Hank Vaughn
Audio By Carbonatix
There has been a lot of news in Dallas about ramen shops this week, including the sale of TEN and its expansion, which we’re not sure is good news or bad. Yelp recently released its annual list of the top 100 ramen spots in the country based on user activity and rankings. They emphasize from the jump how competitive the ramen scene was in 2025.
“American ramen restaurants now make up a $1.6 billion business that’s still growing,” the list’s introduction reads. “From Los Angeles and New York to small-town Wisconsin, ramen shops have become some of America’s most popular and affordable places to eat, thanks to passionate chefs, creative menus and a community of noodle-obsessed fans.”
In this crowded field driven by countless trends, regional variations and the ungovernable whims of Yelp reviewers, Dallas’ very own Ichigoh Ramen Lounge (2724 Commerce St.) made the cut and currently sits at No. 67.
The Deep Ellum hole-in-the-wall boasts a rating of 4.6 out of five stars on the platform, and the reviews unanimously gush about the authentic Japanese flavors, personable service and diverse menu that meets various dietary needs.
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“The specialty ramen surprised us with slurp-worthy savoriness. The noodles were perfectly composed for carrying enough broth into each bite,” wrote Yelp user Silvia H. “As a ramen enthusiast, I can confidently claim Ichigoh to be one of […] the best ramen joints in all of Dallas.”
“As someone who has pork dietary restrictions, this is the best thing that ever happened to me and my love of ramen,” wrote Debbie O. “And the service is superb! I love the kind and warm welcome and that it really feels like dining in someone’s home kitchen.”
For what it’s worth, we’ve bestowed our own accolades on Ichigoh in the past, including declaring it Best Ramen and Best Deep Ellum Restaurant in our 2022 and 2025 Best of Dallas issues.
“In a neighborhood where many out-of-town visitors roam, every table here is filled by locals in the know,” we wrote in our 2025 Best of Dallas issue. “Bowls of piping hot ramen and Japanese dishes like puffy buns, gyuntan tataki and tako wasabi roll out from the kitchen quickly.”
Everything customers and critics love about Ichigoh, from the menu to the atmosphere, is by design. Co-owners George Itoh and Andy Tam had a very specific vision in mind when they launched the restaurant in 2018.
“I wanted to open up in a place that had historical value,” Itoh told the Observer in 2020. “I didn’t want to open up in a strip mall in the suburbs. I wanted something that still had ‘old building character,’ where I could pretty much squeeze into, and not have to do a whole lot of renovation.”
Ichigoh is the only restaurant in Dallas proper to make the list, but North Texas as a whole is robustly represented. Southlake’s Sushi Sakana and Frisco’s Wabi House came in at numbers 52 and 96, respectively, and Richardson’s Moriya Shokudo made the list for the second year in a row.
Yelp claims in its article that 2025 is “a great time to be a ramen lover.” Similarly, we feel pretty comfortable saying that North Texas is a great place to be a ramen lover.
