Ikedo Ramen opens second location, in Carle Place
A bowl of tonkotsu, its chashu topped with minced pork, at Ikedo Ramen, a new eatery in Carle Place. Credit: Newsday/Scott Vogel
OK, real talk time. Should anyone seriously consider opening a ramen place now, what with, you know, all the competition out there? No, right?
“I’m not worried,” said Mimi Chi, co-owner of the second location of brand-new Ikedo Ramen in Carle Place (the first opened in Port Washington in 2021). “There’s a lot of pizzerias out there, but the ones that do a really good pizza, they’re never going to not have business, because people can tell what’s good.”
It was a rainy Monday afternoon just before an impending storm, so orders were coming in fast and furious for Ikedo’s ramens, especially executive chef Jason Lin's miso ($14.95) and tonkotsu varieties ($14.95 for mild, $15.95 for spicy). The latter ups the ante meat-wise, its traditional floating plank of chashu covered with a generous helping of minced pork, a creative if untraditional addition that was Chi’s own idea.
“We found it made the soup have even better flavor,” she said. “And it has some meat when you drink it.”
Chi also designed the 40-seat location, which opened in February, its light, airy dining room sponsored by blond woods and a white palette. “We’re not trying to be super fancy, just be a place with comfort food that is delicious and reasonably priced,” said Chi of the new Ikedo shop, whose menu offers the same respectable variety of ramens, including a vegan version ($15.95) and a build-your-own option, but also appetizers from gyoza ($6.95) and shumai ($7.95) to karaage ($7.95) and takoyaki ($6.95).
As fans know, Ikedo also features curries, salads, stir-fries and Japanese-style rice bowls like the yummy steak teriyaki donburi ($19.95), which is loaded with sweet-sticky short rib meat, sliced avocado and more. As ramen places go, it’s a big menu, and one that’s played no small part in Ikedo’s success. The other part?
“We’re just doing the best we can and putting our heart in the food,” Chi said.
Ikedo Ramen is at 19 Old Country Rd. in Carle Place, 516-540-6535, ikedoramen.com. Opening hours are Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Newsday writer and restaurant critic Scott Vogel aims for a refreshing, gimlet-eyed take on the Long Island food scene, often while drinking a refreshing gimlet.
