As in, yoso-silly, yoso-hungry, yoso-full, or best of all; mmm-delici-yoso!!!!! A San Diego based food and travel blog. An Ex-Pat Kama'aina and Friends explore food, restaurants, and travel from San Diego and points beyond.
After my last revisit to Menya, I figured I was done exploring ramen for a while. But on my way home, one other place came to mind. I’d visited Baikohken Ramen twice when they first opened in Hillcrest. Even spending like $23 for a bowl of ramen…..yikes! While I thought the ramen was overly hyped…they really pushed the Michelin Guide thing, it wasn’t in my “top tier” for ramen in San Diego. Still, because they really also push the Asahikawa Ramen thing…..and even though I prefer Santouka another chain that is originally from Asahikawa. I think it was time for another visit. This time, I wanted to get Baikohken’s shio ramen, which is my favorite at Santouka. Of course, this visit was highly dependent on finding parking…which wasn’t a problem on this day.
I strolled on in and the nice young lady handed me a menu.
I wasn’t looking for a $25 bowl of ramen……just the shio ramen which was $14.98, to which I added the tamago, a $1.98 upcharge.
Which soon arrived….and I swear, was my bowl of ramen grinning at me?
So, first things first….while the tamago is no comparison to Santouka which wins my award for worst boiled egg in a ramen, this was decently cooked, nicely flavored…but sigh…..ice cold! What’s a guy gotta do to get at least a warm tamago in this town?
The broth was lighter than Santouka’s but also much more salty. It did have that hint of seafood savoriness that the shio broth at Santouka in Asahikawa had and which Santouka in San Diego initially had when they first opened, but has since been removed. Still, in terms of tongue feel and “shio”, I prefer Santouka.
Baikohken doesn’t have toroniku, but their chashu is really tough and chewy for my taste.
It was also cold in the center! Because of this, the fat line running down the center was really waxy in texture.
The noodles were nice and slippery.
Which did a decent job of picking up the broth. Though on my last visit to Santouka, the noodles were much more firm than this. If you’ve read my previous posts on Ramen…you know I like my noodles “Katame” (firm).
In the end, close but no cigar…..I still prefer Santouka.
Baikohken Ramen 690 University Ave. San Diego, CA 92103 Current Hours: Wed – Mon 11am – 230pm, 5pm – 930pm Closed on Tuesday
While I was doing ramen posts on my three favorite ramen shops in San Diego and then a revisit to Kitakata Ramen Ban Nai, folks started asking me “what about Menya”? Well, what about Menya? I recalled not enjoying my last bowl from Menya….which in fact drove Calvin and I to head to Nagi in spite of the lines at that time. Though, taking a look at that post…well, it was on the Mira Mesa location of Menya. So, I headed to the Big List to see when I last visited the Clairemont location. Now this was interesting, my last five posts on that location of Menya was for takeout! Menya was a part of our takeout rotation during the pandemic. The last time I actually ate in the restaurant was back in August of 2017 and the last time I had the Ajitama Ramen was in May of 2017….like almost 9 years ago! Sheesh!
So, I made up my mind to revisit. I arrived on a Wednesday for lunch at around 1110.
This turned out to be good timing, since it does seem that there’s still a line during opening hours as the place was over half full when I entered.
I just got the Ajitama Ramen ($17.95).
My bowl arrived in what seemed to be the blink of an eye!
This was interesting as the broth was not very hot, thus the soup had a fairly greasy mouthfeel. Nice savory tones, not overly salty. Would have been pretty good if it was nice and hot.
The Chashu was somewhat tough and chewy, but still nice and porky.
And you know my pet peeve…..well, since the broth was basically just past lukewarm….of course the ajitama was ice cold. Sigh…..
The noodles were decently firm and slippery.
Well, this could have been quite good….but there’s a reason Menya is no longer in my top 4. There seems to be a lack of quality control here. Like many other restaurants, Homestyle Hawaiian comes to mind. Expansion seems to dilute quality. Too bad, because Menya was such a hit when they first opened in 2017. I remember being like the one of the first ten people in line on their grand opening day. To me, Menya changed the ramen game in San Diego. And blew up even further after making the Michelin Guide and being named Eater’s Restaurant of the year in 2017. It’s just not on my regular ramen rotation anymore.
