The Minds Behind Beloved Lockdown Pop-Up Parco Have Opened a Ramen Bar in Moonee Ponds

We love a good lockdown success story — and the delicious brainchild of Federico Congiu (Di Stasio) and Manato Deleon (DOC Pizza & Mozzarella Bar, Shujinko) certainly is one of them. The pair's ramen pop-up Parco Project won itself hordes of fans during its appearance at Shujinko last year, making an instant cult-favourite of the signature lobster ramen. Now, the concept has returned in permanent bricks-and-mortar form, with the launch of Parco Ramen in Moonee Ponds.

With space to seat just 19 diners at a time, the intimate restaurant nods to the tiny venues of Tokyo, serving a menu of slurp-worthy Japanese soup made to the pair's crowd-pleasing recipes. Congiu draws on his time spent mastering the art of ramen while working in Miyazaki, Tokyo, Sapporo and Abashiri, to deliver a lineup of full-flavoured soups, rice bowls and sides.

The ramen features a clean and natural umami kick thanks to the boys' use of house-made koji — a traditional Japanese ferment or edible fungus made from mould-inoculated grains. Often used to create ingredients like miso, sake and soy sauce, the product lends Parco's soups an extra level of flavour and is even thought to aid digestion. A handy thing for anyone who's just smashed a big serve of noodle-filled ramen.

On the menu, you'll catch five ramen varieties made on a creamy chicken broth, as well as two vegan-friendly iterations crafted on a base of miso and mushroom. For an extra fix of richness, try the black truffle ramen — boasting pork neck cha siu, yuzu juice and mizuna — or fire things up with the Karakuchi number, laced with Parco's house 'spicy paste'. Ask nicely and you might just be able to get your mitts on a bowl of that fan-fave lobster ramen.

Outside of the soups, you can dig into a range of donburi bowls, plus snacks like karaage chicken, panko-crumbed fried shrimp, gyoza and parmesan-doused truffle fries. There's even the option to BYO booze for an easy $5 per person.

Parco's home ramen kits are not currently available while the team focuses on the launch of their new venue, though we can confirm they're looking to bring them back soon.

Find Parco Ramen at 17a Hall Street, Moonee Ponds. It's open from 5–9.30pm Tuesday to Sunday.