Kopan Ramen is a tonkotsu ramen chain that has multiple locations in L.A. county. They have one location in Fullerton, which is where I headed. The ramen is customizable: you pick the size, spice level (0 to 3), the choice of meat (pork belly chashu, fatty pork, or chicken breast). All ramen come with green…
plumeria cafe – laguna niguel, ca
Raise your hand if you go to places that specialize in Hawaiian and breakfast dishes and you order the ramen instead 🙋‍♂️ Is it just me? Plumeria Cafe is a cafe nestled in the Laguna Design Center that was created by the people behind Stacks Pancake House. They recently introduced a Yokohama-Style ramen that’s a…
yoshiharu ramen – orange, ca
Yoshiharu is another ramen shop that specializes in tonkotsu ramen, but interestingly enough, they don’t seem to offer a “straight” tonkotsu ramen. They have tonkotsu shoyu, tonkotsu miso, a tonkotsu spicy miso, tonkotsu black, and a tsukemen. And a vegetable ramen. They also offer a few options on the accoutrements. You can order the chashu…
ramain39 ramen izakaya – huntington beach, ca
Another day, another new ramen shop! Ramain39 (named after the intersection they’re on), opened just a couple of months ago and still has a slight “new store” smell. Ramain39 specializes in tonkotsu, so I went with the black ramen version. I was warned it’s spicy. Bring it! The fully loaded ramen comes with black bonito,…
fukusuke japanese ramen dining – fountain valley, ca
Fukusuke opened last year in a location that seems to be cursed…there’ve been at least 2 different restaurants there in the past few years. Fukusuke offers a wide variety of ramen, including the majors: shoyu, miso, shio, and tonkotsu. I decided to go with the “Tokyo Style” Shoyu, with a side order of soft boiled…
hironori ramen – irvine, ca
Irvine has a new fancy food hall, and it has a new ramen shop! HiroNori, a “Craft Ramen” shop, is the brainchild of partners Hiromichi and Tadanori (get it?), two Japanese natives who’re apparently making everything from scratch, including their noodles. Intrigued? So am I! First, the TRADE Food Hall plaza, where HiroNori Rame is…
ramen & chanko dining torizo – fountain valley, ca
A new ramen shop…in Orange County…that *doesn’t* specialize in tonkotsu ramen?? It doesn’t even serve tonkotsu ramen??? YES! As much as I like tonkotsu ramen, I’m still a shoyu guy. But hmm…Torizo has yuzu shio, which is tough to find around here. And speaking of tough to find, Torizo can be tough to find from…
momofuku ramen – las vegas, nv
I have never been to Momofuku. I’ve been curious about Momofuku since they first opened, and Momofuku owner and chef David Chang’s constantly rising stardom just made me more and more curious. I’ve been to New York countless times, but there is so much great ramen there that somehow, I’ve just never made it there.…
momosan ramen & sake – new york, ny
I’ve been to Iron Chef Morimoto’s restaurant in New York, and it really lived up to the hype (and I got to meet the man himself!). Skewers, his restaurant at LAX, on the other hand, was a disappointment. But still, I was excited to hear about Momosan Ramen, his newly opened ramen shop and couldn’t…
skewers by morimoto – los angeles, ca
Sure, it’s a skewers restauant, not a ramenya, and sure it’s at an airport…and LAX at that…but it’s a Morimoto (of Iron Chef fame) restaurant, so it’s worth a try? There’s only one ramen on the menu: the Ramen Pork Noodle bowl (non-spicy). I’m not entirely sure why it’s necessary to call out that it’s…
ramen ajido izakaya – torrance, ca
I hate going into L.A. because of all the traffic, but on the plus side, I get to try out new ramenyas. I chanced upon Ramen Ajido Izakaya recently and was excited to give them a try. Even though the small restaurant was non-descript from the outside, I was greeted warmly by the lady (owner?)…
kikka sushi/whole foods – irvine, ca
I know, I know…I really shouldn’t be expecting much from a sushi place, let alone a sushi place inside a supermarket. But I mean, it is a Whole Foods, and I’ve had decent to great food in their food court. I ordered the spicy tonkotsu ramen, and watched them make it to order. That’s a…