Yamayoshi Ippudo Ramen Chips: These tonkotsu ramen pork-flavored chips caught my eye at my local Aeon grocery store / konbini before I even knew they were from the popular ramen chain Ippudo. The special flavor is in celebration of Ippudo's 35th birthday. I went to Ippudo about a decade ago in NYC, and a branch opened up in Berkeley right as I move away from the Bay Area. I knew that the restaurant inspired long lines in the US, but the other day, while walking through Ikebukuro in Tokyo, I stumbled upon a queue outside a ramen shop and discovered that Japanese people love Ippudo just as much as foreigners do. The chips are actually fantastic and have a deep savory pork flavor combined with a surprising richness just like you would get from a creamy (or fatty) pork broth. Other meat-inspired chip flavors I've had often taste a bit like stock cubes, but this one definitely has more depth of flavor. The chips are a little bit thin for my taste but I've found that's the typical style of Japanese potato chips. Still, flavor wise, this is absolutely worth trying. 4.5/5.0

exceptional chips aeon japanese yamayoshi ippudo ramen 4.5