Recently, I had to head on over to Fashion Valley….which I usually try to avoid. But since I going there, I was wondering if I should take JJ along and looked to see if there were any dog friendly places to eat. And there were quite a few. I was pleasantly surprised to see that Silverlake Ramen allowed dogs. It had been on the cooler side…..which I kind of look forward to since I can get all my noodle soup fixes in. So, we headed on over.
I’d actually been to the UTC location of Silverlake, but since it was a lunch with a group of people, I didn’t take any photos. And to be perfectly honest, I really wasn’t impressed with the ramen. So, this was going to be interesting……
Silverlake’s location at Fashion Valley is located right along the south side parking lots and driveway, so it’s pretty discreet. The young man working was super friendly and even though I was seated outside was on top of things. He even got JJ a bowl of water!
Which JJ appreciated…..
During my previous visit to the UTC location of Silverlake….which BTW was founded in the Silver Lake (duh) neighborhood in LA back in 2012. Anyway, I probably erred and ordered the Garlic Truffle Ramen, which was way too sweet….and the noodles were overcooked.
I was kinda hungry from having to keep up with the squirt, so I got the Combo ($20.50). Since I’d be having karaage for dinner; I went with the Pork Bun as my appetizer to go with the Classic Tonkotsu. The efficient young man brought out the pork bun soon after I placed my order.
The pickled onions were indispensable as this was really sweet and over-sauced for my taste. There was just too much of the sesame aioli. All of which combined to nullify any porkiness. That bun and the pork were on the chewy side as well.
Hmmm…..now this made me somewhat concerned about my ramen.
Which wasn’t bad. Not a fan of the overly sweet black garlic oil and I think the broth, which was on the thinner side in terms of tonkotsu has quite a bit of msg in it as I soon got the “ms-heebee-gee-bees” and actually gulped down two cups of water during my meal…..thank goodness for the great Server and another bottle in the car!
The tamago had a decently tender yolk…but sigh…..you know my pet peeve right? It was ice cold. Bummer!
The noodles were decently cooked. Nice and slippery, with a good “Q-Q” springiness them.
The pork was milder in terms of the marinade, but quite tender and you could actually make out some rich savoriness. I do enjoy some of that sweet-savory-soy sauce flavor that a good marinade provides for my chashu.
All in all, more of a “B” level ramen to me. This was definitely better than what I’d had at the UTC location and that young man provided very good service. Though I’m not in a rush to return as I’m going to have to revisit those ramen shops I consider San Diego “A” level…..hope the cool weather holds steady.
Silverlake Ramen (In Fashion Valley Mall)
7007 Friars Rd. Suite 357B
San Diego, CA 92108
Current Hours:
Mon – Sat 11am – 9pm
Sunday 11am – 8pm
bummer
Yeah….thought at least they were really nice to JJ Kat!
That Fashion Valley location of Silverlake Ramen is currently listed for sale. I thought it was mediocre too. Menya Ultra in UTC is up for sale too. Must be tough for mall ramen these days.
Wow…I knew about Menya at UTC, but not about Silverlake at FV Junichi! Thanks for the info!
I think the Silverlake locations here are a franchise. I went a few years ago to their Fashion Valley restaurant when they had tsukemen on the menu, since that’s hard to find in San Diego. The noodles were nice and springy, but the broth was overly salty. It definitely wasn’t at Tsujita’s level and I did not feel compelled to return. Plus, they’ve had some recent closures from the health department.
I had no idea about Menya and Silverlake being up for sale in UTC. I wonder if that mall has been oversaturated with ramen. Up until now, they’ve had Menya, Silverlake and Ramen Nagi all in one spot. Plus there’s Qin West and Marugame Udon, and Marugame is crazy busy every time I’m at UTC. While I personally believe you can’t have too much noodle soup, there just might too much competition. I looked at UTC’s website and it looks like Slurp is moving in (not sure where specifically in the mall).
Yes Silverlake in San Diego is a franchise Mar as are their locations in Vegas, Texas, and Nevada I believe. I’ve heard Menya has put up their UTC location for sale.
**Just realized I misread Junichi’s comment. I don’t see that Silverlake’s UTC location is up for sale. Either way, UTC has a lot of noodle shops.
I believe it’s the Fashion Valley location Mar!