Over 5,000 Instant Ramen Noodle Reviews Since 2002
Well, this is embarrassing. I deleted the picture that should be above and the pictures of the bowl contents. Yes, I used undelete software – didn’t work. So, here we are. I got one from James of Lakeside and one from Noodle Journey, but alas, it was too late. Post processing, post cooking. Well, let’s cook it and try it and… Yeah.
I’ve noticed over the years that some people are all about bowls vs packs. Why? I’m not exactly sure. I would reckon that steeped noodle consistency might be more their thing, although many are microwavable these days. To be honest, my take is that I don’t really care what it’s in, I just want to review it. These are my favorite ten bowls, picked from reviews I’ve done up to number 5,150. There’s a few neat changes to the list this year, so I invite you to check out The Ramen Rater’s Top Ten Instant Noodle Bowls Of All Time 2025 Edition and hopefully you find a few you want to try!
Been curious about this one and it was found at 99 Ranch Market – very cool! Haven’t really seen much of any new Buldak varieties around this area recently, so that was a nice find. Well, let’s try it!
Well, here we are again. Last time wasn’t so great. Let’s see how this one fares. This was sent by James from Lakeside, California – thanks again!
Since 2013, I’ve been compiling an annual list of the varieties I’ve not liked. Well, beyond not liked – abhorred, found wretched, disgusting; not palatable. I’ve dedicated this year’s edition in memory of my good friend Jamie who truly reveled in how bad noodle varieties could be and had a shortlist of terms they would use that were clear indicators of how bad they were probably going to be; such terms as ‘inspired, authentic, and the like. These usually meant that they were anything but. You’ll find that terminology running rampant in here. This list is current up to review 5150. I should note that these are my opinions and so if you like these or manufacture these, keep that in mind. Let’s now peruse The Ramen Rater’s Bottom Ten Worst Instant Noodles Of All Time 2025 Edition.
Well this in the third in a series of bargain store finds – this was purchased for $299 at Grocery Outlet Bargain Market in Kenmore, WA for $2.99. That’s cheap! I reviewed it’s non-export version a little while back, which I found at HMart. I like this – I am guessing its the same but the imagery is very different – and the ‘XXX-Picy’ is really neat/weird! It’s a cold noodle. Let’s prepare it!
Here’s the second of my three review series of stuff found at local bargain stores. This is another one From Dollar Tree – and the price there on the label was the price I paid for it. I almost never have seen an instant noodle with a price on it – fascinating! What’s also kind of interesting is this and the last one are 300ml. IDK if that’s a pointer that both may be from the same folks but I don’t think so. I should also mention I reviewed a similar packaged product awhile back. The packaging did change and when the emperor gets new clothes, it gets a new review. Finally, when I reviewed it previously, it was incredibly good – and made in Thailand. Still made in Thailand. Let’s cook it up.
Well, today I went looking for cheap toothpicks. I went to Dollar Tree – which currently should be called Dollar Twenty-Five Tree, and then Grocery Outlet Bargain Market. They’re right next door to each other. I also like to look for instant noodles at these places as well. Today, I found no toothpicks, however I found three instant noodles and this is the first one I found. I’m going to do these three varieties over the next three reviews. Here we go.
Found this recently at S*Mart – shop smart shop S*Mart. I’ve been waiting until I had shrimp. I do, so here we go.
Big thanks yet again to James from Lakeside, California! People that send in instant noodles to review really support what I’m doing aq lot and it is so appreciated. Some really great stuff in here – let’s take a look!
Here’s the counterpart to the original version I cooked up yesterday. Curious about this one as I rreally like the Choi regular chicken. Let’s give it a try!
Wow – it feels like I’ve not done a review in a while. Turns out it’s been ten days. Anyways, I’ve got a ton of noodles in those ten days and they’re encroaching on my living space, so I’m back at it! First off will be this one! Let’s go!
I’m curious about this one – usually its beef or chicken but along comes veg. Let’s give it a try!
Herre’s a Prince Katsu variety made in Vietnam for the US market, emblazoned with a Hello Kitty. Note – despite Hello Kitty being depicted inside the cup, it is not in there.
Well kids, here we are. It’s kind of funny; I’ve had many a pizza flavored instant noodle – from places like Pakistan, Serbia, Brazil, and Indonesia to name a few. Nothing from the United States though. All these others employed a standard fried wheat noodle and were indeed the ‘standard’ instant ramen style noodle. In this one for the US, the term ‘ramen’ is doing some incredibly heavy lifting. I feel partially to blame to be honest – I’m The Ramen Rater – but I do not only review Japanese varieties like shio, tonkotsu, miso and shoyu, but try everything from everywhere. So, is this something that is called ramen, or is it ramen? You be the judge. Rather, I will after I sample it. Let’s begin.
This should be interesting! This is like a yakiudon that’s microwavable – sounds kinda neat! Let’s just cook it up!
My 5000th review was of the chicken version from this brand. Why? It was a brand I’d not seen, I got it locally, and when I found it I was surprised to find it as well and excited. I saw a post in the Ramen Junkies group showing this beef version, and I could tell from the shelf picture it was from the same place – a discount store called Dollar Tree. So, I thought I’d look to see if they have it and they did. What I find interesting is that I thought these were made in China – they’re not. These are made in India, and a sirloin flavor, which connotes beef seems very out of character. Once again, I review another McTrader product. Let us begin.
Here’s my next to last of these varieties and I have to say I’ve enjoyed them so far. Nice chewy noodles, good Taiwanese style flavors. These are made for Momofuku, a restaurant founded by David Chang. A-Sha Dry Noodle is making these, so if you like their products, you’ll like these. Let’s cook it up!