Menya Ultra 8199 Clairemont Mesa Blvd. San Diego, CA 92111 Current Hours: Daily 11am – 2pm, 5pm – 9pm
So “FOYs”…what’s on your ramen rotation these days?
Back in October of last year; I noticed that the long standing China Quick Wok was gone and was being replaced by Fujiyame Ramen. Well, I guess we hadn’t hit ramen saturation yet here in San Diego? In November, I read that they had opened. I headed on over at the beginning of December to find them closed. I returned a few more times…and each time they were closed, even though I had arrived during stated hours. So, I just waited a bit….well, more like three months! I finally took a chance and drove into that strip mall which houses El Pollo Loco and Mike’s Red Tacos. And yes, they were open!
Ample parking in the lot was available on this day, so I parked and walked on in.
The menu was small…though on an interesting note, I knew someone who visited initially and told me they had stuff like orange chicken and popcorn chicken on the menu which he thought was strange. They must have straightened out their menu, because other than the braised beef rice, the menu looked like thoose of a typical fusion ramen shop.
Ordering seems to be done by kiosk here. As I was checking things out, a very nice gentleman came out and recommended one of the “combos” as a good value. Well, being that the Tonkotsu Ramen here was $12.99…..which is right now really well priced. Getting a combo for $15.99 is even better, right?
I got the Tonkotsu Ramen, some chicken wings, and a drink for $15.99.
The Tonkotsu Ramen looked quite different from what was pictured.
No corn, but the addition of what seemed like chicken katsu? It was salty and fairly dry, breaded white meat chicken. I did find the addition of carrots a bit strange.
The chashu was quite chewy and fiberous.
The noodles were interesting, on the softer side, but not mushy, lacking the chewiness of ramen noodles. Things started clicking in my head. These noodles seemed more suited to Niu Rou Mian, than ramen…but perhaps I was imagining things?
The tamago was nice and warm, the yolk nicely cooked for my taste.
The broth was quite thin for tonkotsu, very salty, lacking in savory tones and the nice tongue coating texture.
Not my favorite bowl of ramen. This was kind of interesting, as I got to thinking the folks running this shop were not Japanese? And then my Chicken Wings sealed the deal so to say.
These were actually pretty good. Though not evenly coated, the batter was nicely seasoned and crisp. What sealed the deal in thinking the owners were not Japanese was the generous amount of dried chili on the wings. Don’t get me wrong, I did really enjoy this, but I don’t think your typical ramen shop would put all this chili-salt-white pepper on wings. The wings were nice and moist. I enjoyed this the most of what I’d tried at Fujiyame.
And then there was something I kept seeing; on the menu board, on the napkin dispenser.
Just then, the really nice gentleman came out of the kitchen. This was a one man show; he did everything! He introduced himself as “Chen”! A-ha, I knew it! We had a nice chat and he mentioned how the menu had changed since opening as folks didn’t care much for the ramen, they’ve made many changes. They redid the kitchen and menu, thus shutting down for a few months. Ok, so now I got it! As they made major changes, they started calling their ramen “858 style” – as in the area code for this part of San Diego (Northern), to indicate it isn’t traditional ramen. Interesting, huh?
I did see something “interesting” on the menu, so I decided to return. When I did, I noticed the 858 Ramen menu in the window.
I walked on in and now knowing the drill proceeded to order from the kiosk.
I ordered the Braised Beef Rice ($12.99) which was indicated as being “spicy”. Soon enough, my bowl arrived. And like the ramen, looked nothing like the photo on the menu. The menu says this has “potatoes”, but what arrived did not. And this had corn, pickled onions, and seaweed salad, which is not on the menu photo, nor indicated on the menu as well!
The rice had apparently just been cooked as it was steaming hot. Not very fragrant, a bit on the drier side but ok.
The corn, tart and sour pickled onions, and seaweed salad was just basically window dressing for me as I was interested in that beef.
The beef was toothsome, but not overly tough. And it did have that anise-soy flavor with hints of ginger, but I did not pick up any spiciness.
To me, this was more like Hong Shao Niu Rou than a typical Japanese braised beef which would be sweeter, usually with onions. Perhaps when the photo was taken, they were trying for something like Nikujaga…thus the potatoes in the photo, but in the end, it seems like one’s heritage always comes to play.
