Hapa Ramen

Although I wasn’t expecting to be mind blown by street ramen in the bay, I was a lot more disappointed than expected
Noodles were not chewy, tasted a bit doughy. Pork was extremely (inedibly) fatty and hacked into half inch slices, not sliced into slivers. Broth didn’t taste anything like ramen broth should — no savory or rich flavor of pork meat and dashi, and it had loads of oil floating at the top. Also, broccoli in the ramen (and lots of it) which kind of grossed me out — it was just a weird mix of flavors.
Was left feeling unsatisfied and unhealthy, definitely not worth 11 $ (I’ve had much better 8 $ ramen). I get that this is probably supposed to be «modern”/ Hapa twist on traditional ramen, but nonetheless it doesn’t work and there needs to be a huge improvement on the recipe :(Would not recommend at all

Was recommended by a friend to come to the local farmers market and never had a chance to until now.
Heard that there was ramen and because it was a slightly chillier day in SF (surprising …) decided it was a win win situation. Farmer Market + Ramen = Made.
This is by far some of the best ramen broth I’ve had in a while. Big Daddy if you’re looking to be filled up with ramen joy. And Miso Ramen for a light snack.
Overall– the staff is amazing, service was prompt and a friendly smile goes along way. The only downside is the seating availability.
Although, it is a turn and burn situation, you’ll be able to scope out seating upon arrival.
Location is next to Sōw and Tout Sweet.
PS: egg on everythingggggg

After spending north of $ 12 for a miso market ramen with a slow cooked egg, I walked away pretty disappointed. While the portions are gigantic and initially made me think it was worth the money, the bowl I got was 99% noodle with a few small pieces of veggie floating around.
The broth is flavorful and tasted great with the slow cooked egg, but for $ 12+ I expect ramen with more to it than noodle and some veggie sprinkles. This super starch-​heavy «veggie» ramen also left me feeling pretty slow going back to work, which is a major no-​no in my book. I will explore the other food stalls at the ferry building farmer’s market before circling back again, if ever.

Don’t ask for a recommendation for scotch — they will serve you a $ 25 a glass scotch without warning you of the price tag (taken aback a bit by that and found it quite sneaky), food is very good otherwise.
2 stars is for the sneakiness

Definitely not worth it. Got the slow cooked pork ramen. The noodles are fresh, but tad undercooked (this is normally good since it might sit in the soup for a bit but it was still wasn’t a good texture by the time my soup got luke warm), the broth is too salty to me, good egg, pork is thick and fatty, more chew on it though, so definitely doesn’t melt in your mouth. There’s a few leaves of spinach and pieces of baby carrot, both not fully cooked. Definitely paid less than $ 10 for better ramen.

Continuing on with our Vancouver Ramen Challenge, we decided to also do the same challenge in SF.
Our first stop was Hapa Ramen Ferry building where the ramen craze all began months ago. wanted to do a comparison after getting spoiled in Vancouver.
Um this ramen sucked… we opted for the slow cooked pork and don’t even know how we even liked this ramen before.
the pork belly was basically all fat no meat. there was no veggies, the egg was just poached in the soup, the noodles were ok nothing spectacular, the broth was also average.
The toppings were horrendous. Served in a to go bowl as it’s an outdoor stand only available on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10am –2pm.
SF if this is the how the ramen is served here then we are in for a bad ramen challenge. but we’re still hopeful. After consulting with some other Unilocalers out there, we’re looking forward to trying Orenki, and Santouka on our next list to try.
Considering i have not seen a single 5 star rating at any of the ramen places either the SF audience is hard to please or the ramen here really cannot compare… stay tuned to find out!
Value ²⁄₅
atmosphere 2.5÷5 sucks to line up in cold day
service 2.5÷5
quality ²⁄₅
overall ⁹⁄₂₀

Big no on big daddy.
So when does slow cooking egg= raw egg in hot soup? I don’t call that slow cooking, that is called poach. I
I understand the weather is cold, but can’t stand someone that is touching my food then put their hand in their pocket repeatedly and touch the food again. With out any source of disinfection. Both the broth and pork is disappointing, all I can taste is the soy sauce. The only good thing in the bowl is the fried chicken.

Encountered a long line outside this place at the Ferry Building today, so figured it’d be worth a shot. I went for the Big Daddy ramen (fried chicken and pork belly). The noodles were firm and good, and the pork belly and fried chicken were flavorful. The broth itself was a bit too salty for me, and generally blah.
It all felt a bit fast-​foody, and while that’s not necessarily a bad thing, I expect a bit more for $ 14. It’s fine, i guess.

