Ichiran

Certain foods taste better in certain environments. Hot dogs, for instance, are extra-delicious gobbled on the street, at the ballpark, or in their natural habitat — on the Coney Island boardwalk, where salt air and ocean breezes act as flavor enhancers. But who knew that tonkotsu ramen is at its best when consumed alone inside an isolated slurping pen called a “flavor concentration booth,” as this Japanese chain would have you believe? The good news is that the soup, even when swallowed among other humans in the restaurant’s adjoining dining room, is pretty great — deep and creamy with a long finish. The noodles are exceptional, too, as firm and springy as a brand-new Posturepedic, and you can custom-calibrate everything from the richness of the broth to the strength of the tare.