Category: * Stars 0 – 1.0

#4192: NeoStar Ramen Delight Savory Chicken – United States

Thank you to James of Lakeside, California for sending this. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I heard about this stuff and have really wanted to review it for a couple months after Stumpy of N Little Rock, AR told me about it. He wasn’t a fan and by the looks of things, I probably won’t find this to be the second coming either. But the thing is for me, my favorite instant noodle is the one I haven’t tried yet – and this is not only one I’ve not tried, but a brand I’m completely unfamiliar with. This is made in China. Let’s check it out! ...see full post

#4174: 7 Select Cheese & Herbs Pasta Cup – United States

#4174: 7 Select Cheese & Herbs Pasta Cup - United States

This is the second of two instant cups found at a local 7-Eleven store. 7-Eleven is based in Japan and a mainstay throughout Asia. I remember check it out in Taiwan and holy cow – they have tons of stuff. People go there to pay their utility bills, make their car payments, and buy all sorts of stuff. This reminds me of the kinds of products they have overseas, but more localized for the US consumer. Let’s check it out! ...see full post

The Ramen Rater’s Bottom Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2022 Edition

The Ramen Rater's Bottom Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2022 Edition

Most of the time, instant noodles tend to be pretty good. Companies tend to create products that they think people will like; why wouldn’t they? Well, sometimes there’s a product that I can’t believe anyone would like. These are my least favorite varieties out of 4,120 reviews. This is definitely a list you really don’t want to be on. One thing to note is that many of these products have been on the market for awhile, so there’s definitely people out there that enjoy them. Everything on this list is reviewed before adding any garnish. Hope you enjoy The Ramen Rater’s Bottom Ten Instant Noodles Of All Time 2022 Edition! ...see full post

#4091: immi Black Garlic “Chicken” Flavor Ramen Soup – United States

#4091: immi Black Garlic "Chicken" Flavor Ramen Soup - United States

As soon as I heard about this stuff I was curious. But that was a long time ago and I’d almost forgotten why I was so curious until I did the unboxing. This stuff is made with pumpkin seed protein! That’s definitely unique. 22g of protein and 6g of net carbs. Ah, I remember net carbs. So, for every gram of fiber, you can knock off a carb. This has a ton of fiber. I’m really curious. Let’s give it a try. ...see full post

#4048: Kailo Brand Instant Noodles Chicken Flavour – China

#4048: Kailo Brand Instant Noodles Chicken Flavour - China

Here’s one that came from an Exotic Noods subscription box! Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a discount. I haven’t had anything by this brand in probably a decade – but I remember I liked this brand’s products. I remember that, but I don’t know where my keys are at the moment. Fascinating. Well, let’s give it a try! ...see full post

#3974: Sapporo Ichiban x Riken Wakame Soup Flavored Ramen – Japan

#3974: Sapporo Ichiban x Riken Wakame Soup Flavored Ramen - Japan

Found this in a Zenpop.jp box – you get seven varieties of instant noodles to try! I would say that almost every time I’ve gotten one of these, I’ve never tried any of them before which is really awesome. Use coupon code THERAMENRATER for a groovy discount! Here’s what they had to say about this one – ‘ ...see full post

Shin Ramyun Bread Experiment v1.0

Shin Ramyun Bread Experiment v1.0

I had a thought – ramen into bread. I was able to do this successfully by creating a bread with cooked noodles as an ingredient in place of some bread flour. But what of a bread where instant noodles are the flour? I mean, it is flour, isn’t it? Today, We’ll look at my initial attempt and see what was learned from it and how it went. ...see full post

#3871: Panda Signature Ramen Noodle Soup Spicy Shrimp Flavor – United States

#3871: Panda Signature Ramen Noodle Soup Spicy Shrimp Flavor - United States

Thanks again to the guy in Montana for sending this a little while back. These days, the unboxing video’s comments have provided speculation, xenophobic diatribes, and some weird entertainment. Turns out these are the ramen at Walmart now and Walmart customers are seriously unhappy about it – it’s pretty hardcore if you ask me. Fascinating and entertaining nonetheless. Some of these varieties I’ve liked, some not. I actually saw them this weekend at a Walmart – they had these cups at 37 cents for a single, $1.78 for a six pack. That’s an extremely low price point for six meals. Let’s check this one out. ...see full post

#3827: Lee Kum Kee Hong Kong Style Chow Mein – United States

#3827: Lee Kum Kee Hong Kong Style Chow Mein - United States

They did a big reset at the local Safeway. They redid their produce section which was kinda nice. The also really updated their Asian foods section. Lots of instant noodles there! Then, there’s this. These are $4.99 each. The only reason I got one is because we love this brand’s Korean BBQ sauce. I’m guessing there’s a good chance this will be pretty good. Let’s chek it out and see if it warrants this price tag. ...see full post

