Supa Ya Ramen is fully aware that it’s not ‘the real deal’. In fact, it embraces it. Since starting out as a roving supper club, then opening a bricks-and-mortar restaurant in Dalston back in 2021, it has proudly served ‘inauthentic ramen’. For the uninitiated, this is former Nopi and Berber & Q chef Luke Findlay’s idiosyncratic and playful take on Japanese cuisine. He brings a British twist to proceedings; a pie, mash and eel liquor noodle extravaganza isn’t on the menu yet, but that’s the kind of wacky – but not, like, annoyingly wacky – world of fusion we’re working in.
Even though it offers items that might elicit a raised eyebrow from traditionalists – ham, egg and chips mazemen, anyone? – Supa Ya quickly proved it isn’t simply stunt food. A year after opening its first spot, it’s taken on south London. The second branch sits in the Rye Lane site previously occupied by much-loved Mexican joint Taco Queen. It’s a narrow room with limited covers, but there’s loose, somewhat wayward energy here. If a party started over by the bog – which comes complete with a glittery loo seat – you wouldn’t be surprised. You might even put your chopsticks down and join in.
Proceedings began with a dish that remains de rigueur at London’s most desirable dining destinations: a lil’ plate of pickles. We crunched on tangy slabs of fermented fennel and turnip, but the real star of the small plate starters was a blooming onion. Uncoiled and deep-fried before being slathered in miso mustard, Kewpie mayo and pear hot sauce, it looked more like an extravagant Christmas decoration than something you’d put in your mouth. And it was vegan to boot. If that matters to you.
Anyone who sees a cheeseburger mazesoba on a menu and does not order it is a fool
That Luke Findlay started his career at a greasy spoon is made clear when Supa Ya’s signature bowls come around. Cumberland sausage tantanmen and fried cabbage and cheese offerings peered out of the menu with all the powerfully butch essence of Danny Dyer on a Friday night at the dog track. I plumped for the soupless cheeseburger mazesoba, because anyone who sees a cheeseburger mazesoba on a menu and doesn’t order it is a fool. Granted, it was a Bit Much, but purely in scale rather than taste. Aged-beef-fat noodles and smashed beef patty were smothered in burger sauce, American cheese and white sesame, lifted by light and zingy bread-and -utter pickles. It tasted exactly like a cheeseburger – it felt like we’d eaten four actual burgers, such is Supa Ya’s epic approach to portion control. The roast chicken and corn ramen bowl felt more traditional than Findlay’s laddy approach might have you believe. The rich, glossy soup was heavenly and the roast chicken retained a crispy skin, despite being submerged in the moreish mire. The fudgy soft boiled egg – a staple of ramen bowls across the globe – was also a smooshy delight.
I did my best to squeeze pudding in. A sensible person would have just ordered the four perfect salted-caramel-and-Sichuan-pepper truffles and hade done with it, but the delicate noodle ice cream drizzled with miso caramel was impossible to ignore. Tofu and coconut pudding was less elegant, but by then we were too full to care. Go hungry. Leave stuffed.