There's a corner restaurant site in Islington that is well known to locals, originally as a pub and most recently as Japanese restaurant Akari (which closed late last year). Now, the same space on Essex Road is about to be reborn as the latest Ippudo.
It'll be the fifth outpost of the ramen chain that has lots of restaurants all over the globe. It's also Islington's second big ramen brand, as there's a Kanada Ya on Upper Street (and many more smaller ramen spots). You can expect the menu here to be pretty similar to the other locations, so after choosing how firm you like your noodles you then select from options like:
- Shiromaru Classic - Original creamy tonkotsu pork broth ramen
- Akamaru Modern - Modern tonkotsu ramen with red umami paste & black garlic oil
- Tori-Shoyu - Silky whole chicken broth makes our new chintan base ramen.
And within those, many more extra options to choose from. They also have hirata buns, donburi rice dishes, curry rice dishes and more. As locals, it's good to see this space up and running again, and it should do pretty well.
More about Ippudo
Where is it? 196 Essex Rd, London N1 8LZ
When does it open? Soft launching from 26 June 2025
Find out more: Visit their website or follow them on Instagram @ippudolondon.
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