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ramen mom

Sacramento, CA

Empress Tavern

Posted on December 26, 2017

I had a serendipitous encounter with a bowl of ramen at Empress Tavern. I felt a wave of nostalgia because it was below the Crest Theater taking me back to my college days at Davis. As I descended down the carpeted stairs leading to the restaurant I was anticipating good food and meeting new work colleagues. After introductions and talking about our holiday plans we perused the menu. It was my first time but I had heard that the burger recently won the Sacramento Burger Battle. I was torn between that or the fried chicken sandwich until Christina asked what was the blue plate special. Prime rib ramen. We broke out in laughter. If you didn’t know I had a ramen blog it wouldn’t be so funny. Seriously this was a sign from the ramen gods I had to try it.

I can be skeptical about ordering ramen when it is a daily special and not from a ramen shop but the beauty of ramen is that you can have the creative license to make it your own. I should know. I make my own version to comfort me on those days that I need it most. Their soft boiled egg won me over. It wasn’t a marinated (ajitsuke tamago) but the ooze factor was on point. It was a hearty bowl of thick noodles with scallions and topped with a mound of thinly sliced prime rib. The flavorful and tender meat was reminiscent of having sukiyaki with a little bit of fat.

A half a bowl later I was pretty full. I took the rest home as an after school snack for ramen boy. I wasn’t sure he would like it since the noodles were already in the broth and to reheat it again would make the noodles soggy. Luckily the thick noodles survived a second heating with some added bone broth.

He liked the thick noodles, the thinly sliced meat and the slivers of pepperoncini. I think the meat is used for the french dip sandwich so the pepperoncini was an accident meant to be as it adds a dimension to an otherwise very simple bowl of noodles. He told me it reminded him of the chuck roast that I make in the slow cooker with a packet of Hidden Ranch dressing, a stick of butter and a bottle of pepperoncinis.

Cilantro was so last year in Tokyo. This is ramen’s new secret ingredient. Shhh.

Empress Tavern
1013 K. Street
Sacramento, CA
(916) 662-7694

San Mateo, CA

Himawari-Tei

Posted on October 21, 2017

On my way home after a wonderful few days in Half Moon Bay I decided to make a ramen stop in San Mateo. This is truly a foodie town. If I wasn’t focused on ramen and mind you there are more than one to choose from here I would have a difficult time deciding on culinary choices. Two of the ramen joints were closed so I decided to try out Himawari-Tei and their tantanmen. When my ramen came out I saw a pile of cilantro on top of a sea of red. I was taken aback since I am not a fan of excessive chili oil since it can be overpowering but I was hungry since I skipped breakfast in anticipation of a carb-laden lunch. The noodles were firm to bite and without the slight chewiness of typical Japanese ramen and the broth wasn’t as spicy as I imagined it would be. I like the addition of cilantro since it cut through the oiliness of the bowl. Sorry to say this wasn’t a memorable bowl for me but I definitely would come back to try their other shoyu and shio based ramen. The gyozas though were quite tasty. Until then …

Himawari-Tei
202 2nd Avenue
San Mateo, CA 94401
650-375-1005

Sacramento, CA

Ju Hachi by Taka’s

Posted on October 13, 2017

Not exactly an orthodox bowl of tantanmen. The owner of the restaurant is Japanese but raised in Brazil. I was torn to try the butter corn miso or the bacon bit tonkotsu ramen but played it safe and decided to compare Ju Hachi’s tantanmen to the competitors in the area. Ramen boy would have been the ultimate supertaster but I came with colleagues. The sliced tomato was an unusual addition along with the chopped jalapeño and the cilantro kind of threw me off my ramen game but I didn’t want to be judgmental since this wasn’t the usual bowl of tantanmen for me. Surprisingly all of the ingredients meshed well. Not quite the traditional bowl of noodles but I liked the gentle kick to it and that it wasn’t heavy. A richer broth would have given it more dimension but all in all it was a very satisfying bowl of noodles. I had no problem finishing it off. Ramen boy would have ordered this sans veggies. Just the meat, noodles and broth. I suppose that would be the true tantanmen taste test. Next time butter corn miso ramen to take me down memory lane.

Ju Hachi by Taka’s
1730 S Street
Sacramento , CA 95814
916-448-3481

Sacramento, CA

Takumi Izakaya Bar

Posted on March 15, 2017

Jury duty and an extra long lunch break has given me the opportunity to check out nearby restaurants. I had heard Takumi serves a $50 bowl of lobster ramen and I admit it turned me off from trying the place. The most expensive ramen I have had in the U.S. has been either at Ippudo in New York or Ramen Shop in Oakland. All under $20 still. The thought of spending $50 for a bowl of ramen in my opinion is gimmicky. Ramen is just not fancy food. Go ahead and dress it up all you want but the most important elements are simply the noodles and the broth.