It’s going to be interesting to see what happens over the next few months. Will they officially change their name to 858 Ramen? Or perhaps totally change concept. Based on the braised beef, I’d be glad to try the Niu Rou Mian here. As for the fusiony mashup? Well, you gotta remember, I’m from the home of Saimin….. and after all, there’s Underbelly, right?
Who knows what I might find then?
Fujiyame Ramen 4310 Genesee Avenue Suite 108A San Diego, CA 92117 Current Hours: Thurs – Tues 11am – 830pm Closed on Wednesday
I guess after checking out Marufuku and revisits to Nagi and Santouka, I’d had enough tonkotsu (i.e. what every ramen shop has to serve in San Diego) ramen and needed a break. Of course, HiroNori and their shoyu ramen is a favorite of mine; but I‘d just been there a couple of months back. Then it came to me. I hadn’t been back to Kitakata Ramen in over a year! And even though they’ve given up and have started doing tonkotsu, it’s their signature Fukushima style shoyu ramen that I was after. As a plus, I recall being able to order my noodles “katame” (extra firm) the last time I visited.
I arrived at around 1115 and was shocked to see the place empty!
And strangely, I was the only customer dining in…there were several takeout orders during my entire meal! The young lady working was so sweet and friendly.
I was really after only one thing.
The Kitakata Ramen is now $14.45 and I added an ajitama which has an upcharge of $1.70.
Because it was really slow; my bowl arrived in the blink of an eye!
In previous visits, I’ve noted that the broth was quite salty on occasion. However, that wasn’t the case this time around. Nice shoyu-savory tones. The broth was also a bit richer than I recalled.
The ajitama was……drum roll…..warm! Hallelujah!
No cold boiled egg! It was also nicely seasoned.
The Chashu was thinly sliced, with a nice toothsomeness.
It was however, a bit more salty than I recalled. Still, not bad.
My favorite part of the dish? Well, it was the extra firm, curly noodles. Which did a great job of “picking up” the broth.
Overall, while not in the league of HiroNori’s Shoyu Ramen, this was an enjoyable bowl. I should probably visit more often….especially since this bowl of ramen was cheaper than the last couple bowls of pho I’ve had. I am a bit concerned about the place being totally empty…..I hope they manage to stay in business here. Even though many folks would disagree; I think we need more than just tonkotsu ramen in San Diego.
Kitakata Ramen Ban Nai 7951 Othello Ave. San Diego, CA 92111 Current Hours: Mon-Thurs 11am â 3pm, 5pm â 9pm Friday 11am â 3pm, 5pm â 10pm Saturday 11am â 10pm Sunday 11am â 9pm
During my visit to Zen Modern Asian Bistro at the Sky Deck, I came across a place that I’d had on my “list” but had totally forgotten about. Marufuku Ramen. I recall reading how popular Marufuku was when it opened in San Francisco’s Japantown in 2017. And since it was “ramen season” for me; I decided to return to try the place out.
Marufuku is located in the rear of the Sky Deck. The place was kinda dark at 11am, so pardon my photos.
I was seated by the very friendly and efficient Sugui, who told me he also works at Glass Box next door.
The prices, as anticipated were on the higher end of the scale, especially for what I consider to be a Food Hall.
I went with the Hakata Tonkotsu – regular size ($18.00). What arrived was about the same size as the small bowl I had at Santouka recently. Of course it didn’t have the toroniku and other stuffs.
The broth was fairly light, in spite of the dots of oil floating on the top. It was pretty straight forward, mild in flavor, though not salty.
It was rich enough to coat the thin, straight Hakata style noodles. Which were unfortunately a bit overcooked and too soft for my taste.
At least the tamago, which was edging on being overcooked for my taste was still warm. I’d say that’s a definite plus these days.
There were two bacon-thin slices chashu that were nicely flavored, with a nice toothsome texture.
And was probably my favorite thing in this bowl. The ginger would have helped to cut the richness if the broth were a bit thicker, but really wasn’t necessary in this case.
Overall, not a bad bowl of ramen, perhaps below what I last had a Menya…maybe what I’d consider level B+ ramen. Though priced like level A+ ramen. I’m not going to be in a rush to return.
