JSM had the opportunity to get a look behind the scenes and meet with Ozu Ramen's chef Vicky Mei, a finance major who found her passion for cooking, for an exclusive interview to shed some light on their success and future goals for the young company.

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Q.  To start off, tell us a little bit about Ozu Ramen.

A:  All the planning started when our business partner, Tony Ho, graduated from UIUC.  He knew there was a great opportunity here on campus to bring some healthier, western influence Japanese food.  It took one year to get everything ready for business, and we had a very successful grand opening just this past January.

Q. Why do you think Ozu was brought to U of I campus?

A:  To create a focus on Japanese food.  Particularly, for different—healthier—types of ramen.

Q.  Any plans to bring out seasonal items like Japan does for Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter?

A:  Yes, we plan to come out with seasonal items and new ramens possibly starting this Fall.

Q.  There are multiple sushi restaurants that serve ramen on their menu.  Why should they choose Ozu over those options?

A:  The quality of our food is better.  We put our heart into making our food and bringing true ramen to campus.

Q.   If there is one item off the menu you would tell a customer to try, what would it be?

A:  I would tell them to try our Takoyaki.  It is a traditional Japanese snack consisting of breaded, diced octopus, fried, and topped with their homemade sauce, and bonito (fish flake) for garnish.

Q.   What is the most authentic Japanese food item on your menu?

A:  The most authentic part of our food is that our seasonings and soy sauce are sent directly from Japan.

Q.  How did you create your menu and the recipes?

A:  Because our head chef worked at an authentic Japanese ramen restaurant we had a lot of first-hand knowledge of how to build out menu.  We focused a lot on the foundation of our food—the preparation—and simplifying that process so we can work quickly.  Most of our ingredients come from Japan such as the seasonings and our soy sauce.

Q.  What impact would you like to see Ozu have on U of I campus or Champaign-Urbana area?

A:  We want to bring a more modern concept of dining by getting students involved and teaching them not just about how to cook food, but helping them get ready to build a career.  We also want to give students healthier options for food and make dining an experience for our customers.

Q.  How would you like to see Ozu grow in the next year?

A:  At Ozu we have high expectations here.  We want to bring out new appetizer options as well as push out more spicy options so there is a greater range of food.  Ultimately, we want to someday make Ozu a chain to expand and open restaurants possibly in Chicago.

Q.  Is there anything else you would like us to share about Ozu Ramen?

A:  (…) when I see people have their first bite of food and they give that little nod—that’s what I want to see.  Then I know they love it (…) I want our customers to know that Ozu is still new, every day working is a hard day.  But we are going to keep pushing boundaries, and seek new ways to reach out to people and connect, because we are all about the experience and we want our customers to love it.