the ramen blog & other goodies!

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!

My favorite iron chef has always been Masaharu Morimoto. Maybe I’m biased because I had the opportunity to meet him in person at his Morimoto restaurant in New York, but I’ve always preferred his quiet, unpretentious style over some of his counterparts’ tendency to be more flashy. And unlike some other “celebrity” sushi restaurants that are more hype than substance (cough, Nobu, cough), Morimoto the restaurant is not only amazingly good, but (relatively) reasonably priced, but I digress…

NY Magazine recently featured a two part article on ramen, featuring Morimoto’s tips on ramen and his pick of the 5 best ramenyas in New York City.

I’ve only visited Rai Rai Ken, his number five choice, but was a bit surprised (spoiler alert) to see him choose Momofuku as #1. I’ve never eaten there before, but from what I’ve heard, Momofuku Noodle Bar (emphasis mine) is really more of…well, a noodle bar than a ramenya.

So can any NYC ramen patrons out there chime in? Does Morimoto-san know ramen? Is a trip to NYC in my future?

Feeling a bit hungry after that bowl of instant ramen? Maybe it’s because there’s a bit less ramen in that bowl.

Even gourmet chefs like ramen. Here’s a gourmet ramen recipe from 20 year veteran chef chefRob.

If sumo champions recommend a ramenya, it’s gotta be good, right? Sumo great Konishiki and yokozuna (grand champion) Musashimaru both rave about Tenkaippin Ramen in Kapahulu, Hawaii.

Ma Ru Yu’s kurogama (black sesame) ramen: what lurks beneath its murky surface? No less than three brave souls weigh in on this ramen’s darkest (get it? get it?) secrets.

If black sesame ramen isn’t special enough for you, you can make your own buttermilk ramen!

If anyone’s in China for the Olympics next week and finds that special someone, remember to take them out for ice cream, not ramen. Ramen was rated the least popular place to take a date. Least?! Whaa–?!?     (Oops, sorry folks, I’ve had this link since March and it looks like the article is subscriber-only now.)

Garlic ramen at Minca, in New York City. Need I say more?

It seems like Santouka Ramen is everywhere now. Here’s a review of San Diego’s Santouka, and two takes on one in Singapore.

The SF Chronicle has a great guide to cold noodles for a hot summer in the Bay Area (including recipes!).

Heading out to Japan? Arm yourself with the Washington Post’s guide to ramen in Tokyo.