This is the fastest and easiest five star I've ever given a restaurant. The menu has all your ramen essentials, priced very well (especially for downtown) and they were flexible with dietary restrictions. The style and atmosphere was great, though I'd have liked the music to be quieter. Playing Kanye and old school hip hop added to the vibe, but I wouldn't mind something more authentic. I recommend the tan tan man, and maybe skip the takoyaki unless you're already a fan of it. read more

Ok first, do not get confused with Friends Ramen with Friends and Sushi because I did LOL they are literally right next to each other but are vastly different from one another, from the obvious menu to the decor to the ambience. Friends Ramen is very laid back, chill, anime hipster vibe that has plenty little cute decor every nook and cranny. I ordered the Pork Belly Bao Buns which were amazing. The sauce (i think it's teritaki) was a bit too much, but the mixed greens in the bun with the pork was a great combination. I also got the Chicken Karaage Ramen which was also really great: broth was amazingly creamy with a kick of spice in the end and the crispy chicken pieces floating everywhere was a great dish. The only let down for me was the ramen itself, the noodles, because it was very generic and I want to say store bought; it even looked store bought. That was flat and bland and just off putting for me. But all in all, it's a great spot for that ramen urge especially during that cold season. read more

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Very good family business. The interior is interestingly cabin like. They have lot of vegetarian broth based option. For extra hot stuff, add the chilli oil served on table. The server and owner were happy to honor 10% discount on Yelp read more

Love the premise of this place. They have tiny bowls of ramen so you can try different kinds. If you're new to ramen, this is a great place to start because you're exposed to the different kinds and can learn a bit about how they differ. The bowls are small but they're advertised as mini bowls so it makes sense! I had be crab salad. It was refreshing with the cucumbers then topped with crab and dressing. Delicious. However each bowl of ramen is $6 so it's pricey. The ramen itself doesn't have much flavor. It seems a bit one noted. I got the tan tan ramen and spicy miso ramen. Both were delicious, they just didn't have the depth of flavor as other ramen places. The spicy miso had pork belly and a piece of hard boiled egg in it. The tan tan had pork belly and a soft boiled miso egg. One of the best soft boiled eggs I've had. The staff was super friendly and accommodating. They were very attentive with water, drinks, and the many bowls of food. Our waitress was awesome read more

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I'm from out of town and decided to try this. First off this location is very small. Wouldn't really accommodate more than four guest per table. I did not get the name of my waiter. (From our convo I remember he said he was born in 1995) haha He was very accommodating and my group loved his recommendations. Tan Tan and Kim chi were good. Aside from the table across us making disrespectful comments about me. Obviously we were tourist. But our servers customer service and food made up for it. read more

First of all, vegetarian options!! We ordered the Veggie Spicy Miso Ramen and the vegetarian Tan Men and it was delicious to the last drop! The spice lever was balanced and the tofu was so silky!!!! We also ordered a black tea latte and it was pleasantly refreshing. Would looove to come again! read more

Friends Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Friends is a cool concept in a unique setting, but the ramen itself is only average. My official score would be a 3.5, but I opted for the lower Yelp score because at the end of the day, it is all about the food. I think the food left something to be desired. The inside is very cozy and unique. The booths and seats are all a dark colored wood. It makes the interior feel a lot smaller than it is, but I think that is a benefit rather than a negative in Friends' case. The decor and atmosphere were my favorite part of the experience. The ramen was only ok. Some good flavors going on, but I don't know: I just wasn't feeling it as much as I thought I would. We were a two person party and ordered three total bowls: 2 ramen (tan tan men and the classic chicken) and 1 rice bowl. The Tan Tan Men bowl was average. It had good spice to it, but the noodles were definitely lacking. The classic chicken ramen was just that: classic and average. The rice bowl was so heavy on the ginger that it was almost inedible. I couldn't take more than two bites of it. I'd recommend sticking with the ramen bowls if you eat here. They don't even list the rice bowls on their menu online, so that sums those up pretty well. Three stars might be critical considering that the decor and overall experience is unlike other hole-in-the-walls in the area, but I cant give 4 stars to a place I have no desire to return to after tasting the food. If you are in the area and like what you see in the pictures, try it out. It is definitely a cool date place or hangout for ramen-lovers. Just know that there are better tasting ramen places out there that don't sacrifice taste for a unique dining style. read more

Friends Ramen - (from top to bottom) Classic Chicken, Ginger Rice Bowl, Tan Tan Men - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Excellent EXCELLENT ramen! Spicy, flavorful, many vegetarian options. Just walked into this place for lunch and would highly recommend.