Marufuku Ramen (In the Sky Deck at Del Mar Highlands Town Center) 12841 El Camino Real Suite 204 San Diego, CA 92130 Current Hours: Sun – Thurs 11am – 9pm Fri – Sat 11am – 10pm
After my last visit to HiroNori, I decided to revisit two other of my favorite ramen spots in San Diego. And both of these places have interesting “histories” with your truly.
Ramen Nagi:
I hadn’t been to Ramen Nagi in a while! And that visit was to try out the Veggie King Ramen! I was tempted to visit right after HiroNori, but heck, I ain’t going to UTC during the holiday season! I just waited until the calendar flipped to 2026 and headed on over. And guess what? No line!
I walked over and was shown to a seat at the counter.
It was quite mellow! I also have my preferences for my ramen here. Folks can choose and “customize” their bowl to their tastes, something I wish other places would do as well.
And while I waited, the older gentleman who was in charge came on over to say hello. And we had a really nice chat. I mentioned that my first bowl of ramen in Japan was at Nagi Ramen in the Golden Gai. And he cracked up! Apparently, he worked for Nagi’s parent company in Tokyo before coming to SD! Of course I had to ask him about Niboshi Ramen….and he laughed again. Apparently they did try it as a “special” for a short period, but the only folks who would try the stuff were the Japanese nationals and hardcore “ramen heads”. It was such a nice little chat!
As for my Original King Ramen ($16.95), well, I liked that the mildly porky broth wasn’t too salty…and check out all that richness! It just coats your tongue and tummy. That’s why I order it “heavy richness”. Normal garlic is enough to add some pungency without overwhelming the soup.
And those katame…..firm noodles do a great job picking up that broth and are so springy.
The egg was decently marinated and flavored. And perhaps because it was opening time, it was still warm.
To me, the pork shoulder chashu might be the weak link here as it is on the more chewy side.
But was decently marinated with good porkiness.
I think we have my favorite tonkotsu ramen in San Diego here! And of course, that memory of wandering thru KabukichÅ to find that 24 hour location of Nagi Ramen on our first evening in Tokyo! Such great memories.
Ramen Nagi UTC 4301 La Jolla Village Dr. Suite 2033 San Diego, CA 92122
Santouka Ramen:
And of course, after Nagi, I had to get back to Santouka. Hard to believe it’s been over a year since my last visit. And like Nagi, I have some history with Santouka. To this day, I believe that the opening of Sanotuka in San Diego back in April of 2008 really changed the ramen world in San Diego. And after trying things for a bit, we had found our favorite here; the Shio Toroniku.
This was a solo lunch; so I just went with the small sized Shio Toroniku ($15.95).
I had never ordered the small size, so when my buzzer went off and I went to pick up my bowl….well, I cracked up at the size of the ramen bowl. Though I was happy to note that the portion size off the toroniku and garnishes were of the same size as far as I could tell.
To put things into perspective….check out the size of the porky, super tender pork cheek versus the size of the bowl of ramen.
Still, this was nice and warming….that thick bowl keeps the broth super hot for a long time. And no; I wasn’t in the mood for the usual horrible egg here.
The noodles were adequately firm. I already wrote about that tender-porky toroniku.
The broth creamy, not overly salty, nice savory tones.
And of course, I’ll never forget hunting down the original Santouka in Asahikawa...a tiny little shop! And of course we cracked up when the tamago there was just as bad! Points for consistency I guess! Such fun memories! And a good bowl of ramen as well!
Our two week road trip up the coast was nearing an end. To break up the last two days, we were staying a night, first in Goleta, south of Santa Barbara….I was trying to stay in Carpinteria since it’s been a recommended stop, but was unable to book accommodation. Then we’d be staying a night in Temecula, before heading home.
It was a uneventful 4 hour drive from Santa Cruz to Goleta. We arrived a bit too early to check in, so I had a stop in mind. We decided to stop and do a nice little walk/hike at Ellwood Bluffs and the Ellwood Beach Loop. There’s a Monarch Butterfly preserve, but it was the wrong season for that.
Some nice wide open trails and also views from the bluffs.
After our nice little walk, we headed back to the main drag in Goleta. I had gotten us a room at the Leta located right on Calle Real. We settled in and relaxed. When it as time to head out for dinner, we wanted something in walking distance and I’d found a ramen shop a block or so away from out hotel named Nikka.
