I do try to revisit places as much as I can….so long the food or the service wasn't terrible. And my initial visit to Nishiki Ramen during their soft opening was neither of those….though the hype machine was in full swing….shades of RakiRaki! So I waited things out and after returning from our recent trip managed to visit twice.
I will say, post grand opening hype, that things were pretty calm, even slow during my visits….though I do try to get in as early as possible. Also, the service here was really nice; the two young ladies working were very efficient and quite friendly on both visits.
So, it off to the ramen, right?
I decided to start with Nishiki's "signature" tonkotsu style ramen ($9.95), which looked sort of like what I had in my soft-opening visit. Having had a mild, poultry forward broth previously, I was kind of stunned at how salty this was. Also, the broth wasn't as hot as I'd have preferred. In spite of looks, this wasn't quite as rich, nor did it have much in terms of personality with regards to flavor….perhaps it was just too much salt? The chashu was cold, a pet peeve; though the egg was quite nice……perhaps almost perfect.
The noodles had a great texture, nice pull, though the flavor of them seemed different from what I recalled….strange, I know, but something seemed to have changed.
The Chicken Karaage was better than on my previous visit. The flavor was excellent; I'm pretty sure they use shio koji to add that extra complex depth of flavor.
When it arrived it was nice and crisp, but it quickly became soggy……..not quite worth the $6.95 I paid for it.
In order to perform my "due diligence" I returned the following week. I saw something called "Nishiki Black" on the menu…there are places that use black garlic oil in their ramen and places that use a black sesame infused oil. So why not, right? Also, I ordered this with the "thicker noodle" which in my mind would prove to be a nice vehicle to move a thicker broth.
So here's the thing about the broth……the flavors are pretty mild here overall and there was a ton of that black garlic sauce/oil in this, way too much as the flavor of the garlic, which really didn't have the nice sweetness of black garlic, overwhelmed the whole bowl. In addition, the temp of the broth wasn't hot enough for my taste as this just projected itself as greasy. The chashu wasn't cold and tasted nice, the egg was again excellent, in terms of being cooked and flavor….away from that broth.
I had ordered the thicker noodle, which, while not what you'd expect for a tsukemen, I preferred to the thinner noodle, I did expect something along the lines of what is served at, say Nagi Ramen. Overall, this was a bit too over the top for me….this coming from a guy who had pork backfat ramen in Narita! And at $10.95, I think it's a bit over-priced.
So, I enjoyed the service, the noodles…..it seemed that the "bloom is off the rose" here as the place was pretty much empty……so we'll see. I'll try to drop by again in a couple of months.
Nishiki Ramen
8055 Armour St
San Diego, CA 92111
Darn, I liked Nishiki on my first visit (even though they refused to switch out my thin noodles for thick and told me that they only make one type of noodle). Hopefully they’ll bounce back, although I guess we’re not exactly at a ramen shortage here.
I visited Nishiki some weeks ago and thought the ramen was ok. The egg looks beautiful on both your visits. We re-visited RakiRaki last week (friend’s ramen burger was fascinating). RakiRaki was still so packed! I’m not sure if I loved the karaage at Raki as much as everyone else does though.
They broke off from the Nishiki ramen chain from Japan shortly before opening. Kinda misleading as they still kept the same name regardless. So that’s why the soup is underwhelming. They did get the noodle machine and know-how on how to operate it. So the noodles are decent. Interesting on how you noticed the difference in noodles. Maybe they switched to cheaper ingredients.
The ramen toppings look pretty standard now. No more hipster okra, baby-corn and asparagus! They also claim to have dropped their prices, increased portions and give you the egg for free now. So their original concept was not working it seems.
I’m kind of sad that the place is so slow now, I guess the hype really is all gone now. But I found that after checking this place out a couple times, I’m just not that excited with their broth.
I hope they do Jinxi.
Well Faye….you know I’m not the biggest fan of RakiRaki….I wasn’t too impressed with their karaage and I thought the ramen burger was, well “stoner food”.
Hi Junichi – Some of my Japanese friends, those with restaurant connections will not visit Nishiki. I really didn’t want to ask them why…..though I figure the split must have been acrimonious.
Hi Sarah – It is kind of sad…..but that’s kind of the way it goes.
cold char siu ๐
A pet peeve of mine Kat.
That’s good to know eat the karage quick while crisp. ๐
Very quickly Soo…..
Yes the split was indeed “not amicable.” I won’t go into details either but I also refuse to eat there.
Plus they are in the same mall as Santouko, so there’s a very good alternative right across the parking lot.
You among many Junichi!
And I think Santouka is better Jason!
I ate there twice after they first opened and except for the noodles was also disappointed during both visits… however I went earlier this week for lunch (about 2pm) and the place was about half full and the ramen was fantastic. I ordered the Nishiki Black and the broth was perfectly hot, chashu was hot (and i was told they now give it a quick torching with a hand torch before they serve it), broth was well balanced and overall a fantastic bowl of ramen. I also got a side bowl of rice with pork which was only fair… the pork needed more fat and was overcooked. Definitely worth a trip back for the ramen though.
Thanks for the update Derek. I’ll make sure to dop by soon!