I ordered the miso ramen. The chashu was delicious with just the right amount of fat. I prefer a  soft yolk to the point of runny but these were pretty darn close and very tasty. Unfortunately the broth lacked depth and was a tad too oily. The menma (bamboo) tasted off as well. Even though the ramen was underwhelming the service was above and beyond excellent.

My six week jury duty stint has really made me one tough customer. I have come back another time and ordered the bento lunch with mixed tempura and gyoza. Once again the food didn’t wow me but thumbs up to the service. I kept thinking maybe I ordered the wrong dishes judging from the happy diners around me thoroughly enjoying their food. Keeping an open mind I should try their happy hour and will have to try their yakitori dishes and sushi another time. Ramen boy can try their tantanmen. That will be the true test.

Third time lucky.

Takumi Izakaya Bar
826 J. Street
Sacramento, CA
(916) 228-4095
@TakumiSacramento

Sacramento, CA

Shoki Ramen Shamrock Ready

Posted on March 6, 2017

Bonding time with ramen boy over some noodles after his soccer training. We can be creatures of habit and order the same thing. I thought I’d change it up and order the curry ramen but the Matcha soy milk ramen caught my eye. I like drinking green tea but having it in a ramen broth I was a bit skeptical. The broth was subtle with a green tea flavor but matcha has a slight chalky bitterness to it which is hard to mask. I was impressed that the flavor was smooth and coated the noodles with each bite. Simply adorned with chashu, bean sprouts, fresh spinach and seaweed.

I think the chef created this ramen when Shoki Ramen was featured at The Ramen Lab in New York during the summer. Timely with St. Patrick’s Day coming up and I am glad that I tried it.

Going to stick with the usual in the future though. After all, Shoki Ramen makes a mean bowl of tantanmen.

Portland, OR

Hapa PDX

Posted on January 8, 2017

I really wanted to check out this ramen food cart. Since the boys were getting haircuts and I needed my morning cup of coffee we wandered across the street from the barbershop to a cute cafe called Qui Presse. They didn’t want anything so I ordered a cup of coffee and some toast with butter and jam. The woman who took my order said she would bring it out to my table when it was done. She brought over two large thick pieces of toasted bread with a slab of butter and homemade apricot jam slathered over it. Ramen boy took one look at it and suddenly wanted to share it with me. The bread was super crusty on the outside but the inside was chewy soft goodness. You could see the air pockets in the bread with a slight pungency and just the right amount of salt to it. It was the best bread I’ve had in ages and I am comparing it to the bread I had in Japan and France. The owner of this cafe sources her bread from her boyfriend. Her boyfriend is Ken Forkish a well-known Portland baker with a James Beard pedigree. This simple toast was absolutely sublime.

A bit later we went for a walk around the Southeast Division. Hapa PDX is situated on a corner with some other food carts and had picnic tables with heaters. It was pretty brisk out so we were looking forward to a bowl of steaming noodles to warm us up. We ordered tonkotsu ramen. The broth was nice and creamy and mine was simply adorned with chashu, scallions, bamboo and egg. It was tasty but not noteworthy and only because the bread I had earlier was so good I was still thinking about it.

I love the food truck/cart concept. No doubt this place is a popular noodle establishment since many of its customers were willing to slurp noodles in the cold. Sorry Hapa PDX we promise to come again to enjoy your ramen.

Hapa PDX
TidBit Food, Farm and Garden Center
SE Division St & SE 28th Pl
Portland, OR 97202

Portland, OR

Marukin Ramen – SE Ankeny

Posted on January 3, 2017

We had to try the other Marukin Ramen outpost and figured it was the perfect meal right before the Portland Trailblazers and Sacramento Kings basketball game. Winter evenings in Portland get bone chilly so we were looking forward to a bowl of noodles to warm us up before we took Uber to the Moda Center. Ramen boy and his dad ordered the tonkotsu shoyu ramen with just chashu and I decided to try the paitan shio that is only served three times a week. This had a rich creamy chicken broth seasoned with sea salt. The noodles were springy and al dente and the toppings were spinach, bamboo shoots, kikurage mushrooms leeks, green onion, chashu pork and soft boiled egg. My favorite bowl of ramen in Portland so far and the most economical bowl at $11. Seriously a delicious good deal.

Ramen boy didn’t want to be late for the game so we rushed through our meal. Needless to say the game was unbelievably painful to watch and I’m not a huge basketball fan. Portland fans, perhaps most fans in general, despise DeMarcus Cousins and since ramen boy is a devout Kings fan I was a bit worried about his safety.

