London Soho’s Osatsuma is an all-too similar derivative of the esteemed, well, at least profitable Wagamama noodle concept. They’ve got the minimalist decor and avant-font treatments down; did they ape the original’s recipes as well? Let’s hope not, for their own sake.

Ten Ten Tei offers straight up, no-nonsense Tokyo shoyu ramen in the heart of central London. Helmed by a stern-eyed sushi chef and a gruff maitre’d, it was one of the very few places where rameniac felt too intimidated to take a load of pictures. Still, he managed to sneak a few. Was it worth the vibe?

You’ve got to be suspicious of any purportedly Japanese resaurant that wears its badge of authenticity on its shop window. “This is real traditional JAPANESE style. This is the traditional taste which the JAPANESE chef makes.” Don’t say it. Do it. Why is such a sign even necessary? What is eat TOKYO trying to hide?

The shoyu soup at Ryo in London is a suspiciously effective clone of Sano-style broth, light, slightly oily, and unlike anything else on Brewer Street. Coincidence or calculation? Either way, it’s a glimmer of soupy hope for noodling in one of the world’s great cosmopolitan cities. Just, lose the snow peas already.

There be a restaurant in olde London’s Soho that doth bear a suspicious resemblance to another, one just down the road and around a corner. If imitation is a sincere form of flattery, what do you call it when a noodle shop gets even its *ahem* homage slightly wrong? Ramen Seto is all washed out in orange paint, or maybe that’s the blush of embarrassment.

Rameniac emerges from hiatus on the far side of the Atlantic, ready to tackle a crop of noodle shops in the UK and beyond! First up, Taro, a venerable old joint that is about as authentically Japanese as you can get - in the heart of London’s Soho! Take the tube to Piccadilly Circus, round the bend at Uniqlo (really?) You’ll find it. Cheers!