Last year, ramen lovers mourned the loss of the casual Menya Ramen at 401 West Broadway (at Yukon Street).

But their grief was short-lived as Menya Raizo soon arose in its place, with the intent to pay tribute to its predecessor. 

This ramen shop, run by the Zakkushi Group (which runs Zakkushi restaurants and Ramen Raijin in Vancouver and Toronto), is now celebrating its first-year anniversary with some new developments.

Tonkotsu (pork) may be the most common ramen broth in the city but Menya Raizo has decided to shift focus.

While Menya Raizo has served both tonkotsu and chicken broth over the past year, the noodle house announced that it will now specialize in chicken broth.

Their tori-pota, which they call a "triple soup", combines three main elements: a collagen-rich chicken broth; a creamy vegetable potage, made from five different vegetables; and soup stock, made from konbu (kelp), dried shiitake mushrooms, and green tea (which contributes to the umami flavour).

The new menu now features ramen selections (ranging from $10.50 to $13.50) that cover shoyu, shio, and miso options, such as tori-pota, gyokai shoyu, vegetarian miso, spicy miso, hot yuzu shio, and more.  

Toppings range from classic accompaniments like green onion and nori (seaweed) to cabbage, radish sprouts, leeks, carrots, or chili pepper thread.

Adding to their first-year anniversary celebrations is quite a generous offer: each day until Sunday (July 7), the first 25 patrons at lunch (noon to 2:30 p.m.) and the first 25 patrons at dinner (5:30 to 9 p.m.) will receive a free bowl of ramen. But if you don't make it in time, you will receive a 50-percent discount off all ramen.

Either way, if you're a ramen fan, it's best to get there early this weekend before lineups get too long—and before all the noodles are slurped up.