Ivan Ramen: New York's Best Ramen Restaurant, Conquering Tokyo, Heartbreak, Japanese Literature & Art

Ivan Orkin is one of the most unlikely success stories in the world of food.A Jewish kid from New York moves to Tokyo, opens a tiny ramen shop in the suburbs, and somehow ends up becoming one of the most respected ramen chefs in Japan — a country famously protective of its culinary traditions.In this conversation, Dan sits down with the founder of Ivan Ramen to unpack how that happened.Ivan talks about teaching himself ramen, opening his first shop in Japan with barely any money, and the moment a single influential ramen critic changed the trajectory of his business overnight. He explains why ramen is one of the most creative foods in Japanese cuisine, why “authentic” is often the wrong word to use, and how breaking rules is sometimes the only way to find your voice.Along the way they dive into the realities of running restaurants across different cities — from Tokyo to New York to Las Vegas — the difference between destination dining and foot-traffic restaurants, and the constant tension between creativity and the brutal economics of hospitality.It’s a conversation about stubbornness, identity, and what it really takes to build something original in a culture that isn’t your own.ON THE MENU:00:00:00 Intro00:02:08 Japanese Literature and Murakami00:04:23 Why Ivan Studied Japanese at University00:11:05 The Genesis of Ivan Ramen - $60k to get started00:12:26 Foreigner in Japan’s Ramen Scene00:14:02 Fixing the Hospitality Problem in Ramen Shops (Lessons form Lutece)00:25:33 What makes a good Ramen?00:36:12 Taking Advantage of the Gaijin Card00:40:05 How Tokyo Became an International Food City00:40:12 Pizza & Wine - Tokyo Rivals the Best of the World00:41:11 Ivan’s Favorite NYC Pizza Spots00:44:06 Why the Pizza Scene Exploded in New York00:47:50 Why Ivan Doesn’t Fear Recipe Copying00:51:02 Ray Kroc and No-Nonsense Business Advice01:01:52 How the USA is Killing its Small Businesses01:06:08 What Most Restaurant Business Plans Miss01:07:08 Why "Authentic" is a Terrible Word01:07:52 The Moment Ivan Decided He Could Go For It01:12:21 The Best Sandwiches in NYC01:15:47 Ivan on London’s Food Scene01:17:16 Ivan on British Tea (PG Tips vs Fancy Tea) ============================================== ♨️Still bloody HUNGRY? Course ya are. Each week I spend 15 hours writing my newsletter. It’ll take you 5 mins to read. Full of wisdom from the biggest names in food and drink. Subscribe here - https://hungryfeast.beehiiv.com/🍲 ============================================== 🌟 HUNGRY's Absolutely Bloody Marvellous Sponsors🌟 ============================================== A massive shoutout to our incredible sponsors who make HUNGRY possible: ​ ►North Star: (www.northstarbc.co.uk) 🤝 Let's Connect! ►Let’s link-up here ​ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-pope/) ►Stalk me here ​ (https://www.instagram.com/_hungry.pod/) This episode was edited by: G.Thomas Craig (https://www.linkedin.com/in/gthomascraig/)