GoGo noodles

I must admit that the whole reason for this trip to Orochon Ramen was because I saw the Orochon challenge epsiode on Man vs. Food. Curious, I thought what ramen could possibly be that spicy that I couldn’t handle? So I had to find out. From the beginning, I had no intention on doing the Orochon challenge. Why torture myself? Did you see the size of the bowl on that episode? I could probably handle the spice and be able to eat all the noodles but finishing the entire bowl of broth would have been death. I like taking my time to enjoy the ramen and savor the goodness. It surprised me to find Orochon Ramen on the top level of a small, 2 story, depressing shopping center in L.A.’s Japan town. It was slightly overcast but still warm so we decided to sit in the patio area. Though, I would recommend sitting inside if you want a beer because they won’t serve alcohol outdoors. Sadly, I didn’t care to go inside the restaurant to check out the wall of bravery.

The ordering system is quite interesting. First you pick what kind of broth you want, the choices are miso, shoyu or shio. Then the fun part! You pick the level of spiciness that you want and there are 9 levels to choose from. Special #2 is their spiciest soup and the challenge level. Then finally, you can add extra toppings for an extra charge. I chose to have the miso broth with the special #2 level of spiciness (the spiciest). The boyfriend ordered the shoyu broth with a special #1 spiciness level. We decided to forgo the toppings and ordered a side of char to share instead. After we placed our orders, I was giddy with anticipation.

When the waiter brought my bowl of ramen to the table, he had a timer in hand and asked “challenge?”. I quickly shook my head and said “no, no challenge for me, thank you”. The glowing orange broth was still bubbling when it was set in front of me. There was an abundant amount of jalapeños. What I didn’t expect to see were green bell peppers which I’m not a big fan of. After digging in, I was happy to find other tasty toppings in the soup like bean sprouts, wood ear and slivers of pork. Now for my first bite…mmm mmm mmm…garlicky, rich, savory and spicy! This was absolutely the spiciest ramen I’ve ever had but not the spiciest food I’ve ever eaten. The temperature of the broth truly amped up the spiciness level of the ramen. My tongue was numb, my nose was running and the adrenaline was pumping. And as the soup cooled down, the spice subsided. The noodles were chewy and tender. I was beyond happy and satisfied.

The shoyu broth was also very tasty and was much more mild in comparison to the special #2. It was a really nice contrast to the miso. The shoyu broth was savory, slightly sweet and clean.

I would highly recommend ordering a side of cha siu, it was delicious! The slices were thick and immensely flavorful, tender and most importantly, not dry. It practically fell apart when I picked it up with my chopsticks. This is the best char siu I’ve had to date. I can’t wait to go back for more.

Orochon Ramen
123 S Onizuka St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 617-1766

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Situated in a small lack luster strip mall, Foo Foo Tei Ramen House stands unassumingly in the corner. It was about 2pm on a Wednesday and there were no other customers when we walked in. Usually, this is a red flag but for some reason, I wasn’t afraid. It actually turned out great because we had the whole place to ourselves. One of the first things that catches your eye is the wall of menu items displayed on faux wooden placards all in Japanese. I thought it was kinda cool because I imagined myself walking into a ramen house in Japan but after closer examination, it felt more like walking into a Chinese noodle house. As I sat down, I noticed a special on the wall that was posted in English and had a picture! The special was nanchatte tonkatsu ramen which included a soft drink and croquettes for just under 10 bucks. Score! I was having that! And what is the best accompaniment to ramen? Gyoza! One order please! When the waitress set down the bowl of nanchatte ramen, I started drooling instantly because it looked soo tasty. The first bite was heavenly…so yummy! The broth was creamy and full of flavor. The noodles were on the thinner side and had a good chewy texture. When the gyoza arrived I was in awe…I have never seen anything like it before…the gyoza had a hat! Aside from the dramatic presentation, more importantly, the gyoza was delicious and very juicy. I was utterly satisfied with my meal at Foo Foo Tei Ramen House and look forward to visiting again the next time I’m in Los Angeles.

Foo Foo Tei Ramen House
750 S Atlantic Blvd.
Monterey Park, CA 91755
(626) 588-2010

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Woke up late and missed breakfast…AGAIN, so I was starving! What better way to satiate ones hunger than with home made ramen noodles? I’m not sure why it was so hard finding this place, maybe it was the growling stomach that distracted our focus. When we finally arrived, I was happy to see that 98% of the customers were speaking Japanese…good sign. Scanned the menu and the umani ramen caught my eye….and thought to myself…”so that’s what that was!” The crab omelette ramen at Gyoza No Osho in Hawaii with the gravy on top is umani style. I love learning new noodle facts on my noodle adventures.

This is the umani ramen, topped with an oyster sauce gravy and stir fried vegetables. When the waitress set the bowl in front of me, I got a big whiff of bamboo and was a little fearful that I had made a bad choice. But to my relief, the broth did not have a strong bamboo taste. Overall, the umani ramen was reminiscent of chinese chow mein, it has the same toasty wok flavor. The noodles were delicious! If you look closely, you can see the inconsistency of the fresh noodles. Umemura gets extra kudos for cooking a perfect egg! A first for me.


In contrast, the soup of the cha siu ramen didn’t smell like bamboo but it tasted like bamboo. Besides the mild bamboo flavor, the shoyu broth was pretty darn good. Overall, both broths had a very clean and wholesome taste. You can tell from the richness and complexity of the soup that the ingredients they use are fresh.

To top it all off, the gyoza was fantastic! The skin was thin and the filling was not processed beyond recognition. You could see bits of cabbage and meat and the slight imperfections were a clear indication that these were homemade.

Umemura
1724 W Redondo Beach Blvd
Gardena, CA 90247
(310) 217-0970

(1 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)

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This is one of our favorite restaurants in Waikiki, especially when we want to take a break from Japanese food. There have been times when we have eaten here 2-3 times a week. We’ve enjoyed everything from the appetizers to the entrees. My favorite entree was the lobster spaghetti (which is amazing) until uni spaghetti appeared on the menu!! If you are an uni lover – yes – it is as amazing as it sounds. As always, their spaghetti was perfectly al dente and their tomato sauce is thick and tastes like it’s been simmering for hours. The sweet, nutty richness of uni mingles perfectly with spaghetti. Genius.

Arancino
2155 Kalakaua Ave # 320
Honolulu, HI 96815
(808) 922-4405

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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