the ramen blog & other goodies!

For those of you in the Bay Area next week, what’re you doing Wednesday night? If you’re a ramen fan, the answer should be “I’m gonna be at the For the Love of Ramen event! Duh!” That’s right, next Wednesday the 24th, the Asian Culinary Forum is hosting a panel of “noodle experts who will explore how a dish born of extreme need after World War II was transformed into a meal of luxury, endless regional specialties, and then, finally, an iconic convenience food that so many of us crave.”

Join panelists Eric Nakamura, publisher and co-editor of Giant Robot magazine, Andy Raskin, author of the Ramen King and I, George Solt, assistant professor of history at New York University, and Thy Tran, director of the Asian Culinary Forum, at the San Francisco Ferry Building for a night of fun, education, and Japanese nibbles and drinks.

You can register online for the forum. Admission is $20, or $15 for full-time students with an ID. Over 70 people have already registered, so get there early to get the best seat in the house!

Chibakiya is coming to Costa Mesa with their Shina Soba!
6/4(Thu) – 6/7(Sun) Costa Mesa Store
6/11(Thu) – 6/14(Sun) New Jersey Store
Just in time! I’ve been having cravings for hanjuku eggs recently.

And if you prefer miso ramen and/or live in Torrance:

Ezo Fukuro will be there with their Miso Butter Corn Ramen
6/4(Thu) – 6/7(Sun) Torrance Store

Sorry folks, I’ve been too busy to post much, so I’m just going to refer you to the Mitsuwa web site for more details. Have fun!

Those of you who missed out on the limited edition at Santouka last month now have another chance. The Santouka Ramen in the Torrance Mitsuwa is now offering the Awase Aji ramen. As with before, the ramen is limited to 20 bowls a day, and the event is going on from Friday 4/24 to Monday 4/27.

If you get the chance to try this ramen, leave a comment and let us know what you think!

Santouka Ramen
(inside Mitsuwa Supermarket)
21515 Western Ave.
Torrance, CA 90501
(310) 782-0335
(Cash only)
Santouka opens at 11am.

They’re doing it again! A few weeks ago, Santouka Ramen offered a special toromi shoyu ramen, limited to 20 bowls a day. Now they’re back with another special ramen, also limited to 20 bowls a day, and limited only to the Costa Mesa store for their 20th anniversary. This time, the ramen appears to be a miso base, and is called the Awase Aji Ramen.

I’m not sure if this is a cool new trend, or a marketing scheme gone berserk. Either way, if the ramen is good, I’ll keep coming back for more!

The special is happening this weekend, Friday 3/27 through Monday 3/30 and only at the Costa Mesa Mitsuwa.

In time for Valentine’s Day, Lotte has teamed up with ramen shop Menya Musashi 麺屋武蔵 (with several branches in the Tokyo area) to create a chocolate flavored ramen. The ramen will be called Ghana Miso (Ghana is one of Lotte’s brands of chocolates) and will be served from now until February 15. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) this isn’t as strange and/or fantastic as it sounds: the chocolate is only used as an ingredient in the ground pork topping and not as a soup ingredient. Too bad. That might’ve been more interesting.

source: Trends in Japan

Cup Noodle fanatics rejoice (at least if you’re in Japan. Cup Noodle fans in other countries can simply sulk in the corner)! Enter the My Vending Machine contest before the end of March to win one of 3000 home Cup Noodle vending machines!

I’m not sure what the point is: if pouring hot water into a styrofoam cup isn’t challenging enough for you, this rube goldberg machine is right up your alley. Frankly, I don’t care that it’s not particularly practical. I would definitely eat more Cup Noodles if I had one of these. I want one!

via Trends in Japan