Good Chef: The Anime-Themed Ramen Shop Yelp Ranked Ninth in America

Good Chef, at 113 SW 107th Ave in west Miami, is a tiny anime-themed ramen shop that Yelp ranked No. 9 on its Top 100 Ramen Shops list for 2025, and a Tonkotsu Ramen there costs $16.45. For anyone typing ramen shop near me around FIU or Sweetwater, this strip mall room is open daily from 11:30 am to 10 pm, according to its official ordering site, and it takes walk-ins only.

What sets Good Chef apart is the room itself. The Infatuation's August 2026 review describes "a canopy of faux cherry blossoms" and an "army of Naruto figurines," and New Times adds anime murals and boba cup decals on the walls. The owner's own website calls it a comic-book themed Asian restaurant. It is the rare ramen shop where the decor is part of the meal, and diners photograph the shelves as often as their bowls.

Start with the Tonkotsu Ramen at $16.45. The menu describes a fried pork flavor broth with your choice of noodle, egg, scallion, fish cake, nori, bamboo and bean sprout on top. The Shoyu Ramen and the Spicy Miso Ramen are also $16.45, so the decision comes down to broth style rather than price. The Infatuation noted that the slippery noodles in the ramen seem to never end, which is a fair warning about portion size.

Heat seekers have options that go beyond miso. The Kimchi Spicy Ramen costs $15.95, the cheapest bowl on the noodle soup page, and the Yummy Spicy Ramen is $16.45. Away from the ramen, the Dandan Noodle runs $16.95 and the Signature Spicy Pork Noodles, a dry tossed bowl in red chili oil, cost $17.95. Order one soup and one dry noodle for the table if two people want to compare styles.

The Seafood Ramen is the splurge at $19.95, and the Chef Special Beef Noodle costs $17.95, with extra beef listed at $4. An honest call: if this is your first visit, skip the seafood bowl and put the extra money toward the buns. The Infatuation singled out the bouncy bao with char siu pork belly, and that is the dish that makes this place feel different from a standard noodle counter.

That bao is listed on the menu as the Porky Bun, filled with pork belly, cucumber and cilantro. Two pieces cost $7.95 and three pieces cost $10.95. Pork Gyoza come six to an order for $9.45, steamed or fried at the same price. Takoyaki Ball, four pieces of octopus batter balls, is $7.95, and the Steam BBQ Pork Bun, three pieces, is $9.95 for anyone who wants a softer, sweeter bite.

Good Chef is not a ramen-only kitchen. The menu also runs through General Tso's chicken, Ma Po Tofu, Pad Thai and Korean cheese topokki, so a group with one noodle skeptic can still eat well. The online menu currently marks the Curry Spicy Noodle as temporarily unavailable, so do not set your heart on that one. Stick to the ramen and the buns, which are what reviewers keep praising.

Timing is simple because the official hours page lists 11:30 am to 10 pm every day. The Infatuation warns that there can be a wait sometimes, and the room is small, so weekend evenings are when you are most likely to stand outside. A weekday lunch soon after 11:30 am is the calmest window. The shop does not take reservations, and no waitlist app appeared in our research, so arrive in person and give your name.

If the line is long, the plan B is next door. The Infatuation suggests the Asian market as a way to pass the time, and Hanna and Tiger Asian Mart is open from 10 am to 10 pm every day. New Times named it the best Asian market in Miami in 2024. Browse the snack aisles while you wait, or order pickup on the restaurant website if you would rather eat at home.

Inside, expect a crowd that looks like FIU on a night off. The Infatuation pitched the room as perfect for discussing manga lore over ramen, and students and anime fans fill the tables with figurine photos and long debates. Families come too, because the menu offers family-size portions for six to seven people for pickup. The mood is loud, playful and friendly, and nobody will judge a second round of buns.

Good Chef Restaurant LLC was registered with the state of Florida in May 2020 at this same address, with Zhaorong Wan listed as manager. The restaurant has grown from a neighborhood spot into a national name: in December 2025, Miami New Times reported the Yelp ranking and cited a 4.7-star rating across nearly 750 reviews. Time Out covered the same list, placing Good Chef ninth in the country among ramen shops.

After dinner, FIU's Modesto A. Maidique Campus at 11200 SW 8th Street is about half a mile south. On campus, the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum at 10975 SW 17th St is free and open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm, which pairs well with an early lunch. For an afternoon outdoors, Tamiami Park at 11201 SW 24th St covers 247 acres and is a short drive away.

The official ordering site at goodcheffl.com accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover and cash, and handles pickup orders only; delivery runs through DoorDash. The menu lists items in English and Chinese, which helps when you point at a dish. Parking is in the shared strip mall lot. Large groups should come at opening, since the dining room is compact.

This ramen shop suits FIU students between classes, anime fans who want their bowl with a side of Naruto, and west Miami families who need a cheap and cheerful dinner for six. Order the Tonkotsu Ramen, add three Porky Buns for the table, and save the market next door for dessert snacks. For more ramen and late lunch ideas around west Miami, ask the Karpo APP.