as just a simple cheap noodle dish you have at a corner store, just like soba and udon. Ever since TV programs in Japan did topic of ramen there been tendency to elevate ramen as some kind of fancy meal.

I never been to Ichiran in Japan. Recently I went to Ichiran in Manhattan, New York City. I kind of knew about Ichiran form what I heard so it was more of curiosity factor rather than looking for quality. Employees at the entrance was explaining concept of Ichiran to first timers so patrons seemed to understand the concept of Ichiran, they were having ramen with minimal conversation and keeping tone very low and quiet. But what I heard out loud was employees conversation from a kitchen (jokes and gossips) and noise of pots slamming each other. While I waited for my ramen to be served and while eating ramen I felt as I was listening to employees conversation from a kitchen and other noise from a kitchen. Employees conversation and noise from a kitchen was loud enough I felt that way.

Is Ichiran in Japan like this also?

Your characterization of me is fair, but bigmadden's dismissal of Ichiran goes beyond how you phrase it.
He's calling Ichiran trash (he also wasn't calling US Wendy's above avg... he was saying better than avg burger in Jpn).

Anyways, to each his own. I don't think I have particularly low standards, but Ichiran's more than good enough for me. When it comes to sushi and ramen, it seems many places that are good enough for Japanese are no longer good enough for foodies from other countries.

I can't be certain, but I don't particularly remembering being bothered by any noise coming from the kitchen at Ichiran. Certainly no more than any other typical ramen place. I don't know how it is in NYC, but the setup is a bit odd at Ichiran, kind of like library desks.

I go to Ichiran in Japan all the time, various branches in the country. As mentioned by others, predictable, reliable, and good enough for me.

I also go to other "famous" chains, and many random places that are reasonably popular, at least not half empty during busy time. Vast majority of the latter were just bad. Famous chains, usually a bit better.

I have only ever found 1 place I like, that is better than Ichiran : 小豆島ラーメンHISHIO 岡山駅前店

Granted I don't particularly like eating ramen all the time. So my sample size is small.

As for Micheline Ramen guide.... wakakakaka.

I can't think of any of the Michelin ramen reccs that are bad, or even less than "very good" but, yeah, they are not a complete or reliable resource. I think Ramen Adventures, mentioned earlier, is actually just fine as an intro for even entry-level ramen apprecation.

The difference might also be attributed to which ramen culture/tribe you belong to (and I'm not talking tonkotsu vs shoyu). Ramen culture in the US, especially West Coast, is really different than much of Japan. The West coast is more chasing the yelp stars and gourmand language https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05YMaqPw0mQ One of the local shops with 45+ min wait is known for their ... karaage... I started eating ramen at JP expat places in the SF Bay area when it was basically a quick, warm, and tasty meal with a limited mostly ramen menu at reasonable prices. These days I see yelp reviews about ramen shops written in the same manner as high end dining reviews thanks to the proliferation of Food Network type shows. I was eating at Ippudo Ginza and overheard some tourists comparing Ippudo NYC vs Ginza with some similar language which personally makes me laugh a little. I'd be happier dining with live action Koizumi-San ラーメン大好き小泉さん https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ms._Ko..._Ramen_Noodles which also has a 2019 Special https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/new...pecial/.144180

To each their own, though. I know some think high end sushi is a waste of money and not deserving of rankings/awards while I personally enjoy it a lot on my own dime. I'll also happily eat good kaiten sushi and even occasionally budget chain Kula but I set expectations accordingly, venture out into other things I normally don't order, + enjoy the kitschy experience.

I recall a different forum thread where someone was chasing Japan Michelin stars for all their vacation meals and many were very calorie intense. Several people advised pacing things out a little more and adding some roughage unless he wanted to have bad washlet memories.

I am not saying Ichiran is spectacular, not like Rokurinsha or my spicy favorite at Nakanobu. But most are easy to find and their broth is never too salty, which can happen at less consistent places. Plus, I really like the privacy partitions when slurping on my own.

Nagi has been doing adventurous noodles lately. I'd try their seasonal offers, especially at foreign branches.

I can agree that Ichiran in New York is a complete ripoff. Given that you can grab a great bowl at Momosan for $15 (or a set for $17) $20 for a standard bowl of ramen is a joke.

Ramen Adventures just put up a list of ramen joints for folks coming for Rugby World Cup later this year.
https://tinyurl.com/yxw4wvw6

To be honest, if someone from a foreign country asked me where to get a good hamburger in the US, I'm probably not going to send them to Old Homestead for a Kobe Burger. That's not what most people think of when they think of a hamburger, including me as an American. I'd actually be more likely to send them to Wendy's, even though I know it's not as "good". But it is a burger as most Americans would think of it, and many more people eat there than a place like Old Homestead.

Yes, and this is a weird thing that I thought was unique to America, although maybe not now that I read this thread. But ramen is street food. It's like talking about elevating tacos, or pizza. Which brings me to...

Most New York ramen is. Even $15 for a bowl of ramen is ridiculous, and most New York ramen restaurants don't justify that with their quality. (Mr. Taka is pretty good, but only worth it because of their pork.) They're trying to act like this is something other than Japanese fast food, which is what it is. That's what makes it great in Japan - elevating this not only misses the point, it actually makes it worse. Just like that $65 Kobe Burger.

I think there's a pretty fundamental difference of opinion between those who like ramen for what it traditionally is vs. those who like ramen for its romanticized ideal. And you're seeing that in this thread. Those two camps just will not agree, and the ramen each likes is almost just two different products.

I say there's nothing wrong with chain ramen in Japan. I've had good ramen from both chains and individual restaurants. A lot of the chains anyway are totally different from one shop to the next; they're chains in name only. I've also had *bad* ramen from both chains and individual restaurants. I don't think there's a correlation between the two at all.

Ippudo in New York taste like instant noodles.
Cost $20
What a ripoff!

I either forgot or didn't know that Ippudo existed in USA.
Anyways, it's a travesty that Ippudo would hang its good name on such poor-quality ramen at ripoff price.
On the other hand, Ippudo in HKG tastes either same or almost the same as in Jpn... at a reasonable price.

I like ramen for pre or posting drinking food and for eating on a cold night in the winter. I usually end up at Totto for the former and Momosan for the latter in NYC.

Having said that, ramen loses out to a nice chicken over rice from a halal truck due to the price point and wait more often than not.