Ramen

Types

Tonkotsu

Pork broth. This is a pretty heavy, thick ramen.

Shoyu

Soy sauce base.

Shio

I think “shio” means “salt”. The base is, I dunno, salty? The broth is usually a bit cloudy.

Miso

Self-explanatory… or soybean paste for those that don’t know.

Tsukemen

Dipping ramen. The broth is thicker and served on the side.

Paitan

I’m not actually sure what “paitan” means, but I’ve usually seen it in the context of “chicken paitan” for chicken-based ramens. A web search says that “paitan” just means “white soup” and that tonkotsus are a type of paitan. Recently I did see a “super paitan tonkotsu” at Torraku Ramen.

My cousin, who lived in Japan, also told me that broths can be mixed. Like, in Wakayama precture in Japan they have a half-tonkotsu, half-shoyu broth.

Toppings

Ramen can come with a few different toppings.

• Nori: A square of dried seaweed. You usually see this on the side.
• Kikurage: A kind of black mushroom, also called 木(mù)耳(ěr) (wood ear) in Chinese.
• Bamboo shoots
• Naruto: A slice of fish cake with a distinct pink swirl.
• Chashu: Slices of pork
• Egg
• Garlic: Black garlic, fried garlic, and sometimes they give you raw garlic and a garlic press.
• Chili threads: Not sure if this is traditional, but these are the red stringy things you sometimes see.

How to Properly Eat Ramen

You have to watch the movie Tampopo.

Places

Here some places to get ramen, in no particular order. These are all places I’ve been to.

• Mensho Tokyo in SF

  Has way thicker, interesting ramen. Not a traditional ramen by any means. Located on Geary Street. No reservations, you just gotta wait in line.

• Ramen Shop in Oakland

  Also not traditional ramen. I think their ramen maybe has more vegetables?

• Marufuku Ramen in SF

  A pretty popular place in Japantown. Pretty long wait, though, and I hate the fact that they use Yelp for their waitlist. It means you have to give them your phone number.

• Ramen Nagi in the Westfield Mall in Santa Clara

  Super long wait for this place. Pretty good ramen, though. They give you a sheet of a paper to customize your ramen options.

  There’s also a location in Palo Alto.

  

  

• Ichiran Ramen in Japan, also has a location in Brooklyn, NY

  One of my favorite ramens not just for the ramen itself but for the environment. You get a private booth to yourself, and you don’t have to interact with anyone. You order your ramen by making choices on a piece of paper.

  This place also sells their tonkotsu ramen in an instant ramen form. It’s the most expensive instant ramen I’ve had, coming in at about $30 for a pack of 3. There are some places in SoCal that sell it, like Tokyo Central.

  

  

  

• Hokkaido Ramen Santouka in San Jose

  A chain from Japan that has a location in the Mitsuwa Marketplace food court in San Jose. Pretty good, traditional ramen. I think they’re known for their shio ramen.

• Totto Ramen in New York

  Used to be a pretty long wait for this. When I went back a bit later, there was a more casual sit-down place. Wasn’t as good as I remember, but probably still pretty good.

• Menya Kanemaru (formerly Orenchi Beyond) in SF

  I think they have pretty decent ramen here. To me what makes them fairly special is how many vegan options they have.

• Hinodeya Ramen in SF

  Pretty typical, decent ramen.

• Ramen Waraku in SF

  There’s a ramen that has black garlic and a lot of meat. Can’t remember much else.

• Ramenwell in SF

  Was good when I went, which was a few years ago, maybe around 2020.

• Ramen Izakaya Goku in SF

  Good ramen.

• Ippudo (multiple locations)

  The first one I tried in New York was pretty fancy, popular, and good. Many ones after that (like Berkeley and in Pudong, Shanghai) were much more casual.

• Nojo Ramen Tavern in SF

  I remember they had a pretty big chicken leg in it. More chicken-based ramens.

• Iza Ramen in SF

  I think it was decent. I remember they had a tsukemen ramen.

• Momo Ramen in Oakland

  This place is half ramen, half Korean fried chicken. Their ramen is all right. Their fried chicken is pretty good.

  

• Rural Ramen Bar in SF

  Near the Chinatown library. I think what was interesting about this place is that it’s, like, Thai fusion.

• Ramen Izakaya Yu-Gen in Mountain View

  Decent place, pretty popular.

  Recently went here on 2024-09-20. I probably should add pictures.

• Maruichi Ramen in Mountain View (sadly closed)

  

  Super casual place. I’m not sure that the ramen was that strong, but it was pretty simple. I’d also get the combo with the side of California rolls.

• Dohatsuten in Palo Alto

  Decent ramen.

• Momosan Ramen (Seattle and various locations)

  Went to Momosan Ramen in Seattle (map). It was pretty good. Also, I was excited to go because I originally had their chicken instant ramen from Costco, which I liked a lot.

  There’s also a location in Santana Row in the Bay Area. Haven’t been to it.

  

• Torraku Ramen in SF

  Went to their Lombard Street location (map) in March 2023. Was pretty decent. I got the “tonkotsu super paitan ramen” ($18) which was good, and my partner got the “veggie ramen with egg”. Pretty casual place.

  

  

• Ramen Yamadaya in SF

  It’s been a long time since I’ve been to this. I think they gave you garlic presses and a bunch of garlic with your ramen. I should go back again at some point.

• Yume wo Katare in Boston

  This place doesn’t just sell ramen but “sells dreams”. When you finish your bowl of ramen, you announce your dream to other people. You also get judged by how well you finish your ramen.

  • If you finish everything, you get a “perfect”.
  • If you finish all the noodles, but not the soup, you get a “good job”.
  • If you leave any noodles, you get something like “next time”.

  I got a “perfect”, but I had to really force myself to do it. My partner got a “good job” and threw up after. Still recommended.

• Kitakata Ramen (multiple locations)

  Compared to other places, Kitakata Ramen’s ramen looks pretty simple, but I think it’s fairly unique. The wavy noodles there reminded me of hand-pulled noodles that I’d get in China a lot, which I really liked. I mean, “ramen” literally comes from “la-mian” meaning “pulled noodles”, but this one is the first for a while that actually reminded me about pulled noodles. Their pork broth is simple, but good. Most other ramen places have a tonkotsu that’s opaque, but it’s rare to see a clear pork broth like this one.

  Liked this place. Recommended. Went to this place recently in April 2023 in SoCal (they have various locations).

  

  

• Ushi Taro ramen in SF

  Located at 1382 9th Avenue (map). Went here on 2024-08-10. I got a traditional paitan with black garlic oil. My partner got tantanmen. (I should add pictures.)

  My partner’s tantanmen was pretty spicy, and she kinda choked on the spice. Later on I tried eating it and I had a feeling of a sore throat after. Not sure if it was a spicy oil or what, but that spice wasn’t pleasant.

  I think the traditional paitan was okay though.

Places I haven’t been to, but are nearby that I might check out. These haven’t necessarily been recommended to me.

• Ramen Hiroshi in SF

  Relatively new place on Kearney.

• Ramen Sho Ryu in SF

  Relatively new place on Polk Street.

• Kakijen ramen

  Recommended by my friend Eric.