the ramen blog & other goodies!

This is what happens when you wait a full year before reviewing a restaurant…I went to Ramen Setagaya’s University Place location a couple of months after it opened last year, and now, when I’ve finally gotten my act together enough to write the review, I find out it closed about a month ago. Sigh.

I was in New York for only two nights on a business trip, and my first attempt at dining at Ramen Setagaya resulted in a fail. I decided to go to Ippudo instead the second night, and after walking for an hour around Union Square Park to digest, I got ambitious. I headed to Setagaya again, determined to get in a last ramen hurrah before I left.

Located about a 15-minute walk away from Ippudo, Ramen Setagaya @ University Park is worlds apart in terms of both taste and ambiance. Ippudo is dark and trendy. Setagaya is bright and down-to-earth. Ippudo’s ramen is deep and rich. Setagaya specializes in the lighter shio ramen.

I immediately liked Setagaya’s atmosphere, from the irasshaimase! when you enter, to the brick walls and the counter facing the open kitchen. The menu gives you a very different impression. Their menu reads like something you’d find at a Michelin-starred restaurant filled with people in tuxedos sipping martinis shaken, not stirred. Reading about “best ingredients from Japan (90% importing from Japan),” “Vietnam’s Kahn Hoa sea salt” used in the shio ramen, apparently one of the “three best salts in the world,” and the “best premium Japanese soy sauce, Sekigahara Tamari Shoyu, for Imperial Family,” I suddenly felt a bit underdressed. Undeterred, I ordered a simple bowl of shio ramen.

While I waited for my ramen, I looked around and took pictures, snapping a few extra pics of the cook grilling chashu, who was eyeing me suspiciously and/or posing for the camera. The place has the warm look and feel of a friendly little ramenya in Any-machi (town), Japan.

When the ramen arrived, the artistic presentation of the ramen made me smile. I slurped away, savoring the clean and light salty broth and the chewy noodles. To be honest, I lost my notes and I can’t quite remember all the details of the ramen. I do remember thinking “this is what all the food hosts on Japanese TV shows mean when they say things like ‘Heee, I can taste the ocean!’” after sipping the clear soup. I can also say I thoroughly enjoyed the grilled, tasty pork and the hanjuku egg, a personal weakness of mine. The light, refreshing ramen and the friendly atmosphere ended my trip on a perfect note, and I’m sad that this particular location closed down.

I may not remember some of the details of my ramen, but I do remember being as impressed with Ramen Setagaya as I was with Ippudo NY, except for different reasons. Ramen Setagaya’s shio ramen gets a satisfying 7.5.

Ramen Setagaya
90 University Place (Bet. 11th & 12th Street) This location is now closed.
Try their main location at 141 First Ave., New York, NY 10003
Tel: 212-529-2740

It’s been a while since my last trip to New York. It’s been so long that instead of having to go to Ippudo, New York again, Ippudo came to Costa Mesa. So how did the Costa Mesa experience compare to “the real deal” in the Big Apple? (more…)

It’s not every day that I feel like…or at least pretend to be Jack Bauer. On a recent trip to New York, though, I had such a tight schedule that I constantly heard the “beep-clunk…beep-clunk…” of the advancing “24″ clock.

I had it all planned out. I would arrive in New York at 9:15pm. I only had carry-on luggage so I figured I could get out of the airport by 9:30. I should be able to get to my hotel by 10, check in, drop off my luggage, then go to Ippudo. According to Google Maps, I should be able to take the subway and get there in about 30 mins. Perfect. Ippudo closes at 11pm. (more…)

In Vancouver, it’s Menya vs. Benkai.

In prison, it’s Bread vs. ramen?

And on TV: ever try the “#2 challenge” at L.A.’s Orochon? The TV show Man v. Food gives it a shot on the Feb 18 episode.

Find out if Asa Ramen in Gardena “does what ramen should do.”

Can a master ramen chef be too popular to retire? If he’s the founder of Taishoken in Tokyo, the answer is a resounding yes.

“Making Ramen Sexy.” Oh yeah!

Ever have to fill out an application to eat a bowl of ramen? Ichiran Ramen in NYC will be member’s only. Is it worth it?

If you live in Japan and like ramen, or just like looking at pictures of ramen, get a free PDF issue of RamenBank magazine. via Ramen Tokyo

The Tops:

• Top 15 ramen dishes in Sydney
• GoRamen’s 2008 Southern California ramen ratings
• The rameniac 2009 king of the bowl rankings

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Join the quest for the best ramen in Vancouver.

There must be something in the water–I mean ramen at Foo Foo Tei…Exile Kiss joins in the 31 day ramen challenge.

inspired by Iron Chef Morimoto’s NYC ramen challenge, NYU Local visits the East Village ramenyas.

Take the Menya Ramen Godzilla Challenge: eat a 2+kg bowl of ramen in under 30 minutes, and be immortalized on their wall of fame.

It’s the Brooklyn Kitchen Ramen-Off…and the winner…the pepperoni pizza ramen pie (with recipe!)

Not quite ramen, and more thimble than bowl, but who can eat 383 bowls of soba in 10 mins?

What are you doing November 9? If you’re in NYC, you should be at The Brooklyn Kitchen Ramen-Off! (thanks to Not Eating Out In New York)

It looks like New Yorkers are having all the fun this month. Join the Nippon Food Club of NYC on their ongoing mission to find the best ramenya in New York.

For hardcore ramen fans only: make your own tonkotsu ramen. From scratch. Seriously.

I’ve mentioned this before: Tomato Ramen fans (you know who you are) need to head to Foo Foo Tei to try their Beef Tomato ramen!

New York’s Ippudo is offering six new seasonal ramen, including a Tomato Ramen (I’m starting to see a pattern here) and a simple but delicious-looking Tori Ramen.

Vancouver has another new ramenya, the simply named menya (“noodle store”).

Can a ramenya succeed in the land of pasta (or, wow! there’s ramen in Florence?!?)

Wondering how to survive after college? Here’s a chance to win a free copy of the book Ramen Noodles, Rent and Resumes: An After-College Guide to Life!