It was a cloudy day in Mooresville and I was craving something warm. Luckily, I had remembered that Ramen Soul is right by my kids favorite playground. We walked into the small space and were quickly greeted and sat at one of their few four top tables inside.
One glance at the menu and I was officially starving. We came here for Ramen but there were so many other options. There are dim sum items, a few were traditional, like pork belly buns. They also have some fun, unique menu items like the Crawfish Boil Dumplings. Ramen Soul also offers rice bowls. I was very tempted to get the Tuna Poke Bowl. The sushi sandwiches… yes I said sushi sandwiches… also seem amazing! The “bun” is rice wrapped in Nori. They also have a children’s menu for my two little ones.
Our server was very helpful in helping us navigate the menu. We decided to start with a bite from the dim sum menu, the spicy lamb gyoza. I thought it was a very unique dish and definitely had to try it out. The gyoza definitely exceeded my expectations. They were very well flavored with a hint of spice. The dumpling wrapper was delicate and soft. The house made dumpling sauce was a great complement to the dumplings, even though I could have even eaten them without the sauce.
Spicy Lamb Gyoza
We ordered the Shio Ramen, a clear chicken and dashi broth with smoked pork belly, spicy ginger chicken, and oyster mushrooms. I also chose, for a little bit more money, the cured tomatoes. The server said they added a great dimension to the broth. They also have lots of other additions you can get to your Ramen, one that caught my eye was the duck confit. They provide chili oil and Sriracha if you would like to spice up your Ramen. I chose to add a little bit of the chili oil and it kicked it up just enough. The broth was rich and flavorful with umami shining through. I also loved the noodles in the Shio Ramen. They had the homemade look and feel to them, uneven and oh so delicate. The pork belly and the chicken were both great, it was just unfortunate that most of the chicken fell to the bottom of the bowl and I was too full to eat all of that goodness.
Shio Ramen
We also got the Tonkotsu Ramen with a creamy pork broth, a soy marinated egg, and two types of pork belly. The broth was a little on the bland side, so we added some dumpling sauce and some chili oil and it became perfection. The noodles were thinner, similar to vermicelli. It is a great choice for a pork lover.
Tonkotsu Ramen
My sons really liked the chicken buns from the kids menu, even more when our awesome server brought over a house made sweet and sour sauce. My only complaint would be that they should include a side dish for the kids, even if it was just chips or fruit.
Kids Chicken Buns
I’m looking forward to eating at Ramen Soul again. They have lots of options for Ramen lovers and then some. They even have vegetarian and gluten-free options. Next time I hope the weather is nicer and we can take advantage of their patio seating. It is so nice to have a great Ramen place in Mooresville.
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Natalie is a mom of two who has traveled the continent with her family. Her love of coffee propels her days. Her love of wine and pizza propels her nights. When she’s not chasing her kids or reminiscing about Poutine, she’s blogging on The Ravenous Mommy. Find her on instagram @ravenousmommy