Tag Archives: Motomachi Shokudo

Food, Restaurant

What’s Wrong with Ramen in Seattle? It’s Wramen.

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TanakaSan’s tonkotsu ramen with soba-like whole wheat noodles and an “umami bomb” of dried mushrooms, parmesan rind, kombu (kelp), and duck fat ($13)

Gomen na. That’s Japanese for “I’m sorry,” and something I want to state from the outset. I really hate to be a wet noodle about our ramen boom, but as someone who’s spent considerable time in Japan, I’ve been feeling a little sad about the state of ramen in Seattle.

During one of my 12 trips to Japan, I remember being glued to the TV watching a show dedicated to ramen. In it, three experts traveled restaurant to restaurant judging ramen quality. When deeming a bowl bad, an expert would bow his head, solemnly say “Gomen na,” and simply walk out of the place.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wanted to do the same here.

I’m seeing so many chefs falling in love with ramen (understandably so!) and making it themselves—putting their own spins on it. When I try their creations, I’m confused. Something about the noodles, the soup, and the toppings is just not right.

As a result, I worry that ramen will lose its authenticity. People will soon think of it as misguidedly as many think of sushi: rolls that would be foreign in Japan. No native Japanese chef would sandwich cream cheese and hot pepper jelly into rice and call it sushi. Similarly, you won’t find ramen made with sous vide short ribs and candied carrots in the Land of the Rising Sun. But, all too often, that’s the direction the dish is taking in the United States.

So I’m calling for a change in nomenclature. Just as I don’t think we should call sushi rolls “sushi,” I think we need another name for Westernized ramen. Here’s my proposal. If you’re trying to make authentic Japanese ramen, continue to call it by its original name: ramen. But if you’re not trying to be authentic, then let’s call your creation something new: Wramen. Pronounced double-u ramen, it indicates a version that you wouldn’t expect to see in Japan.

Authentic ramen transports me to Tokyo (or Hakata, or Hokkaido), whereas if you’re using parmesan cheese, fried chicken or oysters, apple slices, smoked kielbasa, or tofu, that’s Wramen. The same is true for foie gras, duck confit, duck fat, and duck anything. (Do American chefs depend on duck fat to get depth of flavor that they can’t seem to extract from pork/chicken bones and seafood?) Fancy ingredients take me far from Japan, often at fanciful pricing. At the same time, trying to make ramen too healthy renders a result of Wramen. While the Japanese love to eat seasonally, there’s no call for seasonal vegetables in ramen. And don’t get me started on vegetarian ramen. It’s a rarity in Japan. In fact, there’s little concern about fat/oil content and MSG in ramen—they’re an integral (and flavorful) part of the package.

The new name Wramen not only maintains the integrity of authentic ramen, it allows me to critique both types accordingly. And to just plain try to enjoy both of them. After all, some of the Wramen I’ve eaten has been daring and delicious. Then again, some Wramen has been a completely wreck.

Brimmer & Heeltap’s ramen with Chinese-style roast pork and Brussels sprout kimchi ($10)

Examples of the Wramen scene in Seattle:

  • Brimmer & Heeltap: The noodles in the “family meal ramen” are too spongy soft, but the flavors of the Chinese-style pork and the kimchi Brussels sprouts make this a delicious Wramen.
  • TanakaSan: The ever-changing ingredient combinations are intriguing (#3 includes smoked kielbasa and Savoy cabbage), though the use of soba-like whole wheat noodles is strange.
  • Mighty Ramen: The chef says he’s “going more for delicious than authentic,” using fresh, local ingredients, but this translates to weak soup, pork that’s too lean, and a high price for a small bowl. (An A for effort attempting handmade noodles, but they’re too chewy.)
  • Bloom: Fresh corn has shown the striving for seasonality, but was misplaced in the Showa tonkotsu ramen and the chicken shio ramen—with both soups weak and surprisingly indistinguishable from each other.
  • (Further afield, I’ve enjoyed ramen with pulled pork, fried chicken, and pickled mustard seeds in aioli at Boke Bowl in Portland, as well as a beef brisket and mirin-glazed bacon with mixed greens ramen at Burdock & Co. in Vancouver, BC. Both clearly Wramen, and both really good!)

