Koi Ramen Bar

Seriously good ramen. The queue told me it might be god but I didn’t expect it be THAT good! Properly good broth in that ramen and would convince me to go here first at Pop Brixton if I came back. Impressive.

Hot, delicious, great service and a good price in an amazing setting. So happy I stumbled onto it.

The look of Koi shouted Japan to me all over. It’s how ramen represents itself in Japan, a fast food dish catered for students and salary men, usually served in a stall along underground passage ways and surrounding areas with only a few seats, sometimes only a stand up only bar.
Koi had that look to it, except instead of being served in a bowl it was served in a large paper cup instead. I wanted to love it but sadly the food itself let me down.
We chose both the ramen variety, mellow miso vegetarian ramen (£6.00) and pure white tonkotsu ramen (£6.00) adding half an egg to both (50p each), then along with that, a full set of gyoza for £4.00.
We both found the miso ramen slightly bizarre. It had a slight sourness vinegary flavour in it that tasted nothing like miso. It tasted like ones you pick off the shelf at ‘EAT’ which was not awful but just not what we were after. The crunchier vegetables did not balance well with the softer noodles and became overpowering. It was a shame as the noodles was the only thing that did it justice.
The tonkotsu lacked depth and flavour. It definitely does not compete with the more popular ramen joints out there such as Shoryu and Bone Daddies. The noodles were nice though. I was more able to enjoy the bounciness of the noodles along with the nice slice of fatty pork.
The addition of an egg made it more special along with the whole experience itself of eating from a stall. If you were to try their ramen I recommend adding one or half an egg.
Luckily the gyoza did a better job at satisfying our taste buds. They were herby and juicy, casing soft and pan fried well like we like it. Nothing too special or memorable but nice.
Will I return? Probably not even if it is half the price of a regular tonkotsu in other places. I am glad I got to experience a bit of Japan though but sadly quality and flavour does not deliver to attract me back. Try it for novelty rather than taste.

I tried my first ramen here. Definitely the best ever. Soup was so delicious! I have been several places since then and they cannot compare at all. This is a hidden gem! Go there and you won’t regret!

While their main pop-​up is usually at Brixton, on Sundays they can be found at the Bricklane Market. That’s where we tried them out as it isn’t too far from where we live and we were having a stroll around the market. The day was pretty chilly; thus, I was definitely in the mood for some ramen! I was impressed that they were cooking the noodles to order and the pork slices were being heated with a small blow torch only after someone ordered. I appreciate that everything hadn’t already been thrown together; which will efficiency would be increased, quality would definitely suffer.
I put in an order for their Pure White Tonkotsu Ramen (£5) with the addition of a full egg (£0.50/half egg) and waited about 5 minutes for my ramen. at Bricklane, they do have a couple of stools available behind their stand for people to wait/​eat. They asked if we wanted all the additions (pickled ginger, shichimi, chili oil (la-​yu), grated sesame) and I was all about it! Loved the little additions for the ramen — especially since we’re talking street food!
The ramen came piping hot and the noodles were a bit more than al dente (maybe just personal preference). The pork was thinly sliced and well flavored. The egg was cooked past what I would prefer (love me a runny/​soft yolk). The broth was warming but didn’t have the depth of flavour or richness (read: porky greasy goodness) that I’ve had at other places. However, we are talking street food (thus, the four stars) and I was impressed with what they were churning out on the street! The price was quite reasonable for the amount of food I received — definitely filled me up.
As we move into winter and you happen to see them in Brixton or Bricklane, they are definitely a solid choice for some warm and filling ramen.

Great, heart-​warming ramen: the veggie option with tofu and an egg is filling, easy to eat in their handy buckets and quick to be served. Loved it!

I know everyone comes here for the ramen — and to be fair, it looked delicious. But I didn’t fancy a big bunch of food for lunch, so I opted for the chicken dumplings.
They are so tasty! £4.50 for 6, cooked to order so fresh and soft yet crunchy on the side that was on the flattop. Garnished simply with chili oil and some spring onions, I wolfed these down in no time.
I could easily have eaten more. I’ll be back for sure to try the ramen, and I’ll definitely be having a side of 3 of these dumplings, nom nom nom (they’re £2.50 for 3).
Downsides are that it’s a bit cramped, of course, and while cooking to order is great because it’s lovely and fresh, it does take a bit of time when you’re in a rush. They said 5 minutes but it was closer to 10. Luckily, I had the time!

