Photography by James Gabriel Martin
How Nomo Ramen’s Kevin Hughes is relentlessly pursuing the perfect bowl
Back in 2022, ramen aficionados were excited to hear of a new offering coming to Dublin city. It promised expertly crafted food informed by deep research and skill in a no nonsense fast casual setting. Since then, Nomo Ramen has not only garnered a cult following, it has also established itself as the best bowl of ramen available on the Emerald Isle. James Gabriel Martin of Leviathan met with owner Kevin Hughes to discover his deep passion for what he does.
Chef Kevin Hughes of Nomo Ramen is not a man who does things by half measures. Once an idea takes root in his mind, it seems inevitable that he will see it through to completion, with a drive, dedication and attention to detail that is rare. He is the type of person to consider every single element of a plate of food for months at a time. To spend years learning, through trial and error, how to do something to the very best of his ability. To hone his craft.
Formerly working in tech in the United States, his love for ramen first began when he wandered into a shop in New York City and tasted a broth that seemed to strike at the very core of his being.
“It was a place called Totto. I was intrigued immediately. When I walked by the kitchen, there was a chef standing up on a ladder, stirring a gigantic 300-litre pot with the oar of a boat. I ordered their chicken ramen. I got served this bowl, it was white, creamy and a little thick, so rich and umami. It was a totally unexpected flavour, given what people think of as chicken soup. I was hooked. I was obsessed. I thought, this is different,” he explained.
Kevin is no stranger to the world of food. Growing up in Ireland, his parents had owned a Chinese take-away and a sandwich shop, and he has always had a passion for gastronomy and service. His research continued whenever his work took him to different cities, where he would try different bowls and broths. He wanted to recreate the magic that he had experienced through ramen, and even began dreaming of a career change and having his own place in the future.
“I went on a fact-finding mission. I started experimenting at home. It was daunting; there wasn’t a lot of information available to me. Ramen may seem simple, but it’s actually this very complicated soup and noodle product that relies on getting every element right. It’s also traditionally a very heavily kept secret from shop to shop. In Japan, there are so many offerings that they all hold on to their own particular techniques in order to have an edge over the competition. Often, it’s just an owner working gruelling hours with maybe some apprentices helping. That’s why staff retention isn’t great, people get bored and move on as they aren’t actually learning,” Kevin explained.
He bought cookbooks and tried whatever recipes he could get his hands on. He would also ask questions at the restaurants he visited. On another trip to Totto, he noticed a big brown muslin sack in the pot as it was boiling. He discovered that it was filled with raw rice, which was used to thicken the broth with starch.
“I went home, tried it, and it was horrendous. I didn’t get the ratios right. It was starchy and gloopy. I kept going. I had a full-time job, so I would wake up at 8am on a Saturday and make the noodles myself because I couldn’t find any to buy back then. I would make everything from scratch. The next thing I knew, the day was gone. I made the chashu pork, the marinated eggs. The broth. The oil. The following day, I would invite people over to taste test. I would squeeze friends and family around my dining table. Most times, they would show up really excited for this secret event, but the food was bad. They wouldn’t say it, they were polite, but I felt deflated. I would sit there thinking about the process, trying to calculate the small improvements but the urge to give up was massive.”
There were breakthrough moments, like when Kevin finally got the egg correct. That took about six months. Other milestones kept him going. He learned that the difference in one gram of a certain ingredient could vastly change the end result. After two years, he felt that the ramen that he was able to make at home was decent. The next five years involved tweaking and fine-tuning while his vision for his own shop began to take shape.
Upon returning to Ireland, the hunt for the perfect venue began before finally finding a prime location at Charlotte’s Way in Dublin city. The same attention to detail was followed in all other aspects of the business. Kevin tried to source the very best ingredients, reaching out to Sun Noodles, a company that has been making high-quality hand-crafted ramen noodles since 1981 and which supplies the top restaurants across North America. While the logistics of dealing with a brand new small Irish business didn’t sound worth the trouble for the company, Kevin’s persistence and passion for what he did convinced them to start shipping to him.
“I am a perfectionist. I grew up with a mother who always said, ‘If you’re going to do anything, do it well. Otherwise, don’t do it at all. ’ As I got older, it has become something that I follow. Discipline is important. And once I understood that ramen is all about technique and discipline, something clicked,” Kevin said.
That discipline is obvious in the food. Every day sees 150 litres of water being boiled with 50 whole chickens to make the base of their signature ramen. Kevin’s favourite tool in the kitchen is a refractometer, a device typically found in laboratories that can be used to read individual components such as sugars, salt and fat in different substances and liquids. By utilising this, he has established a guideline that he strives to hit each and every day in order to maintain a level of consistency.
No steps are skipped for ease. “We have a chicken aroma oil that we use as a garnish. We get chicken skin, roast it over six hours on a low heat, strain it, add aromatics in, then boil it. So what looks like a simple, almost subtle element to some people, takes about eight hours to create. It would be easier to dial it back and simplify, but it’s just not going to taste the same,” Kevin said.
When it came to menu planning for Nomo Ramen, he took inspiration from the playful, more laid-back take on ramen fusion that he had first experienced in the US, rather than a more conventional Japanese style. “I was worried that if I went incredibly traditional with my ramen, that over time, I might not have any space for creativity. Growing up in a half-Asian, half-Irish family, fusion was always part of my food culture growing up. I wanted the ability to continue to create without being overly criticised for going outside certain boundaries.”
This decision seems to have steered him right, as the feedback from customers has been overwhelmingly positive. For many people, Ireland was lacking a ramen restaurant that took the craft seriously. It quickly won people over. For Kevin, travel has played a huge part in food knowledge becoming more widespread, helping people become passionate about dishes such as ramen.
“Things have evolved rapidly over the past ten years. People are now more passionate about food than ever. I feel very privileged and very lucky. I’m just trying to do what I’m interested in, and am grateful that people have taken well to it. In the future, I’d love to grow our presence, maybe open a second location.
“I’d love to have a bigger space to do different varieties of ramens, to explore more, to create more. I’m interested in Itameshi, a Japanese concept of their food fused with Italian classics. It makes sense when you think of the ingredients they have in common. I’m excited to explore more,” Kevin said.
Photography by James Gabriel Martin.
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