Holy cow – what a week. On Tuesday, we had a huge storm – a bomb cyclone. Areas around here had gusts equal to hurricane force. The cyclone sucked air out to sea, which made winds go the opposite direction they usually do – causing power outages… We had just shy of a 2 day power outage. It sucked. Well, I’m back. Let’s do it up!
Thank you to James from Lakeside, California for sending this along! He also sent a bulgogi sauce version but my wife absconded with it – and I let her. I generally don’t get anything noodle related that she’s all over so I figured that’s fair. Tteokbokki and rice cakes in a tubular shape, usually with a lot of tasty sauce and other toppings. It’s freaking wonderful. This one comes with two servings. Let’s give it a try!
Found this at S*Mart! Yup – shop smart, shop S*Mart! Well, let’s give this one from Samyang in South Korea a try!
Here’s a variety that I found in one of MiauMall’s Nakama Noodles subscription boxes! These boxes are discontinued, however you can find their stuff at MiauMall – here is what they said about this one – “Next up is a tasty bowl of liquid gold straight from Yokohama! This Tan ramen, different from Tan Tan Ramen. This pack feature thick noodles in a deliciously light salt broth with chicken and pork for umami and napa cabbage and cabbage to soak up that soup! Yum!”
After going to the dollar store in search of something – which I found – I was on my way home and passed by a little free food pantry. People just put food in there and you just take it out. I found this one in there. I have put plenty of noodles in there in the past, so when I find something, I feel happy to abscond with it. I’m happy to not have to pay for a multipack of these, so thank you random donor. I’ll put some cool stuff in there shortly. Let’s cook this…
Well, here’s the hottest of the A-Sha Hot Ones trifecta of cups – let us see how hot this sucker is!
Big thanks to The Fat Hipster for sending this along. This is an instant noodle for hikers and campers. So if you’re neither, think of carrying tons of stuff for a multi day outdoor trip. You will need food. Do you want to carry something heavy or light? When you’re done, do you want big trash to lug around? Well, this is a solution. These packs aren’t huge, they’re light, and unlike a foam bowl, this is also the cooking vessel and folds up for disposal away from the trail. Sounds interesting. I’m very curious about this, so let’s get to it.
Here’s the second of two varieties of noodles by Fly By Jing. The sweet and spicy were pretty good – let’s try this one.
What’s in a name? A lot of characters, that’s for sure where this one is concerned. I really like yellow curry and the previous version of this was rad. Let’s see how this new package version goes.
I’ve been saving this one a little while and thought hey today’s the day. Well, today IS the day! Tonkotsu time!
So I got this from two sources. First, from Nissin in a promo box for National Noodle Day. Second, one from James from Lakeside, CA – thank, man! These are very popular with my daughter – she tried the one in the pictures here and the other gets opened for the review. Well, she liked it – let me have a try…
As today is April 1st (April Fools Day), I was lucky enough to have a neat box of odd varieties my wife got me arrive yesterday. These can be found online at Walmart or you can just drag your smelly ass into a Walmart store. It should be known that while launch dates are usually on the boxes, Walmart rarely adheres to them when it comes to putting things out on the floor as I’ve found regarding previous exclusive things. With that being said, I’ll show you the quartet and let you know my initial thoughts. I should also mention – this isn’t a joke, it’s a real thing. But you shouldn’t be too surprised.
Big thanks to The Fat Hipster for sending this along! This is called an MRE – meal ready to eat – well, sort of. You do neet hot water of course, but it’s a heavy plastic bag that’s got a ton of stuff in it, including instant noodles. Let’s take a look.
This one definitely has potential to be good – real good. That noodle on the package looks superb and so I’m crossing my fingers. Let’s crack it open and give it a try!
Hey it’s Monday. A windy, rainy Monday on November 4th – my mom would’ve been 89 today. This is a variety of dry noodle from A-Sha for the Momofuku restaurants. Really looking forward to this – and I’ll be adding something neat into it. Let’s give it a go!
This is the second of three and yup – will be a mukbang. I think I’m in the mood for a mukbang today – last night was Halloween and it rained – poured – and so something hot sounds good. Still raining today. Let’s give it a go.
Well this is a little different – but cool. Hot Ones is a YouTube show where celebrities go on and do an interview while eating increasingly spicy chicken wings. Gorden Ramsay practically cried and had a tantrum. Anyways, these are in a series – there’s three cups and three bowls. I’ve got the cups, so I’ll be trying them (yes, mukbang) in short order and seeing how they go. These are made in Vietnam for the US market. Let do this.
Here’s the first of a slew of A-Sha varieties. This one is a collab between Momofuku, a hoidy-toidy restaint chain and A-Sha. While made in Taiwan, this is specifically for the US market. Shall we?
James from Lakeside, California emailed me the other day on some packs he found at Grocery Outlet and sent my way. These are very very interesting in that they’re got clear stuff going on, common prison named flavors, and so on. Watch the vid and maybe check you local Grocery Outlet should you have one. Thanks again man – awesome find!
Well foks, after my 5000 and 5001st reviews, this is where I go back to the regular stuff. Well, sorta. I’ve got a few top tens I need to crank out. By the time you see this, hopefully that’ll have occurred. But I just wanna do a regular old review – nothing crazy or huge, nothing monumental – just a review. Seems like I haven’t done one in a month so that’s it I’m doing one. Found this at S*Mart – yep – shop smart shop S*Mart. Let us begin…
The second of two new fresh varieties from Myojo you’ll find in the refrigerated section. Let’s give it a try!
James is a kind of noodle whisperer; he has been sending boxes with stuff in them that 99% of the time I’ve never heard of. This box is no different – lots of neat stutff in here including a variety made in Vietnam for Poland! Thanks!! Let’s take a look.