The reviews seemed positive and they had an outdoor dining area that was dog friendly. We were greeted and seated. The young man who waited upon us was very nice; but I could tell that this was more of a “fusiony” ramen place as he kept calling he ramen I ordered as “tonkatsu” ramen and while the menu boasted of the 24 hour simmering time for the broth, they called the version I had as “Shiro ramen” not shio ramen.
They also had stuff like poke bowls and ramen “burritos” on the menu. And in fact, I decided to order the Combination Baos (3 baos for $12.50). I ordered one of each.
As I figured, the baos seemed like those premade frozen ones you can get at the market. The karaage was too salty and dry, the chashu had a very nice texture but was super bland and over shadowed by the sweetness of the bao. The shrimp tempura, while overfried was the best of the three as it was tender and presented a decent shrimpiness.
As for the Tonkotsu Ramen ($17.50).
Well, the broth was barely past room temp and was super thin for our taste. It was pretty darn bland as well.
I had ordered the “thick noodle” which was a tad overcooked, heading toward too soft. Also, you can tell how thin the broth was since the noodles rea;;y didn’t “pick” any of it up.
The chashu was the best item in the bowl, nice texture, perfect tenderness, though a bit lacking in the porkiness department.
Overall, a “C” level bowl of ramen.
Well, service was nice. We hadn’t expected much from this place and I guess they lived up to those expectations.
Nikka Ramen 5701 Calle Real Goleta, CA 93117
We did have a nice night of sleep at the hotel and breakfast was included in our stay, which was enough food to keep us until dinner!
We had decided on making one last stop before heading home, at a place that we’d never really taken to. We had visited Old Town Temecula several times while living in the SGV and when we first moved to SD. But had never really enjoyed the place as it seemed overly touristy. I thought that perhaps staying the night might make things more enjoyable, so I booked us a room at the Hampton Inn, which was right across busy Rancho California Road from the start of Old Town.
JJ got in a nice nap while we drove to Temecula.
We checked in and then headed to Old Town to wander around a bit.
Man, the bars were doing some good business; even at barely 4pm on a Sunday.
The Missus got some cream for Her and JJ, which they don’t always have at Temecula Olive Oil in Old Town. I also got some olive oil as well.
Temecula Olive Oil Company 28653 Old Town Front St. Temecula, CA 92590
We wandered a bit more…..
And then decided to grab some dinner. An acquaintance had recommended a Bar/Restaurant named 1909 Temecula to me. The place had outdoor seating and was fairly busy; even at 445!
The menu consisted of typical items like burgers and tacos, stretching into Korean Fried Chicken, Risotto, and even Lobster.
The Missus started with a Sangria, which She enjoyed.
I had the Cedar Smoked Old Fashioned, which had some decent smokiness, but was a bit on the sweeter side and tasted a bit weak.
We decided on a couple of items; one of which was recommended to me; the House Chili (bowl – $12).
The blue cornbread was too wet and mushy. The chili lukewarm. There was supposed to be “steak” in this; which I think was super hard pieces of meat. It had an interesting flavor profile; perhaps a bit on the sweeter side? I was told that they use beer to make this chili. It was the best item we had during this meal.
The Al Pastor Tacos ($16) were not good. The pork very dry and chewy. The flavor too sweet.
The supposedly house made tortillas too brittle and lacking in good corn flavor. The fries were dry and soggy.
The Shrimp in the Shrimp & Chorizo ($18) was tough and chewy, with a muddiness to it.
The sausage seemed more like Longaniza as the meat seemed on the courser side and without the spice of chorizo. Still that was not bad. The bread had been nicely grilled, the sauce was quite tangy and acidic.
Overall, 1909 seems like a very touristic place, though it was super popular as there was a line of at least 20 people waiting when we left. Good thing we had an early dinner. Service was nice, but things took a while to get to our table.
1909 28656 Old Town Front St. Temecula, CA 92590
We walked back to the hotel and relaxed. I did a post and caught up on things. We had a decent night of sleep. There was a bit of traffic noise, but things weren’t too bad.
While not quite the ending of our epic little road trip we had wanted; we…and JJ still enjoyed ourselves, from revisiting Paso Robles yet again and enjoying the Alchemist Garden, to our favorite meal of the trip at L’Escargot in Carmel, to lovely Mendocino and Santa Cruz, this was one for the books. And we are so honored that you were able to vicariously come along with us!