Been here since they're open and now they're serving BIG SIZE! It's very small place and nice ambience. I miss that crab ramen tho! Bring it back please!! read more

Friends Ramen - Cheesy Ramen Big Bowl - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Love love love this spot! Super small, fits like 20, so there's an intimate vibe. Food was incredible and so cheap. Portion sizes were large and food was really filling. 100% recommend and will definitely be back! read more

Loved it! Such a cute Japanese spot! The best thing about this place is that the ramen bowl sizes are good for 1. Hence no wastage! Plus the pricing are very reasonable. Will definitely visit again. read more

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The taste was pretty good but I honestly had way higher expectations for this place with all of the reviews. First the small looks like it should've been a kids meal and the large looked like the small. Mind you the large was $17. Second, the portions were very skimpy. Lastly, it came out lukewarm. If I had a microwave with me I would've heated it up. read more

Cute, tiny place but ramen was just OK. Gyoza was quite good! Service was fast and good

Surprised this place get such low rating here. I am a big fan of ramen and this is a decent place. Loved everything we ordered. Baby octopus salad and spicy miso ramen highly recommended. Oh and try their milk tea! It's from Japan and tastes just like I had in Asia. They are right next to their sister sushi place which is also good. They give out loyalty card and you get one point for each bowl you order. Would definitely bring friends there and visit again. read more

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Had an on-the-go ramen and kimchi ramen. I was shocked that this restaurant is rated 4-star on Yelp after getting the ramens. - The broth is bland Actually the kimchi ramen broth was tasteless. - A large and small ramen are $16 and $8 respectively. The serving portions were too small (the size of the bowl displayed on a window is large, which I felt deceptive.) - The smell of the restaurant was not good. I didn't feel the restaurant is well cleaned. I cannot understand how this restaurant got so many 4 and 5-star reviews. Some of them even mentioned that the ramen of this restaurant is the best they have ever had in their lives. Seriously? Maybe the restaurant has lost its chef? I highly discourage anyone to order ramen in this place. It's the worst 4-star Yelp restaurant I have ever been in my life. read more

Friends Ramen is good, better with an order of hot sake. They serve their ramen and dons in Souplantation soup bowls. This means one bowl will NOT fill up a hungry man's stomach. But no matter. Just order an appetizer (one order of gyoza has 5 pieces) and an order of spicy miso ramen. I think their ramen could be a lot hotter (in terms of temperature, I mean). When I took my first bite, the soup and the noodle were lukewarm. In all honesty, the gyoza was hotter than the ramen. They were having a February promotion, a $15 large bowl (it's usually $5 for a small bowl), and I had a bit of difficulty finishing the mostly imitation crab meat, lousy 2-shrimp seafood ramen. Hot sake is the best, but that's the only thing not made in the kitchen. No apologies yet, I'll be coming back to see if they'll change my mind. read more

I'd highly recommend this ramen experience to anyone that loves trying ramen and wishes they could eat more than one bowl at a time. The ramen bowls here are smaller portions, allowing you to try two or three during a meal. Additionally, the roasted kale and the gyoza are delicious. A little sake to enhance the meal and you're bound to have a great time. read more

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This is a very cool ramen place! Small delicate bowls with gooooood and very rich flavored food. My roomie and I definitely love it! We ordered Pork Belly Buns, Takoyaki, Spicy Miso Ramen, Pork Belly Rice and House salad. read more

Friends Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

A nice warm meal to share on a cold evening with friends! The menu is unique because it is designed for you to get multiple small bowls of different ramen so you can try out the various types. However, as a vegetarian, I felt like the options were relatively limited. I ordered a large bowl of the veggie ramen substituting the rice noodles for egg noodles. The veggie broth was delicious, and the noodles weren't bad either (although they are different from your typical ramen noodles). I thought it was interesting that they put kale in the ramen, because I haven't seen that before. Most of the flavor came from the broth, and I was a little disappointed by the tofu because it was a little plain. The server was extremely friendly and the overall vibe of the shop is quaint and authentic. My only qualm is the music, which was a little confusing (they played the same Kanye album the entire time). Overall, great experience and would return if in the area again. read more

