Red Robin Just Ripped Off the Ramen Burger

It's called the Red Ramen burger, natch

Hear that? It's the death knell of the ramen burger craze. The novelty food that attracted huge lines in LA and New York has now been ripped off by a major chain: Red Robin. The casual dining chain, which has more than 500 locations across the U.S., announced the new menu item yesterday, according to CNBC.

Called the Red Ramen burger (of course), the limited-time-only offering consists of a beef patty perched on a crispy ramen noodle bun along with "chili-infused cabbage, carrots and onions, basil, [and] a teriyaki and Chiu Chow aioli."

The inventor of the original ramen burger is Keizo Shimamoto, a ramen obsessive who studied the dish in Japan and documents his love affair with it on a blog called Go Ramen! He debuted the ramen burger at Brooklyn's outdoor food hall Smorgasburg in the summer of 2013 and it became an overnight sensation, drawing massive crowds and worldwide media attention.

"We closely follow emerging trends, and when the ramen burger first debuted, our culinary team worked to develop Red Robin's take on the foodie favorite, enabling us to be the first to offer it nationally," the chain's chief marketing officer says in a press release.

Reached for comment by Eater, Shimamoto says that he is aware of Red Robin's ramen burger, and was not involved in its creation. Of course, corporations ripping off clever stunt foods is nothing new: Dominique Ansel's hysteria-inducing cronut has inspired countless imitators, including one from Dunkin' Donuts.

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