The Ramen Shop on Riddiford Street in Wellington's Newtown serves Japanese ramen and noodles every day from 11:30am to 9pm. Tonkotsu broth is the backbone of the menu, with a classic Tonkotsu Ramen alongside the signature Spicy Tonkotsu and Spicy Chicken Ramen, plus steamed bao buns and house-style ramen with a Kiwi twist. Prices sit in the budget range, and the branch holds a 4.0 rating on Google.
The Ramen Shop's story starts with a simple frustration: its founders wanted to eat proper ramen, and there was nowhere in Wellington making it fresh rather than out of a box or packet. That gap led to a pop-up restaurant in 2013, taking over other businesses' spaces one night at a time — with thanks given to Golding's Free Dive, Hasigo Zake, Rogue and Vagabond, Flight Coffee Hangar and Six Barrel Soda for hosting those early nights.
The following those pop-ups built was strong enough that The Ramen Shop opened its first permanent shop in Newtown in 2014. Today, the business operates from three Wellington locations: Newtown, Karori and Johnsonville.
The Ramen Shop describes its food as bringing the same principles of traditional Japanese ramen, but altered with "Kiwi ingenuity" to create its own identity and flavour. That approach shows up on the menu with dishes like Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen, classic Tonkotsu Ramen, Spicy Chicken Ramen, and steamed buns (bao) for those wanting something to share or add on the side.
Behind the dishes is a stated commitment to making everything possible from scratch, driven by wanting to know exactly what goes into the food being served. Affordability matters just as much to the business — the goal is high-quality food and drink at a reasonable price, without cutting corners on quality to get there.
The Ramen Shop holds a "Good" rating based on 570 reviews on Google. Reviewers highlight fast service and generous portions — one review specifically calls out a generous serve of pork alongside clean-tasting broth — while another describes the tonkotsu ramen as the perfect warm-up on a cold day. A third reviewer, self-admittedly guilty of eating "far too many" bao buns in one sitting, describes the food as cooked with love. The restaurant has also been featured in Top Reviews NZ's list of the best Japanese restaurants in Wellington.
The Ramen Shop is set up for dine-in, takeaway and delivery, with online ordering available for pickup or delivery through Easy Eats at each of its three locations. That flexibility means a bowl of ramen can be enjoyed at a table in Newtown, Karori or Johnsonville, or brought straight to your door.
Each of The Ramen Shop's three locations keeps the same hours, open Monday to Sunday from 11:30am to 9pm. The Newtown shop is at 191 Riddiford Street and can be reached on 04 389 2263, the Karori shop is at 139 Karori Road on 04 476 0300, and the Johnsonville shop is at 109 Johnsonville Road on 04 213 9076.
For anyone in Wellington after a proper bowl of ramen with a distinctly local edge, The Ramen Shop's journey from a scrappy 2013 pop-up to three established shops across the city speaks to a following built one bowl, and one borrowed venue, at a time.