Friends Ramen - Veggie Ramen with Egg Noodles - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We went there on a Sunday . It has really nice ambience small Wooden bench and table . It feels like you are in a small Japanese hut having a bowl of ramen . So we ordered Vegetarian Ramen Spicy vegetarian Ramen The servers were very friendly . I think the lady who served us owns the place she was very nice . But overall I came for a bowl of ramen . Which I felt they robbed me totally . Ramen is all about broth and noodle . The noddle they serve in Veg Ramen is not the normal . Therefore I did asked my server hey is this a normal ramen noodle it does not look like the same . I never had this kinda white slippery noodle before . So what the server had to say amazed me he said we serve the regular egg noodle but it is at a extra cost which is 1 dollar . So the ramen costs 15 dollars , now they are saying for a cost of 1 dollar more I will give you the noodle . I am amazed by there logic . If a person buys a Ramen for 15 they have to pay 1 dollar more for egg noodle . Why not make the price 16 dollars and give the best Ramen you can possibly make . So everyone is happy. In general was not really happy with the food . If u ask me will I come back for more . My answer is no sorry . read more

Friends Ramen - Veg Ramen - tell them to serve you egg noddle it comes with this slippery white noodle - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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We usually eat ramen two times a week and I can't believe we actually went to the McDonalds after having four bowls of ramen at Friends Ramen... Consider this is a ramen place, their only entree is the mini-dish ramen. It is a very very small portion, they are around the size of kid's burger. I would say an average-appetite adult would have to eat 4-5 portions to be full. Price wise, too expensive for this small portion... $6(before tax) per serving, theoretically I need to spend $26 to be full. Flavor wise, the soup base is rich but I can taste artificial soup base powder in some of them. I am not saying this definitely, but they have to work on their soup base， they don't taste that authentic. The only highlight is the ramen noodle itself. We were looking forward to have this new ramen store and drove here just to try it out... The result is pretty disappointing read more

Friends Ramen - The four bowls of ramen.. Mini-bowls - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Good- Great Ramen and broth! Just the right amount of spice in food. Bad- Very limited s I ave and small seating/benches read more

Came here on a weekday evening around 8:30 PM. Ordered takeout in advance online. Food was ready quickly, but the rice bowl was dry and crusted, lacking any flavor. The Raman was really good, so it was half success! read more

Please note this is a really small spot. I went with a party of three and it was cozy...the place is as small as the small portions. They only really have booths meant for 2. Big no no for groups. I was really hooked on the idea of sampling different ramens tapas style. But the ramen itself was meh. Not great...just ok. Not sure I would return. It's not a place I would make my go out of my way to eat at again. The neighborhood (gold coast) isnt parking friendly. Service was friendly. This is one of those try once if you're in the area. read more

We've been looking forward to this ramen place opening up since it's so close, but it has been a let-down purely due to the value. I really really wanted to give this place benefit of the doubt after reading some of the reviews, but I can only agree with what other people are saying about the portion sizes. We tried the tan tan men, karaage ramen, and the On The Go ramen. All three were tasty, and I have no complaints about the general flavor. I also really like the idea of being able to try multiple different flavors of ramen to make up your meal. It's fun, unique, and the interior is nice and cozy as well. Unfortunately, I think $6/bowl is absurd after trying it out. We both shared 3 bowls (they do recommend 2/person) but ordered extra noodles for $2 to use in our leftover broths. We felt like we would've had to consume at least 3 bowls per person and even then wouldn't feel completely satisfied. the extra $2 noodles is about the same portion as the noodles the bowls initially comes with, so it's still not very substantial. In the end, we spent close to $25 for lunch for the both of us, but weren't feeling full at all and had to go to downtown dogs to get a hotdog and fries. We didn't even realize just how hungry we were left until we completely devoured the hot dog and fries to the crumbs. All in all I do enjoy the concept of this place, and I want it to succeed. But unless they make their $/bowl cheaper, I don't think we'll ever be coming back. There are just too many other better options for ramen that are delicious and filling. read more

Friends Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Service was good but they served a small portion of ramen that was flavorless and takoyaki that had very tough octopus on the interior. I would not recommend this place. read more

I'm assisting one of my employer's stores today and the manager insisted on treating me to lunch, my choice. I wanted something light and different. Well this was it. I am not sure what I ate but it was flavorful, spicy. He ordered me takoyaki, spicy miso ramen & tan tan men. Stuff I would not normally order at all but I wanted to be adventurous today. How do u refuse a free lunch??? The place is nicely decorated, the order taker was nice, loved the wood decor. I was impressed. read more

Friends Ramen - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Had this at a pop-up at my work building in the loop. Portions of everything were normal.. except for the meat... I got two slices of pork (which is normal), but they were super thin. I went with the spicy miso and it had a good flavor to it. It was actually pretty spicy, some other places' spicy ramens don't have as much of a kick. Noodles were delicious, definitely slurp worthy. Nothing really made this place stand out, but it's a solid bowl of ramen that I would eat again. read more

Wasn't terrible, but I've had better. It was great to have indoor seating. The service was good.

