Ramen to Bíiru Valby

This location was the fifth Ramen location to open in Copenhagen. The timing was terrible – in the middle of a lockdown, which meant that Ramen places were only able to sell take away, and after a yearlong pandemic - the opening was not quite, what Mikkeller and partners Uki and Otani had hoped for, but because the Ramen to Bíiru concept is so strong and the central Valby location so great, there was a firm belief that this place would be a success afterall.

“It is clear that the pandemic has left its mark on the company, and that is precisely why it makes extra good sense for us to invest in concepts that we are sure are viable, whereas previously we could afford to be more daring when it came to completely new projects. At the same time, we love Ramen to Bíiru, and Copenhageners apparently do too, which is why we would like to share it with many more,” said Mikkel Bjergsø, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Mikkeller in relation to the opening.

In 2015, he, Daisuke Uki and Takuro Otani set out to introduce Copenhageners to an authentic Japanese ramen concept and combine Japanese fast food with Mikkeller's beer on tap.

Mikkel Bjergsø knew Daisuke Uki as the owner of the small family-run, Japanese restaurant Bento, where he has been a regular customer for many years. One day they fell into conversation about ramen and found out that they were both dreaming about creating a ramen bar in Copenhagen. Daisuke Uki happened to know an excellent Japanese ramen chef, Takuro Otani, who was willing to uproot from his homeland and move to Copenhagen to work on creating the best ramen bar outside of Japan.

What sets the Valby location apart from the other ramen restaurants is the even wider selection of beer. A wall of refrigerators stacked with fresh ‘to go beer’ creates a small bottle shop within the shop.