Review: Noodles And Company Starts New Ramen Menu Strong With 3 Unique Flavors

Whether it's from that cozy restaurant around the corner or straight out of the microwave, ramen has more than earned its place in the pantheon of comfort foods. The dish's range is immense, from simple packets of instant ramen – which can always be spiced up, of course – enjoyed in college dorm rooms to Michelin-star dining experiences, there's no wrong way to enjoy ramen. Noodles and Company agrees, which is why the franchise that's all in on pasta is adding a new, permanent ramen lineup to the menu, starting with three new dishes. 

Following the success of its limited-time Chili Garlic Ramen, Gochujang Carbonara Ramen Noodles, Sweet Sesame Steak Ramen Noodles, and Spicy Korean Steak Ramen Noodles are the latest additions to Noodles and Company. The Sweet Sesame Steak Ramen promises a savory-meets-sweet experience: "noodles sautéed with marinated steak, carrots, and red peppers, then finished with sesame seeds and cilantro for a satisfying balance of flavor and texture." If you're looking for more heat, the Spicy Korean Steak Ramen is a brothless bowl that pairs noodles with marinated steak, napa cabbage, red cabbage, and spinach in a sweet-and-spicy Korean-style gochujang barbecue sauce, topped with cucumber, scallions, and cilantro. Finally, there's the Gochujan Carbonara Ramen, a fusion of Italian and Korean flavors that sautées the noodles in a creamy gochujang-parmesan carbonara sauce with bacon, napa cabbage, and red cabbage, then finishes it with grated parmesan, an Asian spice blend, and parsley.

If that all sounds a little overwhelming, don't worry; we're here to help. I tried all three new ramen bowls to find out which one needs to be in your next Noodles order. 

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

Noodles and Company sent me a gift card so I could try the new ramen dishes on the day they launched. I ordered ahead through the restaurant's app and brought the bowls home for a quick photoshoot before I started tasting. All dishes were ordered as they are presented on the menu, with no additions or substitutions. I evaluated the dishes based on flavor, texture, quality, and overall cohesiveness.

Fusion foods are fun. (Say that five times fast.) Noodles offer an exciting base to mix and match flavors and textures, which is exactly what Noodles and Company has done with its Gochujang Carbonara Ramen.

Texturally, this is a home run. The thin, wavy ramen noodles are traditionally paired with broths or thinner sauces, but the sticky, thick carbonara is a perfect pairing. Every noodle is covered in a rich, almost sticky sauce that holds each bit together, allowing for bacon bits, cabbage, and plenty of cheese on each forkful.

The bacon is good, if not a standout. This is the only of the three dishes that doesn't come with a major protein, and rather than add one like chicken, I stuck to the dish as it's prepared. The bacon doesn't quite carry the meat mantle on its own, but there's no denying that there are small bits of the salty meat everywhere. Paired with a ton of parmesan, this dish is undoubtedly the carbonara your nonna knows and loves, but with an extra, albeit mild, kick of spice thanks to the gochujang sauce.

The cabbage is perhaps the biggest clue that this isn't a traditional Italian dish that's simply borrowing some noodles from the Korean neighbors. The crunch the cabbage adds is pleasant, but that's largely where its contributions end.

This feels like the perfect dish if you're not sure what to order. You get a little Korean, a little Italian, and a lot of flavor.

Now here's a ramen that feels a little more traditional. Good Korean barbecue is nothing short of divine, so Noodles and Company made a great call incorporating those flavors into this dish.

It all starts with the steak, which is plentiful, tender, and well-marinated. From there, the Korean barbecue-inspired sweet-and-spicy sauce is a winner. This sauce definitely comes in sweet and goes out spicy. It took a few bites before my mouth started to warm and I felt a fun tickle in my throat, but once it's there, you can't deny the spice.

A slew of vegetables helps to balance out that heat. Cabbage once again is doing the heavy lifting on the texture front, but grated cucumber, scallions, and the occasional pocket of sautéed spinach offer enough variety that no bite is ever the same.

If you're looking for straight spice, this isn't it. This dish is equal parts sweet and spicy, and there's a lot going on thanks to all those veggies. If you're a Korean barbecue fan, this one should definitely be on your short list the next time you visit Noodles and Company.

Sesame can be a tricky flavor to execute properly. Too much and it's wildly overpowering; too little and you're left with nothing but a faint nuttiness at best. I find that any sesame dish served hot is especially temperamental, which is why some of the best sesame noodle dishes are cold. Thankfully, Noodles and Company threaded the needle perfectly with the Sweet Sesame Steak Ramen.

I'll be honest: I'm not sure this dish deserves to have "sweet" in its name. I get more sweetness from the Spicy Korean Steak, but there's no denying a hint of sweetness in this bowl, even if it's secondary to the sesame. Once again, the steak is well marinated, and, like the noodles (which are the same across all three bowls), tender.

This dish swaps cabbage for red peppers and carrots. The result is more flavor without sacrificing the satisfying crunch of a fresh vegetable. Thin matchstick carrot slices mix with the noodles and the sesame sauce, ensuring some in every bite, while the red pepper pieces are large enough to make the non-steak bites just as enjoyable.

The Sweet Sesame Steak Ramen feels the most complete of the three, but that's not a knock on the other two; it's a testament to how a simple dish with only a handful of key ingredients can thrive when executed properly.

It turns out that Noodles and Company knows ramen. The three new dishes are unique, brothless takes on classic flavors, and each works in its own way. The Gochujang Carbonara is undoubtedly the odd duck of the bunch, but the flavor fusion is better than you'd ever imagine. The Spicy Korean Steak Ramen should really be called the Sweet-and-Spicy Korean Barbecue Steak Ramen, but name issues aside, it's a tasty dish that delivers spice along with a ton of Korean barbecue flavor. My favorite of the bunch was the Sweet Sesame Steak, which brings in carrots and peppers for a well-balanced ramen that feels a little closer to the traditional dishes you know and love.

In sum, all three are worth trying. They have also set Noodles and Company up as a place to watch the next time a new ramen drops.

The ramen menu is officially available at Noodles and Company locations nationwide. All prices listed are based on those at my nearest location.

With no additions, the Sesame Steak Ramen Noodles contain 910 calories in a regular and 460 calories in a small. Like all of the dishes I tried, it can be customized with different proteins and toppings. A regular bowl is priced at $12.95, while a small is $11.75. A regular-size Gochujang Carbonara Ramen contains 880 calories for $9.95, while a small is just 450 calories for $8.75. Finally, the Spicy Korean Steak Ramen clocks in at 820 calories for a $12.65 regular, and 410 calories for an $11.25 small.