#3812: Snapdragon Vietnamese Vegetable Pho – United States

#3812: Snapdragon Vietnamese Vegetable Pho - United States

These came by way of James from Lakeside California and looks like Snapdragon has dressed up their packaging yet again. I will admit I’ve never been exceedingly enthralled with their range, save a couple of varieties. Not only that, I’m rarely enthused about any pho instants I’ve tried. But I’m in the mood so these at least have that going for them. Let’s give them a try! ...see full post

#3785: Panda Signature Ramen Noodle Soup Chili Lime Flavor – United States

#3861: Panda Signature Ramen Noodle Soup Chili Lime Flavor - United States

This is the second of the Panda Signature variety cup style noodles I’ll be trying today. I must say, the video where I unboxed a ton of varieties a reader in Montana sent me has done really well. Sadly, it’s not because people are excited about the products. They’ve been much maligned by folks who were sad to see their former favorite get replaced by this brand. One thing people have brought up too is the country of origin on these. You see, on the single packs, the closest thing I could find to a country of origin was from the HALAL seal being from Malaysia. People kept saying that they said ‘product of PRC.’ PRC is People’s Republic Of China. Well, this cup says that, so I have visual confirmation that these are manufactured in China. To me, this isn’t a big deal; a LOT of instant noodles are manufactured in China. However, many are incensed by this insofar that the product it replaced was made in the United States. I’m sure some other reasons have led to their anger about this, which I’m not sympathetic to.  But I can see their point on the made in the USA viewpoint. More importantly, they’ve been extremely critical of the flavor of these products being different, and have been downright disgusted by them. I won’t say any have been favorites of mine, but I haven’t found them as a range to be incredibly bad or worth of my bottom ten list. This being said, I have heard that 12 packs of the noodles around around $2 – which is pretty inexpensive. I wouldn’t expect filet mignon at under twenty cents per portion,. Anyways, I was able to contact the company that produces these and they’ve mentioned that they are going to be producing a reformulated version (aka a new recipe). So, I’ll of course try them when they debut and hopefully be able to do an interview with them when that time comes. If you’re wondering that since they’re made in China why the title up top says United States, this product isn’t for sale like this in China and specifically made for Walmart stores here. Let’s check out this one out – sounds tasty enough from the name. ...see full post

#3764: Wai Wai Quick Instant Noodles Chicken Curry Flavour – Serbia

#3764: Wai Wai Quick Instant Noodles Chicken Curry Flavour - Serbia

What a lovely surprise! I went to JR’s Market over in Lynnwood, WA when we were out getting Halloween costumes for the kids (it’s across the parking lot from the Halloween store) and found this and quite a few more varieties. I figured this was from Nepal as it’s a Chaudhary Group noodle, but after examining this one it’s from CG Europe – from Serbia! So this is another country I’ve not reviewed anything from, which is pretty neat! ...see full post

#3450: Taihodien Green Chilli Paste Noodles – Taiwan

#3450: Taihodien Green Chilli Paste Noodles - Taiwan

It’s been a while since I had the original Taihodien spicy mala noodles. On those, the noodles themselves were decent but the flavor was just such an onslaught of Sichuan peppercorn. Just too much. This one sounds much different – green Sichuan peppercorn and a lot of other chilli pepper action going on. Hoping to like thing one! Let’s check it out. ...see full post

#3401: Star Anise Foods Vietnamese Pho Noodle Soup Bowl Creamy Coconut – United States

#3401: Star Anise Foods Vietnamese Pho Noodle Soup Bowl Creamy Coconut - United States

A very long time ago, I tried their pho as part of a Meet The Manufacturer series – a series of one review! I’ve started seeing their products more and more and thought hey look – it’s in Walmrt – I’ll give it a try. So, here we are. I’m curious how it’s going to be – brown rice noodles! Let’s find out. ...see full post

#3381: Nissin Pasta U.F.O. Sabor Alitas Hot – Mexico

#3381: Nissin Pasta U.F.O. Sabor Alitas Hot - Mexico

Alas, we come to the end of the road on the samples from the last box from Nissin MExico. They were all fascinating and different, but this I’m hoping is a case of saving the best for last. Their Intensos Cup Noodles Alitas Hot was sensational, and hoping that same flavor carries over to this one. Let’s find out! By the way – Alitas Hot means ‘hot wings.’ ...see full post