Finally managed to get here this weekend after getting put off by the long queues on previous visits to Pop Brixton and found Koi’s to be a reasonably priced and reasonably tasty bowl of ramen (particularly the roast pork) with nice people and good beer and sides.
The soup was decently good but not thick/​oily enough, noodles were on the soft side.
Minus one star for the disposable paper bowl which sinks all the noodles to the bottom of the soup (they get soggy…)and plastic soupspoons which make it difficult to get a combo mouthful of soup and noodles, it really doesn’t do the ramen any favours.

Yummy ramen with full bodied tonkotsu broth. 50p for half a marinated egg (whose marinated-​ness is too subtle to taste with the ramen) seemed a bit steep but you can’t go wrong with Koi’s £6 ramen.
Their location at Pop Brixton doesn’t make for easy eating given that you ideally need to be sitting down and slurping noodles with two hands (unless you are super dexterous!) but it makes for a great meal.

Coming from Malaysia, I’m a great fan of street food — the smells, flavours and outdoorsy ambiance all adds to the fun of eating alfresco
I’m so glad to see the ramen revolution sweeping London the last few years and even international chains like Ippudo have set up shop in London with their large glittery operations
I was therefore excited to see an advert for Koi ramen, which has been taking ramen literally back to the street in Brixton and Brick Lane. I did have a little trouble locating their exact patch of street in Brixton but a quick phonecall and I was instructed to turn left out of Brixton Underground station, take the second turning on the right and look for the stall with the pretty girl in front of it
This cheeky friendly service continued throughout my meal. The proprietor came back from Singapore to set up this venture, driven to make the ramen he would like to eat. They offer a 20 hour pork tonkotsu broth for the meat eaters and a yellow miso version for vegetarians
My tonkotsu version came with noodles, 2 slices of pork belly blowtorched for more charcoal flavour, cloud ear fungus and spring onion. I added half an egg for 50p. My enjoyment of ramen is based mainly on the quality of the soup — Koi’s version had the requisite depth and complexity and a smooth roundedness similar to Kanada Ya’s rather than the powerful milkiness of Bone Daddies. I drunk all of mine
You have to bear in mind that Koi ramen costs £5, half of their competitors. So, don’t come expecting handmade noodles and it will be served in a takeaway style container. There are some tables and stools set up and sone DIY condiments available
After a year’s trading, they’re set to move imminently into a more permanent location just down the road from their current pitch. If I can persuade fellow Unilocalers to venture south of the river, thus could be the next target for the Unilocal Ramen Club

We were in Brixton, we were cold, it was raining, and we needed food.
And then we saw a sign for a ramen store. Amen.
We got greeted by an extremely smiley team that were talking Japanese to us. Sure, we didn’t understand. But made us smile.
It’s a streetfood stand. It’s rustic. It has a few benches to eat there if you want. Choices are relatively slim: pork ramen or veggie ramen. And you can add an egg on top if you want.
So there we were, in the heart of Brixton, under the rain and enjoying our FANTASTIC ramen. The noodles were fabulous, the broth creamy. Toppings were a bit slim. But for £5? Bargain.
Shall definitely be going back. Soon. Today?

Ramen is hard to get just right, but Koi have perfected the art. My girlfriend and I come here almost every week for our ramen fix. A great addition to the Brixton Markets.

Koi Ramen Bar is a HUGE addition to the London ramen scene. A street stall and pop-​up ramen bar, Koi serves just two types of ramen — tonkatsu (pork broth) and miso (vegetarian). Both are exquisite. My preference is the tonkatsu but you can’t go wrong.
Ramen has finally made a dent in the London food scene. But whereas, in Japan, ramen is affordable, casual, comfort food, here (like all ‘exotic’ cuisine) it has tended to be served in over-​wrought restaurants at over-​the-​top prices.
Koi sets the scene right. Affordable but authentic, this place just nails it. Plus, the chef and staff are all incredibly friendly.
I will travel from across London for this ramen.