I was skeptical but the reviews were right the food was delicious and exactly what we needed for a cold day. Small location but great service. I can see why it's packed in the evening we just got lucky to go after the lunch crowd left. Great ramen! Service was great also read more

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Friends Ramen is reasonably priced, tasty, and conveniently located as its strong points. Overall Friends Ramen was not bad, but I wouldn't say it's a "must go" ramen place for me at this point.  THE FOOD: The portions are served in small bowls (smaller than a deep cereal bowl priced between 6-7 dollars. The small size & price allows you to try several types of ramen on the menu and/or have an appetizer. As a student that likes to also indulge in a nice meal from time-to-time, I appreciate the low prices + options.  I ordered the Spicy Miso Ramen and it was tasty-- not as spicy as I would have hoped, but they have chilli sauce on the side if you need to add extra. The pork belly tasted a little tough to me as well. I also ordered the Pork Belly Salad. Again, tough, but the salad dressing was good-- I liked the ginger-y taste.  SERVICE + ENVIRONMENT:  The hostess and waitresses were all very kind and were open to giving recommendations or suggestions. They were also really attentive to come by the table and see if I needed anything. The restaurant has wood tables and chairs throughout, which gives it a nice, home-y look. The chairs aren't the most comfortable though if you have back pain or need a lot of space read more

Friends Ramen - Pork Belly Salad - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Would give a 3.5 if possible Got the On the Go ramen. It was alright but a little bit bland compared to those of other shops like Ramen San. There was also wasn't as much meat as I would have liked :( Service also took a while! read more

The portion is ridiculously tiny. Although I understand the tapas concept that they're trying to get to, that's not how ramen should be. On the bright side though, because the bowls are so small you get to eat and taste the different options they offer. I might recommend this place for like a late lunch or an early dinner when you don't feel like eating too much. The 3 stars is mostly for the minuscule portion and the subpar service (food was delicious don't get me wrong!) read more

The small bowl sizes are a great idea if you like to sample more than one of their recipes. The combo A that included a salad, gyoza, and spicy miso veggie ramen was my choice and it was all solid, with the gyoza being the best part. I got a second small bowl of the tan tan ramen and this was by far my favorite on my visit. The atmosphere is unique and inviting. I would definitely go back again in the future. read more

Friends Ramen - Combo "A" - Ramen Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

One of the best ramen spots around.Can't stay away from this place love the kimchi ramen definitely recommend!

Veryyy Very good first ramen place i've ever tried and was a 10/10 wish the space was bigger tho

Loving coming here Always a great experience and they make really good ramen. Lovely staff that have great hospitality. read more

Friends ramen food is absolutely DELICIOUS!!!!! We were looking for good ramen and we found better than good ramen, we found DELICIOUS ramen and pork bun and fried tofu and shrimp dumplings. We walked to this place about 12 min walk and it was Soooooo worth the walk. If you are u decided, take a chance and try friends ramen. Take it to go, the place is small and hot. But soooo worth it. read more

Chicken Karaage Ramen was super tasty. However, service was VERY SLOW. Waiter wasn't attentive, seats are very tightly packed together. We never got one item on our order - one of the people in our party just went home hungry. read more

What an unexpected delight! The boyfriend and I were walking around looking for a good spot to grab a quick meal. We were torn between this place and the next door "Friend's Sushi" spot which seemed a tad bit more upscale and romantic (but I assume shares an owner?) I'm really happy with our decision to eat here! The waiter was really friendly and made some excellent suggestions. We both got the combo meals and substituted the salad out so we could try more ramen. I got to try the Kimchi ramen, which was packed with flavor! The chicken ramen was cooked with a delicious crunchy texture, and the broth for the veggie spicy miso was to die for. I def plan to go back! read more