Perhaps the best illustration of the Wramen trend comes from Boom Noodle. Jonathan Hunt visited Japan to immerse himself in the country’s cuisine upon getting the executive chef job at Boom, even apprenticing for a day under Ivan Orkin of Ivan Ramen fame. His ramen got to be quite good. But new management mandated an end to use of MSG, among other changes. Hunt eventually left and the ramen has since spiraled downward in quality, with the Tokyo (shoyu) ramen now resembling mushroom soup. It’s no wonder Boom is going bust as its restaurants close one by one.

In contrast to all the new Wramen, I’d like to see Seattle get a “real” ramen restaurant that scores three perfect 10s: 10 seats, 10-minute eating time, and a cap of $10 per bowl. Serve just ramen—specializing in only one or two types—and perhaps gyoza on the side. No cocktails, no big menu, no Western spins.

Redefining ramen in America will require educating diners and chefs alike. Just as the ramen master in Tampopo (a must -see “ramen Western” centered on a ramen shop) taught his disciple to have reverence for the bowl (“appreciate its gestalt” and “caress the surface with the chopstick tips…to express affection”), chefs should have reverence for ramen, too. They can start by identifying their bowls as authentic—or as Wramen. As a writer, I’ll be doing that, and invite others to do the same.

Where to Try Really Good “Real” Ramen in the Seattle Area

  1. Tsukushinbo: Home-style shoyu ramen served lunch-only on Fridays that cheap and good.
  2. 4649 Yoroshiku: Miso is best at this Sapporo-style restaurant that’s upped its focus on ramen for lunch
  3. Kukai: Yuzu-shio shines (others are okay) at this Bellevue restaurant reportedly expanding to Northgate and South Lake Union.
  4. Jinya: Decent tonkotsu (I’ve had it in Vancouver) due to arrive next week at Crossroads Mall.
  5. Santouka: Schedule to open in April in Bellevue, the specialty is tonkotsu, and it’s likely to be the best ramen in the Seattle area (again, I’ve had it in Vancouver).
  6. Biwa: If you’re headed to Portland, Biwa bests all of Seattle’s current ramen shops.
  7. G-men: This Richmond, BC restaurant serves my favorite ramen in the Pacific Northwest, truly transporting me to Japan (also good in Vancouver: Motomachi Shokudo).
4649 Yoroshiku’s miso ramen ($9.50)

Rules for Ramen (aka Why Ramen Might Not Succeed in Seattle, or Why the Lines at Ippudo in NYC Drive Me Crazy)

  1. Don’t order a cocktail, don’t go to the bathroom just before your ramen comes to the table, don’t dawdle once it arrives, and don’t let it cool off. Eat your ramen quickly so the soup is hot and the noodles don’t get soft.
  2. Don’t mix all the toppings. Pick at them intermittently, enjoying the various components. This is interactive eating.
  3. Don’t try to be politely quiet. Slurp, pulling in soup with the noodles, along with air to cool things off.
  4. Don’t complain about saltiness or fattiness. Ramen isn’t intended to be healthy food. Oil glistening on the surface of the soup is a good thing.
  5. Don’t wear your Sunday best when eating ramen. Expect oil stains, especially if you drink your soup from the bowl once you finish your noodles and toppings.
  6. Don’t linger. Leave when you finish so someone else can sit. Go get coffee or a cocktail elsewhere if you want to chat with your companion(s).

Note: As for some of the more notable, heretofore unmentioneds: Setsuna is pretty good but needs hotter soup and a little more depth of flavor. Samurai Noodle has disappointed of late with somewhat weak soup. Aloha Ramen offers a wide variety of bowls, but never quite wows me. (Their shio is my favorite of the shop.) Ramen Man comes closest to my vision of an ideal ramen shop setting, but the tori-paitan is too light for my taste, the chashu is too lean and cold, and the hard-boiled eggs don’t do much more than distract me.