Hapa Ramen, as its name implies, tasted like it was half Japanese. What the other half is, I can’t speculate but I didn’t like it. The pork belly tasted like ham, it’s like they brined it in a sweet brine.
My sister in law says it used to be much better before. Definitely not anymore.

Hapa Ramen has fallen from one of my top favorite places to have ramen to the bottom. What happened to you guys? You were great in the beginning when I hunted you down at that warehouse in SF.
The noodles were perfect. Now you cut them. This is just downright offensive.
The soup was so flavorful. Now it barely pairs well with the noodles.
I use to get a side of kimchee. It had little picked radishes too not this super salty but not really spicy mess.
Nothing comes together in this bowl of soup. It’s embarrassing.

I decided to look for this place because I heard good things about it and I was in the area… But boy, was this hard to find!
Not only is Hapa Ramen only on Tuesday & Thursdays (10am to 2pm) due to the Farmer’s Market, it is outdoors on the right hand side in front of the Ferry Building. I thought it was IN the Ferry Building itself and was wandering like a n00b. (Shame on me!)
I got the Big Daddy Ramen that comes with Slow Cooked Pork, Fried Chicken, Summer Vegetables and a Slow Cooked Egg. While I can’t imagine ever forking out $ 13 – 14 for a bowl of ramen, it certainly was worth it! I enjoyed the broth, which I believe is a half and half Tonkotsu and Shoyu base (I may be wrong because I don’t quite remember. Sorry!), and the meat especially! The pork was really tender and soft and the fried chicken was lightly battered! I was really impressed with the batter because it had a good texture, not too thick yet not too light either. Also, despite being soaked in broth, the chicken still managed to stay crispy.
BUT the best part in my opinion was the slow cooked egg! I don’t want my eggs fried or fertilized… I WANT THEM SLOW COOKED. (I apologize profusely for that bad joke… but if you get the reference, props to you!)
I also found out that they use locally sourced produce, organically raised pork and free range chickens so props to them!
I really don’t understand why the ratings are on the lower end but I would recommend this place! My only qualm is it is a bit pricy for ramen.

Walked around the Ferry Building and decided to try this out. Went for the slow roasted pork ramen and added a soft boiled egg. why not!?!
Was given a heafty portion of soup with noodles and an egg. I sprinkled on some togarashi then found a place to sit and indulge.
The broth was hot and the noodles were tasty (not overcooked at all). The egg could have been cooked a bit less, but was still soft inside.
I was happily suurprised by the pickled vegetables hidden at the bottom despite the weird selection (oblique cut carrots and beets?) The hint of vinegar added a nice contrast to the rish pork belly.
It was a bit pricey, but I’d go again and try something else too.

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE ramen, but Hapa just doesn’t cut it. It is lacking in flavor, both with the broth and meat. It somewhat tastes like you are eating like warm top ramen.
Noodles at on the more firm side. Veggies are a little different (chunks of carrot and what looks like radish).
Unless I’m really desperate, I won’t return.

Hapa Ramen goes to the farmer’s market at the ferry building on Thursday. There’s usually a decent amount of people swarming around this tent.
== Food ==
Big Daddy Ramen. I can’t tell if this is soy sauce based or not… It’s definitely not miso or tonkotsu. The mystery soup was very very bland to me. There were some mysterious chunks of veggies inside. One lonely piece of pork, but a good size piece of karaage. I like soft boiled egg, but totally hated this one. The outside wasn’t cooked or firm at all. It was very drippy and barely held the egg york inside. The noodles were alright.
== Service ==
Everything is pre-​made and they’re assembling it together in the tent. There’s at least 4 guys working behind the cashier, but the service is very slow. There’s a good 10 – 15 minute wait since they get swamped pretty easily.
== Overall ==
I really didn’t like the Big Daddy Ramen… I don’t see why there were so many people waiting in line for this place.

Mediocre ramen, but I suppose it hits the spot when the craving hits.
Broth is very salty. Too salty. It’s hard to evaluate the flavor because it’s so salty.
Noodles are below average. Probably about what I could buy from a supermarket.
Toppings are what’s good here. The pork is fatty and tasty. I liked the veggies. Although for a largely take-​out experience, I would recommend they keep the seaweed separate from the bowl so that it isn’t so soggy.
Given the options at the ferry building on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I would recommend venturing elsewhere unless you are really craving ramen. At $ 11 – 14, it’s not worth it.

