North Mississippi’s Ramen-Dedicated Restaurant Opens With $5 Bowls

North Mississippi Avenue’s only restaurant dedicated to ramen, Oda Ramen replaces Samurai Blue on November 22, at 3807 N Mississippi Ave. On opening night, it’ll serve all four of its ramen options for just $5 (usually $11-$13), starting at 5 p.m. Regular prices and hours begin Friday, November 24, with Oda operating daily, from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Oda Ramen is local restaurateur Tommy Shin’s third ramen-focused restaurant, following closely on the heels of his Sellwood spot, Nama Ramen, and about a year and a half after Akasaru Ramen, on NE Alberta. Shin told Eater he closed Samurai Blue in part because of the difficulty of finding capable sushi chefs. A long-time friend of Shin’s, chef Fransis Odaya will head the Oda kitchen.

Odaya is doing four bowls in four spice levels — mild, spicy, hot, and fire — with gluten-free and vegan options. The rest of the menu has a handful of rice bowls, like one with chasyu pork and another with ahi poke, and appetizers, like gyoza and ebi tempura.

Oda’s mission is noble: to bring a brick and mortar ramen option to North Mississippi Avenue. Nearby Miho Izakaya will soon close, and Kayo’s Ramen Bar is rocking it, but located on North Williams. The Teppanyaki Hut food truck serves ramen in the Prost Marketplace pod on North Mississippi, but sometimes you just want a restaurant setting and don’t want to leave the hood, for warming, rich broth.

• Oda Ramen [Official]
• All Previous Samurai Blue Coverage [EPDX]