More photos:

Mighty Ramen’s tosho ramen with marinated egg ($9)
Might Ramen’s noodles, exposed
Bloom’s chicken shio ramen ($13)
Bloom’s Showa tonkotsu ramen ($13)

 

Food, Restaurant, Travel

Escape from Seattle: A Japanese Interlude in Vancouver

In the second of three food reports from Vancouver (the previous covering some splurges and snacks), I offer a Japanese interlude. The featured eateries:

  • Kingyo
  • Gyoza King
  • Manzo Japanese Restaurant
  • Japadog
  • Benkei Ramen
  • Kintaro Ramen
  • Motomachi Shokudo
  • Hokkaido Ramen Santouka
  • G-Men Noodle House

Izakayas

Immediately after a multicourse meal elsewhere, this power eater kept a commitment to meet a friend at Kingyo, a hip izakaya with a sense of humor (check out the menu descriptions, coasters, etc.) off Robson in the West End of Vancouver. We sat at the counter, where I sampled sake in a traditional wooden box (well, in a glass with spillover into the box), and where we ordered a number of small plates. The sashimi is fresh and delicious, and the carpaccio dishes creative.  Must-have is the beef tongue, which comes thin-sliced and raw, ready for you to quickly cook on a hot stone. Be sure to eat with the yuzu red pepper and negi—the Japanese “leeks” which most restaurants in Seattle sadly don’t serve.

Due to challenges with my then-new camera, the only two items I can share are non-Japanese: bibimbop and tan tan noodles. With the noodles billed as “Famous Invincible & Undefeated,” I couldn’t resist, especially to compare to my own, as tan tan (or dan dan) is one of my emergency menu items when there’s nothing else to cook at home. This version is good, soupier than mine, with a spicy miso pork sauce that I enjoyed. With a cool vibe and great food, I’d be eager to return to Kingyo anytime.

Nearby is Gyoza King, which is much more traditional in its feel and its offerings. (See the interior shot at the top of this post.) It’s also fun, with good izakaya fare. This place begs for beer-drinking, and prices are reasonable. And Gyoza King is great for a group, as I was part of one evening, allowing a chance to sample many small plates. We had a large range of dishes, including, clockwise from top left, agedashi tofu, gyutan (beef tongue skewers), nankotsu karaage (fried chicken cartilage), and my favorite dish of the night: tako wasa (short for tako wasabi, or octopus with wasabi).

Richmond is seeing some izakaya action, and there’s a good one in the restaurant row of Alexandra Road. This is where I discovered Manzo Japanese Restaurant, my final stop of a three-part dinner. (The other two restaurants, not surprisingly, were Chinese, and I’ll include them in my final Vancouver report.) Like Kingyo and Gyoza King, Manzo is a welcoming izakaya with friendly service, though a little quieter (much to my liking) than other places.

The sashimi surpassed my expectations, reminding me that the quality of seafood is high in Vancouver—even in places not necessarily known for fish. The robata and kitchen items were also very good. Highlights of the dinner included, clockwise from the top left, a sashimi platter (with aji, kinmedai, amaebi, saba, and salmon), a plate of “yakitori” (enoki beef maki, tsukune, and chicken), live hotate yaki (grilled scallop), and my favorite dish of the meal: kamo no mustard (duck slices in sauce with spicy mustard).

Interlude-within-an-Interlude: Japadog

If you find yourself walking around Vancouver and see a hot dog stand, take a closer look. You may have stumbled upon Japadog, which puts a whole new twist on weiners. (We have a copy-cat Gourmet Dog Japon Dog, down at Pike Place Market, but I’ve yet to try it.)

These are fun hot dogs, and there are all kinds of possible combinations. You can have beef or pork (go kurobuta!), or even bratwurst. The oroshi is good, with grated daikon a nice complement to the meat. Terimayos are tempting; I can’t resist the squiggle of wasabi mayonnaise and thin slices of nori on my dog.

