Aoyama Ramen

Aoyama Ramen is a family-run Japanese ramen shop in the Blackbob Corners shopping center at 14960 W. 119th St. in Olathe, Kansas, widely cited as one of the Kansas City metro’s most-recommended noodle houses.¹²

Description

Aoyama Ramen is an understated ramen restaurant specializing in classic ramen soups alongside dumplings and bao-bun bites.³ The menu centers on bowls such as tonkotsu and spicy tonkotsu ramen, with sides including gyoza, pork buns, and rice bowls (don) like pork chashu don.¹ The kitchen prepares its soup daily and assembles dishes to order to maintain freshness.² The Olathe location sits in the Blackbob Corners shopping center and is frequently described as a cozy, family-friendly spot.⁴

Ownership and history

Aoyama Ramen is co-owned by Edward Liu and a business partner who is also his best friend. Both had worked in restaurants for years before deciding to open their own. As Liu told Kansas City Homes & Style: “My partner and I worked in restaurants for years, and we just thought ‘Why are we working for other people? We have the experience. Let’s do it on our own and open our own restaurant.’ My partner… called me and said he had a great location for a Japanese restaurant in Olathe, so I moved from Texas, and here we are.”² Liu is originally from northern China and has cited a lifelong love of noodles as his motivation.²

The exact founding year is uncertain: the May 2023 Homes & Style profile reports the restaurant opened “five years” earlier (≈2018), while a January 2024 Johnson County Post report states it had “operated at its Olathe digs for roughly four years” (≈2020).²⁴ In January 2024, Aoyama Ramen opened its first expansion location at 13225 Shawnee Mission Parkway in Shawnee.⁴

Links

• Official site: https://www.aoyamaramenolathe.com/
• Online order: https://www.aoyamaramenkc.com/

Sources

Disputes

None on record.

Footnotes

1. Yelp — Aoyama Ramen, 14960 W 119th, Olathe, KS (updated May 2026). https://www.yelp.com/biz/aoyama-ramen-olathe-2 — asserts: address, ramen cuisine, signature dishes, currently open with recent reviews. ↩ ↩²

2. “Noodling for Ramen,” Kansas City Homes & Style (May 2023). https://homesandstylekc.com/noodling-for-ramen/ — asserts: co-owners Edward Liu and partner, owner quote/story, Liu from northern China via Texas, ~2018 opening, daily soup prep. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

3. Aoyama Ramen official website. https://www.aoyamaramenolathe.com/ — asserts: address, hours, “understated restaurant specializing in classic ramen soup, plus dumplings & bao bun bites,” active operation. ↩

4. “Olathe ramen restaurant approaches new Shawnee shop opening,” Johnson County Post (Jan. 17, 2024). https://johnsoncountypost.com/2024/01/17/aoyama-ramen-shawnee-222726/ — asserts: ~2020 Olathe opening, Blackbob Corners location, first expansion to Shawnee at 13225 Shawnee Mission Pkwy. ↩ ↩² ↩³