In a post from a few days ago, I mentioned actually finding reasonable parking in Hillcrest for a ramen fix. And yes, it’s time for me to make my “ramen rounds”…..and I wanted something other than what is ubiquitous ’round these parts….that is something other than tonkotsu ramen. So naturally, my choice for shoyu ramen is HiroNori. Looking at my previous posts, it’s quite funny as my last three visits had been in December! So, I guess the time was right!
It was kind of crazy, as I was part of a line of 10 people waiting when they opened! The place filled up quickly. As always, the service was friendly and efficient.
It was interesting to note that overhearing folks order….everyone was going with tonkotsu.
I was pleased to note that the Shoyu Ramen was priced the same as my visit a year ago – $16.45….a rarity these days!
As usual, I got the shoyu ramen with noodles extra firm and it was nicely delivered to the window seat I had.
Man, there’s something about the shoyu broth I like, the barrel ages shoyu has an interesting flavor, that’s not overly salty, nice slightly smoky-sweet umami. Decent richness and tongue feel.
The tamago was nicely cooked…and guess what? It wasn’t cold! In my best “Bourdain mode”, I thought “a glowing orb of deliciousness….”
While the chashu looks to be on the tough side, I’m thinking because it looks roasted and charred. but that adds to the flavor; it is decently tender, nicely roasted, with good porkiness!
And those noodles were firm, slippery, and perfectly chewy for my taste. It did a nice job of “picking up” the broth.
The really nice young lady came to check on me as I was finishing up and asked me; “is everything all right?” So I showed her my bowl…..
And she just laughed.
Overall, a lovely, warming bowl of shoyu ramen…..it just makes everything seem better…..
HiroNori Craft Ramen 3803 Fifth Ave. San Diego, CA 92103 Current Hours: Mon – Wed 1130am – 8pm Thurs – Sun 1130am – 9pm
Well, we finally got some rain around these parts! And thankfully, even though the “atmospheric river” that hit San Diego did have a bit of flooding it didn’t seem as bad as predicted. Still, while finishing up some rather late shopping for Saturday I was wanting some ramen. It had been a while since I last visited Yakyudori….like almost 5 years! And it was for takeout during Covid. And even longer since I had the ramen there. So, despite the feeling that I wouldn’t be able to find parking I headed on over.
And to my surprise, at 1115 on a Saturday, there was a lot of parking available. I’m wondering if having the Starbucks closed down and the construction of the apartments next door have something to do with things?
And even more strange was how empty the place was.
I remember when they moved to this location back in 2010 the place was super busy even during lunch hours. These days they are only open for lunch on weekends. Also these days, all ordering is done on a mobile device.
And while I was temped to have that Kanazawa Curry again; it was ramen that I was after. So, I got the Shio Ramen ($13.80) and for some reason he thought of having some Nagoya Teba ($9) triggered a nostalgic reaction, so I had to order that as well. The woman working the front of house was quite serious, but not as surly as folks I’ve dealt with here before.
My Shio Ramen was first to arrive.
While the corn really gave this bowl that “Hokkaido Shio” look; the clear broth wasn’t as strongly “umami” as other versions I’ve had. It did have a nice almost porky-poultry savory component and wasn’t overly salty.
Decent richness; especially for a shio ramen as well.
The Tamago was nicely cooked, yolk shiny and golden, decently marinated…but of course…my pet peeve? Yes, it was ice cold! Bummah, this could have been so good.
The noodles were al dente, with a good springy-slipperiness and did a good job of “picking up” the soup to coat.
This was better than I recalled. And while not in my top three for ramen in San Diego, I’d gladly return for this again.
As for the Nagoya Teba; well that was a non-starter.
I find this to be way too sweet even for Nagoya style teba and also lacking in the black pepper department. The coating; which points more toward the crunchy than crisp also gets mushy very quickly. I will say that the flat and wing tip was nice and moist. But for some reason, only one of those are provided. Perhaps they save them for the Yakitori.
The drumettes were tough and chewy.
I don’t think I’ll order these again.
Still, it was nice to get back to Yakyudori. And just eating here brought back some nice memories of going to the original Yakyudori and Hinotez 2 in Nagoya! Such great memories!
Yakyudori 4898 Convoy St San Diego, CA 92111
Hope everyone survived the rain unscathed. And with the next system coming in, hope you stay warm and dry!
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
