House of Fu Leeds: Here's what I thought of the ramen restaurant on The Headrow
and live on Freeview channel 276
I first visited the vibrant ramen restaurant on The Headrow in 2021, shortly after it had opened, and I was largely disappointed with the underwhelming ramen and service at the time. I wanted to love the restaurant, and know many that do, and I had often walked past and heard people belting their hearts out to break-up songs in the karaoke bar upstairs.
After reading recent reviews raving about the kimchi, I believed the restaurant deserved a second shot, especially since ramen is one of my favourite dishes. I've eaten it all over Leeds.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdDespite an email confirmation in hand of my online booking for 7.45pm, my friend and I were told to wait outside for 15 minutes when we arrived – as we were booked in for a different time on their system and there were no tables available. Not a great start.
Once inside, the restaurant was packed full on a weekday evening – and there was a lively atmosphere. It has an eye-catching exterior and a relaxed feel inside.
For starters, we ordered the infamous kimchi selection, a mix of cabbage, pickles, radish and cucumbers, for £4.80, which would have been a delight if they were a little more fermented, and crispy cauliflower made with hot sauce, for £6.
The cauliflower was the perfect combination of soft and crispy.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAnd the rest of the menu had us excited – there is a range of ramen and rice dishes and many vegetarian and vegan options. I ordered the yuzu ramen for £12.50, which arrived with Tokyo noodles, broccoli and daikon, while my friend ordered the shoyu chicken ramen for £14, made with Tokyo noodles, chicken broth and chicken chashu.
Our excitement was short-lived when my friend noticed a hair in her bowl when it arrived at the table. As an isolated occurrence, we wouldn't have minded too much, but this had also happened during my first visit, two years ago.
The server apologised and promptly got her a fresh bowl, but he said: “These things happen.” As a former front-of-house worker myself, these things really shouldn't.
The noodles in my Tokyo ramen were undercooked and chewy, meaning the flavours of the broth, which were also muted, couldn’t be soaked up into the noodles. My friend's bowl, despite her well-cooked noodles, was equally as disappointing.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdShe has had the exact ramen a number of times before at different venues, but the dish in front of her was excessively salty to the extent she was unable to finish it.
Had each thing we were disappointed by happened in isolation, I might not have mentioned them, but this experience – and my similar experience in 2021 – makes me think there won’t be a third visit to House of Fu.