The Town of Lexington, which saw its first two ramen houses open within six months, is back down to one restaurant specializing in the Japanese noodle soup.

Taipo Ramen House, which became the town’s second such restaurant when it opened in February, has announced that it will rebrand and change up its menu. Now known as Ichiban Japanese Express, it focuses on hibachi-style dishes and is open Sunday-Thursday (11 a.m.-9 p.m.) and Friday-Saturday (11 a.m.-9 p.m.), according to its Facebook page.

The restaurant, located in the Topsail Plaza shopping center at 5341 Sunset Blvd., is a sister establishment to Hokkaido Ramen House (which was opened in August 2022 by the same family that owns Lexington Japanese restaurant fixture Ganbei).

The State newspaper was the first news outlet to note the change in focus and name for Ichiban, which now serves sushi rolls, hibachi-style steak, chicken and seafood entrees, yakisoba (a Japanese fried noodle dish), fruit teas, boba, Japanese soda and more.

In announcing the change, the restaurant emphasized that those looking for ramen in Lexington can still go to Hokkaido (located in the Lexington Village shopping center at 205 Columbia Ave.), which serves a ramen-dominated menu that is much the same as the one formerly served by Taipo.

“Thank you very much for your visit and love of Taipo Ramen House over the past two months and thank you for giving us this opportunity to serve you,” the restaurant posted to Facebook. “During this time, we gained a lot of advice, which is very important to us.”