Tag Archives: Miyabi on 45th

Food, Restaurant

Ramen by the Numbers on 45th in Wallingford

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Fresh from my eleventh trip to Japan, I’m remaining vigilant in my ramen watch for Seattle. There have been numerous changes since my comprehensive critique of our ramen scene in 2011, many of those changes happening on the north side of the city.

Taichi Kitamura did indeed develop a ramen recipe (actually, more than one), serving up some of my favorite ramen at Showa until the izakaya closed recently. Aloha Ramen, which I like less, plans to move from Greenwood to Lake City late in the summer, putting them out of desirable geographic reach for many.

Boom Noodle has gone downhill since the departure of executive chef Jonathan Hunt. Consistency always varied among its shops, with the ramen best wherever Hunt was present. There’s a similar problem with Samurai Noodle, though on its better days it might be tops in the Seattle area. That said, I still enjoy “grandma’s ramen” at Tsukushinbo, which also happens to be the best bargain of all.

I’ve yet to try Kukai in Bellevue, partly because I’ve heard negative reviews from the local Japanese community. Meanwhile, I await the opening of Tanaka-san, though with concern that the ramen might be too high-end.

In that developing Nihonmachi in Wallingford, there are two options in the world of ramen. 4649 Restaurant (aka “Yoroshiku,” which is a way to read the numbers aloud, and means “pleased to meet you”), in the former Joule space on 45th, serves shio ramen, pictured above. At $9.50 for the basic, the bowl is a little on the small side and the broth a bit bland (it needs more shio punch), though the chashu is good. (Reason, perhaps, to order the meatier chashu-men for $11.95.)

Incidentally, I found the meat portions of the yakitori to be meager as well. Better at 4649 are the salads. Ruibe, which is Hokkaido-style beef carpaccio over vegetables, served with ponzu dressing, is a fine choice for freshness and flavor. The other salads (choices include tofu, salmon, ramen, and a 4649 house salad) looked delicious as well, and I’ve heard good things about them from numerous diners.

A little further east on the same street, Miyabi 45th is doing a ramen pop-up this coming Sunday and Monday. Mutsuko Soma makes some exquisite soba, and while she won’t be making ramen noodles this time around, she’s putting a lot of effort into the broth (bet on bone marrow for some flavoring) and toppings. Soma will be serving shoyu ramen (my favorite type) which will come in three varieties: basic ($12), chashu ($14, with five slices of pork), and Jiro-style ($17, with a double portion of noodles and “a mountain of everything”). You’ll want to call the restaurant to reserve, as seating will be limited. Soma says she’ll continue ramen pop-ups if these two are successful—based on her standard of quality, I’m sure they will be.

While ramen in Seattle still lags far behind what you’ll find in Vancouver/Richmond and Japan, at least the bowls (most, that is) are better than a ramen experience I had last week in Tokyo. I happened to be in the city during a brief promotion of ramen burgers at Lotteria, a fast-food chain. At a hefty 634 yen (as with 4649, there’s wordplay happening, as 634 can be read as “musashi”—the noted Menya Musashi chain is providing the ramen for the promotion) per burger, it served notice that I much prefer my ramen noodles in a soup bowl than in a bun, whether in Japan or here in Seattle.

Food, Restaurant

New “Nihonmachi” Bring Japanese Food (and Morimoto!) to Seattle and Bellevue

While Seattle’s original Nihonmachi (“Japan Town” or “Japan Street”) is, of course, in the International District, the popularity of Japanese food may be creating new “Nihonmachi” in the area.

Take, for example, 45th Street in Wallingford. Here there’s been a trio of Japanese restaurants: the ever-popular sushi joint Musashi’s, the classic-cooking Kozue, and the fairly new izakaya called Issian.

Now you can add two new places to the mix.

Yoroshiku has quietly opened in the old Joule location on 45th. Visit their website and you might think the restaurant name is 4649, but this is just a bit of Japanese wordplay. 4649 can be read as yoroshiku, roughly translated to “nice to meet you.” (Check the Wikipedia page for other examples, including my favorite: 3.14159265 (pi), which can be read “san-i-shi-i-ko-ku-ni-mu-ko” [産医師異国に向こう], meaning “an obstetrician goes to foreign country.”)

The restaurant is serving some Hokkaido specialties, as well as yakitori and other kushi (grilled food on skewers). The items are less daring than even Kushibar’s offerings, which I don’t think are interesting enough (in Japan, I’ve eaten diaphragm and uteri and other crazy parts, with an eye on a restaurant serving “oppai teats” and vocal chords), but early reports are that the quality is good.

Scheduled to open next month is Miyabi on 45th. This branch of Miyabi Sushi in Southcenter will be located in the old Rain Sushi location and will feature “Japanese Northwest” cuisine, with a special emphasis on handmade soba. At the helm will be Mutsuko Soma (pictured, above), who has been having soba pop-up meals in the past months (see my two reports), and of late has doing soba in the Southcenter restaurant. She currently has a target opening date of December 20, challenging herself to be ready for New Year’s Eve to serve the traditional toshikoshi soba.

But it’s not just Wallingford where you’ll find new Japanese food, as Bellevue is also getting into the act. It’s there that Kukai will open next month, becoming the first Japanese ramen chain to come to the Seattle area. And based on this recent job posting on Craigslist, it looks like Morimoto will be bringing his brand to Bellevue next year, which is sure to be a big deal. To all of this I say “Ganbare, Nihon-ryori” –and bring on more Nihonmachi.