“Chabuton’s mission is to create the perfect bowl of ramen…Our food is meant to feed the soul…and provide sensitivity that touches your entire being.” (Shiver)…I get all quivery just thinking about it. On the downside? It’s in a Japanese market food court.
Chabuton opened last year inside the Marukai supermarket in Costa Mesa, and the food court seems to have been in constant construction since. My wife and I finally decided to give it a try recently, with low expectations. Boy were we in for a pleasant surprise…
First, a bit of background. Chabuton (and its sister store Chabuya) is owned by chef Yasuji Morizumi, a reputed ramen “master” with a chain of ramen restaurants in Tokyo, Osaka, and Yokohama. I just realized that Chabuya even has it’s own special bowl noodle. Its pedigree is one of the reasons we decided to give this food court ramen restaurant a try.
Chabuton specializes in a shoyu-tonkotsu ramen that utilizes “Mongolian salt and natural Canadian pork” among the ingredients in their ramen. We tried the combo, with the “classic” ramen, and a small Pork Rice Bowl. The ramen comes with skinny noodles typical of tonkotsu style ramen. Guess what? It’s pretty darn good!
One thing I wasn’t too crazy about were the fried onions that topped the ramen. I didn’t think it added much to the ramen. However the noodles were solid, and the broth was very flavorful and piping hot. The soup has a rich, deep pork flavor and is very heavy. I’ve heard complaints about Chabuya’s soup being too salty, but Chabuton’s broth is well-balanced in that respect. One complaint I have though, is that the soup is a bit too oily. It’s definitely a heavy soup, and people who prefer lighter soups will think it’s too much, and that the oil makes it hard to stomach. I did finish every last drop of it.
The pork deserves it’s own paragraph. The best pork I’ve had outside of Japan was at Daikokuya Ramen in L.A. That experience was marred by a somewhat lackluster soup. Chabuton’s pork was just as good as Daikokuya’s pork. You get one large thin slice of pork with the “Classic” (do yourself a favor and shell out for the extra slices). You can see the marbled fat glistening off the pork and it’s so tender it practically breaks apart when you try to pick it up. Just the pork alone was worth the trip.
The last item we tried was the Pork Rice Bowl. It’s a bowl of really fluffy rice fried up in their “original sauce” along with tiny bits of chashu, topped with lots of green onions, sesame seeds, and nori (seaweed). The rice bowl was surprisingly light. It almost reminded me of a salad, with all the nori and green onions. Though the pork bits were tiny, you could taste it in every bite, and the overall combination makes for a really refreshing snack. I still prefer the more flavorful fried rice from other restaurants like Ebisu or Shinsengumi, but my wife thinks Chabuton’s Pork Rice Bowl is the clear winner.
Don’t be put off by the atmosphere (or lack thereof) of a supermarket food court. This hidden gem is worth a try.
Chabuton get’s an 8 and gets my vote for the one of the best ramen houses in Orange County!
chabuton ramen noodles
(inside the Marukai Market)
2975 Harbor Blvd
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 825?0608
Woohoo! I will try this place tomorrow, Thanks for what sounds like a great find! 🙂
What happened to Chabuton!? It closed and it now replaced by some Super Udon place.
I don’t think restaurants do well there. I used to live by there and regret never being able to try Chabuton. I also heard it was pretty good. How’s Super Udon?
Yeah, I rarely see more than a handful of people in that food court. I can’t believe even the Hawaiian bbq place closed too. That place is always busy at the Torrance Marukai. I’ve never tried Super Udon, but from what I’ve heard, it’s quantity over quality.