The food is amazing, especially the sweet and spicy cauliflower. It can be a little loud, but that's okay.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Tiffany Jeffers
We came here for dinner once with family. We got a couple types of the baos, and different ramen. The homemade dumplings were a crowd favorite, although the serving is a bit small for the price. The pork belly bao was good, I just don't think I'm a fan of the pork belly texture. We preferred the roasted duck bao. The ramen itself was good. Although we all got different kinds, the flavors were all very one-note. The broth was creamy and rich. The noodles had a good bite. We haven't been back since, and I don't know that we would. I have recommended it to others for date night!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
amannda desouza
I come here fairly often and have no complaints ever. The food, amazing. Service, amazing. The staff is so friendly and welcoming. Even on the busiest days you are treated like you’re a part of the family. Loyal customer for the last 10 years, and looking forward to the next 10.
Outstanding hospitality great food and service, the staff is amazing and so is the owner would definitely recommend
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Enrique Fontanez
If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to waste your time, money, and will to live all in one sitting 1980something ramen (go for the) bar might be the spot for you. Visited 3 times before, I figured i could give it another shot since i was nearby and craving ramen. Normal wait time, once i got a seat, i waited 10 minutes to start what felt like would be a simple order but i get this AMAZING experience, make sure you get a drink it helps with the process. It takes roughly 30 minutes for the bowl of shoyou to come out, probably the best bowl served from this place but the flavor mainly came from the piece of hair hiding in the noodles. Whatever no big deal i can floss with it later, i asked for a replacement. Waitress was nice enough to bring it back, while i wait i will play the music bingo cause apparently this place thinks we need a side quest to distract us from starvation. while i wait...finally after 30 more minutes i get...you guessed it someone else's ramen bowl and its very spicy. At this point I’ve wasted an hour and fifteen minutes for the privilege of eating nothing I actually wanted. i pay for my drink, tip the waitress 5 dollars and go home with some stomach pain 1981 Ramen bar is the culinary equivalent of a bad relationship — you keep hoping it’ll get better, but it just keeps letting you down. Do yourself a favor, go anywhere else. Even instant ramen at home is a Michelin experience compared to this dump.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Kehoe Kehoe
3 Stars for the food. Ive eaten here a few times and the highlight (ramen) has gone downhill in flavor. It used to have more depth but is lacking as of late. Im sure it has to do with uptick in demand but dont expect out of this world flavor if youre a big fan of ramen and try out other ramen spots.
5 Stars for service. Its always been this way too. The staff is right there to check in and start you off with water and are quick to notice when youre ready to order. Always kind and professional.
3 Stars for atmosphere. This one is 3 because it really boils down to preference. The music has always been loud. It can get pretty packed so people speak loudly to get a word in and its a tighter space in downtown lowell. If you dont plan on having intimate conversations and you enjoy more upbeat vibes then the atmosphere is 5 stars for you. For a date night it can be tricky to bond over the music which may bump it below 3 stars. Your pick.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 5
Kelly Newell
This place used to be top notch but the last 2 times, the ramen lacked that delicious depth it used to have. Still really good, but not the way it used to be.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Jaya Goindani
Would you dare to eat here?
Food: 1
Oliver Miller
Wonderful food.
Osaym Omar
Honestly my favorite spot to eat in Downtown Lowell. Good aux, and good food. What more could you ask for?
The waiters were so patient and kind and the food is so good and the atmosphere like another restaurants
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jamie Smith
Crispy spicy cauliflower and duck bao 👌
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ally Writer
TBH wouldn’t spend money here again. For a ramen restaurant, the ramen was…not good. The tonkotsu broth was somehow completely flavorless, and even the pork in the ramen had barely any flavor, though it was very tender. It tasted like they dumped a cup of black pepper on the pork and called that the seasoning for the entire bowl of ramen. Also, didn’t have the traditional ramen toppings you’d expect. Arugula??? But pay $3 extra for corn or bamboo shoots…strange. Fried shumai appetizer comes with 5 tiny pieces, for $11. Over $2 per piece is crazy lol but it was tasty at least Service was okay, but super slow. Our server was friendly but not very attentive. There are lots of restaurants in this area where your money would be better spent
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 3
Matthew Frelinger
Food was mostly very good, but was brought down by a few confusing choices. Primarily, the dough used for the gyoza was a thick pastry dough seemingly flavored with cinnamon and sugar. The pork belly in the ramen had a similarly seasoned bark. Think cinnamon toast crunch flavor. Not inedible by any means, but definitely took away from what was otherwise a delicious bowl of ramen. Otherwise excellent textures, flavors, and spiciness.
Our server was very friendly and knowledgeable when she was serving us, but the service itself was lacking. Drinks took a long time to come out, appetizers all came out at different times, & then another wait for the check. Again, staff were super nice but just off tempo.
I'd go back for the ramen itself, but I'd skip the meat & apps.