Ramen Shops

Benkei is a Canadian chain (which actually expanded to Japan) where I tried the akaoni ramen, seduced by the promise of a “burning sensation followed by the soothing delicious taste is going to make you come back for more.” Akaoni loosely translates to red demon, and the broth features “many kinds of spicy ingredients” mixed with miso, along with burned garlic-sesame oil. The minced pork is an interesting twist, reminding me of my version of dan dan noodles. Ultimately, I prefer a simpler ramen, but the flavor was good and the heat really hit the spot, intensifying as I ate quickly, and leaving me with a slightly sweaty upper lip and a smile.

Motomachi Shokudo takes pride in using organic chickens, eggs, and vegetables. I love the mission statement, which says they “are dedicated to serving well-balanced ramen with flavours of the earth, ocean, and culture.” Their nama-shoyu (unpasteurized, raw soy sauce) ramen is quite good, and the offering of burnt-oil flavored oil on the side is one you should experiment with, adding earthy depth to the broth. And be sure to try out the long, missile-like gyoza. They’re perfectly pan-seared and delicious.

Hokkaido Ramen Santouka is an import from Japan that seems to be the rage on Robson Street. Their menu discusses the secret to what they call their mild, pearl-colored tonkotsu soup (tonkotsu, or pork bone broth, is their specialty), saying that “we value the exceptional flavor and aroma of our signature soup and ensure that it isn’t diminished by boiling.” So if the temperature is a little low, that’s the explanation, but a chance to inform you that ramen should be eaten in seven minutes to maintain noodle integrity. Santouka, like Motomachi, features fresh, bright eggs and really good noodles.

Ah, Kintaro. This is the stalwart ramen joint in Vancouver. It’s full of rules, like no credit cards, no changes to the order, and no take out. The lines to get in can still be long, and the ambiance is a bit gritty feeling compared to the newer places. I’m not sure of the allure. The shoyu ramen is weak and watery. The pork is fattier than what I’ve had elsewhere, though that may be your preference. And don’t bother with an extra dollar for the egg, as it’s a sad gray color and lacking the bright yolk I found everywhere else. Even the gyoza at Kintaro is ordinary.

Last, but far from least, is G-Men Noodle Shop. It’s worth the trip to Richmond. You’ll need to do what I did, and go twice if you want to sample their different soups. Lunch is when they serve shoyu and shio (salt) versions, whereas evening brings the heavier tonkotsu shoyu and tonkotsu miso.

Be prepared to wait, but the wait is well worth it. I’ve had great ramen in Tokyo and environs, and this is close if not equal—and easily best I’ve had outside of Japan. The shoyu broth has a wonderfully pork-filled flavor while still being light—kissed by some very thin slices of yuzu. (I’m told there’s also shrimp paste adding its unique essence.) The jagged noodles are cooked just right, still a little firm to the tooth. The egg yolk is brilliantly yellow, and the chashu (pork) is tender and fatty. Fast forward to evening, and you’ll be equally satisfied with the richer tonkotsu broth. G-Men is part of the Gyoza King group. I can’t wait to return, as well as to also try Gyo-O, serving seafood donburi and more in the same shopping center.

Hey, Gyoza guys, can you please expand to Seattle?

As much as I love Japanese food in Seattle, and we’re lucky to have some of the best the country, the Japanese food in Vancouver is simply a cut above. The seafood seems to be better quality, the izakaya scene is thriving, and the ramen, particularly at G-Men, is at a whole different level. But the gap is not as pronounced as exists with comparing Chinese food in Seattle and Vancouver—or, especially, Richmond. More about that next, in a final report from up north about drunken chicken, beef noodle soup, dim sum, and xiao long bao.

It’s been nearly a month since the devastating earthquake and tsunami hit Japan. While worries about radiation remain in the news, the country continues to experience aftershocks and the Japanese people, especially in the hard-hit areas, face severe shortages of food, water, power, medicine, and other supplies.

Seattle cherishes a close relationship with Japan, and we’ve already had a number of fundraisers to help out. But more help is needed. Look for more Red, White and Unite events in the future. Continue to donate to the Red Cross if you can. And note that on May 5, Seattle’s best sushi chefs (and some of the city’s best non-sushi chefs) will join forces as the Sushi Dream Team for what promises to be a fun and fantastic charity event.