Hapa — half American and half Japanese?
It is hapa-​ning, indeed!
Their ramen bowls are fused with concepts of serving up Japanese ramen noodles in traditional, hearty, miso broth, while being garnished with American mixed greens! Their American-​styled fried chicken pieces, were freshly battered up and crunchy. Though, having it in the soup, made it a bit soggy and lacking in flavor, but still worthy to taste and try. The flavor of the broth was pleasant and texture of the noodles were slurp-​a-​licious! I was digging the theme.
It’s a good, piping hot ramen bowl to order up — especially if the temperature is on the cold side, but the sun is out by the Pier!

With a bit of a breeze and partly cloudy skies, I thought to myself, «Self, today would be a good day for some noodle soup.» The fact that it was Tuesday meant that the Farmer’s Market would be at the Ferry Building. Lucky me! As I eyed the stands on the southern side of the building front, I spied Hapa Ramen. Now, it’s been awhile since I’ve eaten Hapa Ramen so I thought I’d queue up and slap my $ 10 down for a bowl. They offered 4 types of ramen today (Slow Cooked Pork, Friend Chicken, the Big Daddy (medley of all the above) and the Market Day). Regular ramen portions are moderate — not that big.
I chose the Slow Cooked Pork with veggies (sans egg or other add-​ons). The broth looked like one of those broths that had slow cooked for 10 hours, a deep dark murky brown broth. On the menu, it said that there would be 2 — 4 slices of pork loin today. Yup, I see two pieces. From the first mouthful, though, I thought «Oh, oh too salty.» I’m thinking the combination of ingredients in the making of the broth was the culprit. Otherwise, the noodles had a very good consistency — firm and great tooth-​feel. There was small pieces of broccoli, chunks of a jelly-​like veg (unidentified) and some bits of cabbage. In the past, Hapa Ramen was so much better. Wanted to like it, but this was like going on a bad date.disappointing.

3 Stars for flavor.
2 Stars for quality and value.
* Big Daddy Ramen ($ 13) — Includes ~2 small slices of chashu, 2 pieces of fried chicken, a bit of miscellaneous veggies, and a soft boiled egg. The chasu was not fall apart and quite small. The fried chicken didn’t make up for it, and may have been good before but became incredibly soggy and gross after sitting in the soup for just 5 minutes. The biggest reason for my disappointment is the broth and the noodles which are the most important factors in a good ramen! The broth was fairly one-​note, and reminded me of a Chinese beef soup. The noodled lacked the curly chewy bounciness in traditional fresh ramen noodles.
Aside from a great job with the soft boiled egg, I’m chalking this up to another hipster food truck fail.

Some of my co-​workers wanted to go to the ferry building to check out the food stalls on Thursday for lunch.
I wasn’t sure what I wanted but finally decided to try the Big Daddy Ramen bowl again. It had been a while so I was excited to see if anything had changed. Overall, it was the same experience I had the first time.
I was neither overwhelmed nor deeply disappointed with my meal. Perhaps when their brick and mortar shop opens in the mission it will change my mind but for now I am left at a stand still.
Overall Thoughts
If you want a ramen fix Hapa Ramen will suffice

Let me start by saying that I literally just finished eating their ramen as I write this review. The smell of the spicy sesame oil I used still lingers in my nostrils and the salty and savory taste still lingers in my tongue as I ponder if it were too early to drink peppermint tea to cleanse my palate (hot tea after hot broth: good idea or no?). So I ought to be basking in the afterglow of being nourished or, at the very least, smacking my lips in satisfaction, right?
Not completely wrong but not right either. I am not impressed and am actually marginally disappointed with Hapa Ramen. I ordered the slow-​cooked pork ramen and it was decent, which is what disappoints me considering they specialize in ramen. They ought to be «quite good,» especially after paying $ 9 for an only almost decent amount of food.
I like greasy food. I think I can thank my Filipino roots for that. The broth was flavorful, salty, and greasy, which are all wins in my book. The noodle was a nice texture but could use some more flavor in it. The pork was alright. But why does your seaweed have a bitter aftertaste, Hapa? Not cool.
At this point I am not sure if I would go back to Hapa again (whether this is from the bitter aftertaste or from being currently full remains yet to be seen). I so wanted to be infatuated with Hapa so I can have a phở replacement on cold SF days, but I am afraid I’ll have to look elsewhere.
P. S. This is a 3 even though they are a 2.5 place because the guy who helped me out was really very nice and pleasant.