Super spicy ramen

LA-based ramen restaurant heats up the Heights with numbing noodles

Killer Noodle serves ramen with seven levels of heat.

Courtesy of Killer Noodle

From Indian curries to fiery salsas and Cajun favorites, Houstonians have consistently showed affection for restaurants that aren't afraid to spice things up. A ramen restaurant opening soon in the Heights is counting on that enthusiasm extending to Japanese noodles.

Killer Noodle has claimed the former Cane Rosso space at 1835 N. Shepherd Dr. for its first Houston location. Scheduled to open October 15, the Los Angeles-based restaurant is known for its tantanmen noodles, a style that comes from China's Sichuan province. Served with or without broth, they're available in seven spices levels (zero to six) and seven levels of numbing, its take on the signature mala tingle of Sichuan cuisine.

"In Japan, there is such a wide spectrum for ramen. There are many different styles, flavors, and quality," director of marketing Yuino Kumamoto tells CultureMap in an email. "At Killer Noodle, all these factors are taken into consideration to provide our guests with a unique style of spicy ramen called 'Dan Dan Men.' The rich peanut flavor, fresh ingredients, irresistible spice quality, or mouth numbing experience (if you so choose) are just a few reasons Killer stands out amongst the rest."

Diners can add toppings such as a poached egg, chashu (rolled pork belly), and vegetables. In addition to its noodles, the restaurant offers appetizers such gyoza, takoyaki, and karaage.

The restaurant grew out of the Tsujita restaurant group that started in Tokyo in 2003. Founder Takehiro Tsujita has grown the company to 18 locations in Japan, along with two more in America and two Killer Noodles in Los Angeles. Jonathan Gold, the late, award-winning food critic for the Los Angeles Times, praised Killer Noodle in a 2018 review.

You try the Tokyo-style noodles with soup, level three (sansho level four), and you like them a lot. The soup is thick with ground nuts, the top is sprinkled with sesame seeds and what taste like chopped cashews, and there is an almost imperceptible funk of dried shrimp.

It is spicy but not too spicy. The downtown-style ramen you swipe from the bowl next to you is good too — a little sweeter, a little more vinegar-forward, with broth a bit thinner . . . Your lips do not vibrate quite so vividly with the particular numbing effect of the pepper.

The restaurant has big plans for Houston. A second location is scheduled to open on Westheimer next year, and the company is looking for a third that would open by 2025.

"Houston is one of the best places on earth to enjoy fine cuisine from all over the world, and at Killer Noodle we want to continue that trend by offering Houstonians a unique, authentic, and innovative style of enjoying a Japanese classic," Kumamoto adds. "Houston is very diverse with foodies who are not afraid to turn up the spice!"

Killer Noodle joins an area that's home to several ramen options. It will be located just down the street from one of Jinya Ramen Bar's eight Houston-area locations. Rakken Ramen, another Los Angeles-based restaurant, is located in the M-K-T mixed-use development, while Las Vegas's Shokku Ramen is open 24-7 on Studewood.

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one last squeeze

Ben Berg's New York-inspired, fancy burger joint will soon shutter

Photo by Leah Wilson

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The original location of Ben Berg’s fancy burger joint will soon serve its last meal. B.B. Lemon on Washington Avenue will close after service on Sunday, June 1, the restaurant announced on social media.

In response to CultureMap’s request for comment about the decision, a representative provided a statement that reads in part:

“It is never an easy decision to close a restaurant,” Berg said. “The love Houston has shown B.B. Lemon-Washington over the years is what made it such a special place. Thank you for making us part of your everyday moments and life celebrations.”

The statement continues that the restaurant is “no longer part of our strategic plan,” referring to Berg’s company, Berg Hospitality Group. However, the location of B.B Lemon that opened last year in the downtown tunnels will remain open.

Open since late 2018, B.B. Lemon takes inspiration from iconic New York City restaurant JG Melon, including its signature green-and-white checked tablecloths. Thanks to a spacious patio and a lively atmosphere, B.B. Lemon soon found favor with area residents and downtown office workers, who made it a happy hour favorite.

Like its decor, B.B. Lemon’s menu also takes inspiration from the East Coast. In addition to a diner-style, wagyu cheeseburger, the restaurant serves an array of comfort food that includes fish and chips, a lobster roll, and blue crab beignets.

Berg’s decision to close B.B. Lemon follows last year’s closure of Benny Chows, its New York-inspired Chinese American restaurant. In January, the company closed NoPo Cafe to make way for a new location of Bagel Bob’s HTX.

The group also opened three new concepts in 2024: live fire steakhouse Prime 131, retro diner Buttermilk Baby, and upscale steakhouse Turner’s Cut. It will open a second location of Buttermilk Baby in Sugar Land this summer.

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