Manchester looks set to be getting another new ramen spot in the form of Leeds’ favourites House of Fu, who have submitted a premises licence for the old LEAF unit on Portland Street.
The application promises an “award-winning Japanese noodle bar and karaoke concept” with food consisting of “ramen, broth, noodles and gyoza” and then in the evening you can “sing karaoke in the state of the art karaoke rooms.”
Newly opening in Leeds back in 2021, the man behind House of Fu is Ben Iley, whose dream of a ramen and karaoke joint began after a trip to Japan.
A 9-year trip which saw him working in some of the country’s top restaurants including Aquavit, The Tokyo American Club and Fujimamas (where he met his wife, Masayo!) and with some world-renowned chefs including Marcus Samuelsson, Bill Granger and most notably a short stint with Ivan Orkin, the chef behind the internationally renowned Ivan Ramen.
House of Fu in Leeds
He returned to Leeds with his wife and young family in 2014 and became a key player in some of the city’s most impressive hospitality venues. House of Fu began life as a pop-up at Belgrave Music Hall before launching a bricks and mortar site in the summer of 2021.
The menu features six ramen dishes, with a selection of extra toppings to bang on to your preference. There’s also homemade fried gyoza – to his wife’s recipes, rice bowls, ‘super’ salad bowls and a ton of sides. Weekly gyoza specials are created too, and there’s a dedicated cocktail menu serving up Japanese-inspired classics and frozen margaritas.
Karaoke & Ramen!
Homemade Fried Gyozas
With all this, AND karaoke – how could this place not do well!?
Information on opening dates is pretty thin on the ground at the moment, so the best thing to do is follow them on Instagram for all of the up-to-date info and watch this space…