Not all was a loss though. We had Salt & Straw ice cream. Sea salt with caramel ribbons is absolutely the best. The last time we were in Portland I ate Salt & Straw ice cream every day. Fortunately for my waist this time it was a tad too cold for daily consumption.

Marukin Ramen – SE Ankeny
609 SE Ankeny, Suite A
Portland, OR

Portland, OR

Marukin Ramen

Posted on December 28, 2016

Marukin Ramen takes me down memory lane. My first time was when my grandmother had passed away and my mother and I flew in from California for the memorial. We were blurry eyed from the trip when my friend suggested getting noodles. It was a snowy day and the Tokyo streets were empty when he drove us to the outskirts of Shirokane for a bowl of ramen. This was over twenty years ago.

The last time I went to Marukin Ramen in Tokyo was with ramen boy and his dad. It was also a memorable visit since I got a parking ticket which took me to the police station in tears. I truly didn’t plan to cry but the police officers took pity on me. Let’s just say our ramen that day was an expensive one.

Portland is truly a foodie town with really good and authentic Japanese ramen. I doubt we will be able to touch all of the ramen joints while we are here but luckily we have not just one but two Marukin Ramen restaurants to choose from. We tried the downtown location which is definitely a Portland experience. The restaurant is inside a food hall called the Pine Street Market amongst other food establishments. You order your food in advance and then take a seat with your number so that the food is brought out to you. It’s conveniently modern with bright bold colors inviting you in. The polar opposite of what greets you in Tokyo which is in an out of the way location with a pretty shabby interior. It’s all about the ramen.

So we were skeptical. The gyozas came out first and the boys inhaled both orders. It was that tasty. I tried one and had to agree the gyozas were pretty delightful. I ordered the tonkotsu red ramen with a spicy tonkotsu broth topped with spinach, kikurage mushrooms, bamboo shoots, leeks, green onion, chashu pork and a soft boiled egg. At first I thought the bowl looked too oily imagining it would be overpowering. The noodles were cooked perfectly and the ratio of the soup and noodles along with the toppings were delicious. The egg was divine. The ramenheads in my family were quite content with their bowls too.

Our other go to place in Portland is Nong’s Khao Man Gai’s chicken rice and so we were very pleasantly surprised to discover that the other Marukin is right next door.

No doubt it won’t be our last bowl of noodles in Portland.

Marukin Ramen
126 SW 2nd Avenue
Portland, Oregon

Packaged Ramen

Clearspring Shoyu Ramen

Posted on November 25, 2016

The last packaged ramen hubby brought back from London was so awful (cool Marks and Spencer packaging though) that I swore off the stuff if it came from the UK. Not too long ago he brought back another discovery that he thought looked promising but I was skeptical and hid it on the shelf. However desperate times calls for desperate measures when you are hungry and with an empty pantry.

The brand is called Clearspring and the shoyu packet was liquid instead of powder and that was a plus. The brown rice noodles cooked perfectly with a bit of a spring to them instead of turning out mushy. I kept it simple by adding thin sliced rare steak and dried seaweed with kimchi on the side. It was a decent satisfying bowl of noodles. Would I make it again after all there is one more packet left? Probably not but I will keep it in the pantry for ramen boy since he does experiment and makes noodle concoctions with leftover dried noodles.

Hubby leaves again for London and asked for requests. Let’s definitely skip the ramen this time. Marks & Spencer crisps are the way to go.

Sacramento, CA

Kru

Posted on November 13, 2016

A much needed night out with hubby and our friends at Kru’s new location in East Sacramento.  It’s a wonderful addition to the neighborhood with outdoor seating and a stunning interior which is open, airy and inviting and with a handsome sushi bar to boot.

We were in a sushi state of mind but I knew for the sake of this blog I would have to try one of the ramen offerings and so I ordered the cold tea smoked duck ramen for us to sample. Impeccable presentation with the soy dashi carefully poured into the dish at the table. The dish came with thinly sliced rare duck over cold noodles and garnished with shaved radish, two tempura green beans (I snagged both actually my favorite part of the dish), micro greens, seaweed and masago or tobiko. It was hidden from the photo I took and now I can’t recall which fish roe it was. I’d prefer they didn’t include the roe since it didn’t add anything to the dish and was more of a distraction. However put in some ikura with the optional poached shrimp and I would be singing a different tune.

It was a delicious evening out and we will be back again soon. The ramen was good but not the main attraction. Definitely the go to place for sushi and my new favorite Peter Rabbit cocktail with Botanist Gin, Lime, Elderflower Syrup and Gifford Elderflower Liqueur.

Kru
3135 Folsom Blvd.
Sacramento, CA
(916) 551-1559

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My pretty friend about to dig into the raw oysters.