The food is amazing, especially the sweet and spicy cauliflower. It can be a little loud, but that's okay.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
We came here for dinner once with family. We got a couple types of the baos, and different ramen. The homemade dumplings were a crowd favorite, although the serving is a bit small for the price. The pork belly bao was good, I just don't think I'm a fan of the pork belly texture. We preferred the roasted duck bao. The ramen itself was good. Although we all got different kinds, the flavors were all very one-note. The broth was creamy and rich. The noodles had a good bite. We haven't been back since, and I don't know that we would. I have recommended it to others for date night!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
I come here fairly often and have no complaints ever. The food, amazing. Service, amazing. The staff is so friendly and welcoming. Even on the busiest days you are treated like you’re a part of the family.
Loyal customer for the last 10 years, and looking forward to the next 10.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Wings, Tonkotsu Ramen, Pork Belly Confit Bao, Homemade Dumplings, Tuna Tartare, Roasted Duck Bao, Sweet Spicy Cauliflower, Koji Aged Crispy Chicken Bao, Marinated Japanese Cucumbers, Housemade Gyoza, Berkshire Pork Gyoza, Fried Chicken Bao
Outstanding hospitality great food and service, the staff is amazing and so is the owner would definitely recommend
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to waste your time, money, and will to live all in one sitting
1980something ramen (go for the) bar might be the spot for you. Visited 3 times before, I figured i could give it another shot since i was nearby and craving ramen.
Normal wait time, once i got a seat, i waited 10 minutes to start what felt like would be a simple order but i get this AMAZING experience, make sure you get a drink it helps with the process.
It takes roughly 30 minutes for the bowl of shoyou to come out, probably the best bowl served from this place but the flavor mainly came from the piece of hair hiding in the noodles. Whatever no big deal i can floss with it later, i asked for a replacement. Waitress was nice enough to bring it back, while i wait i will play the music bingo cause apparently this place thinks we need a side quest to distract us from starvation. while i wait...finally after 30 more minutes i get...you guessed it someone else's ramen bowl and its very spicy. At this point I’ve wasted an hour and fifteen minutes for the privilege of eating nothing I actually wanted. i pay for my drink, tip the waitress 5 dollars and go home with some stomach pain
1981 Ramen bar is the culinary equivalent of a bad relationship — you keep hoping it’ll get better, but it just keeps letting you down. Do yourself a favor, go anywhere else. Even instant ramen at home is a Michelin experience compared to this dump.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
3 Stars for the food.
Ive eaten here a few times and the highlight (ramen) has gone downhill in flavor. It used to have more depth but is lacking as of late.
Im sure it has to do with uptick in demand but dont expect out of this world flavor if youre a big fan of ramen and try out other ramen spots.
5 Stars for service.
Its always been this way too. The staff is right there to check in and start you off with water and are quick to notice when youre ready to order. Always kind and professional.
3 Stars for atmosphere.
This one is 3 because it really boils down to preference. The music has always been loud. It can get pretty packed so people speak loudly to get a word in and its a tighter space in downtown lowell. If you dont plan on having intimate conversations and you enjoy more upbeat vibes then the atmosphere is 5 stars for you. For a date night it can be tricky to bond over the music which may bump it below 3 stars. Your pick.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 5
This place used to be top notch but the last 2 times, the ramen lacked that delicious depth it used to have. Still really good, but not the way it used to be.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Would you dare to eat here?
Food: 1
Wonderful food.
Honestly my favorite spot to eat in Downtown Lowell. Good aux, and good food. What more could you ask for?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
The waiters were so patient and kind and the food is so good and the atmosphere like another restaurants
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Crispy spicy cauliflower and duck bao 👌
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
TBH wouldn’t spend money here again. For a ramen restaurant, the ramen was…not good. The tonkotsu broth was somehow completely flavorless, and even the pork in the ramen had barely any flavor, though it was very tender. It tasted like they dumped a cup of black pepper on the pork and called that the seasoning for the entire bowl of ramen. Also, didn’t have the traditional ramen toppings you’d expect. Arugula??? But pay $3 extra for corn or bamboo shoots…strange.
Fried shumai appetizer comes with 5 tiny pieces, for $11. Over $2 per piece is crazy lol but it was tasty at least
Service was okay, but super slow. Our server was friendly but not very attentive.
There are lots of restaurants in this area where your money would be better spent
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 3
Food was mostly very good, but was brought down by a few confusing choices. Primarily, the dough used for the gyoza was a thick pastry dough seemingly flavored with cinnamon and sugar. The pork belly in the ramen had a similarly seasoned bark. Think cinnamon toast crunch flavor. Not inedible by any means, but definitely took away from what was otherwise a delicious bowl of ramen. Otherwise excellent textures, flavors, and spiciness.
Our server was very friendly and knowledgeable when she was serving us, but the service itself was lacking. Drinks took a long time to come out, appetizers all came out at different times, & then another wait for the check. Again, staff were super nice but just off tempo.
I'd go back for the ramen itself, but I'd skip the meat & apps.
Great spot for delicious ramen
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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