Ever crave a good bowl of ramen on a cold or rainy day, but dread at the idea of waiting over an hour outside in the cold air?? I have! For the past few weeks, I’ve been sick and just want a decent bowl of creamy tonkotsu broth and firm noodles. Is that so much to ask?? With Shin-Sen-Gumi always having a crowd of people outside and Daikokuya too far in Monterey Park and Little Tokyo, where else could I go?
Well, I’ve finally settled for Ramen Yukinoya in Arcadia, which I am glad I did! I rarely eat here because I’ve always tried to go to the other two ramen places, but my tolerance for waiting an hour to eat has gone down. Yesterday during prime dinner time, my boyfriend and I tried Ramen Yukinoya out. We only had to wait like 10 minutes. Was it good? Yes. It was good. Their ramen bowls might be slightly on the pricier side (approximately $9-10 per bowl), but at least it tasted good and there was hardly any wait. This beats waiting an hour in the freezing cold and just saving $1-2.
Gyoza. One of the Japanese signature appetizer items. The skin is thin and pan fried to a perfect crisp on one side. The pork stuffing is juicy and hot. Now dip this in your own made version of soy sauce and chili oil. Yum.
White tonkotsu ramen. They serve a pretty decent bowl of pork bone broth that’s creamy and savory. The noodles are alkaline and boiled until perfectly firm and chewy. I like the slightly broiled half egg they threw on top. And the bamboo shoots are thinly sliced just the way I like it. And finally, the 3 pork slices are juicy, fatty and melt in your mouth.
Okinawa Ramen. Okinawan thick egg flour noodle, topped with sautéed pork, scallion, pickled ginger, and shredded egg omelet. This is one of their newer menu items I have never seen before. The pork slices are thick and huge!!! Packed with flavors as you bite each piece off to complement your spoon of noodles. I love the way Japanese make their eggs! I need to buy myself one of those egg pans to pan fry my eggs at home to add to my own homemade bowl of ramen. The broth was more clear and tasted more towards the flavors of chicken broth. There is a crab/seafood cake hiding in there as well!
And I cannot forget to mention one of the unique aspects of this restaurant: there are fresh cloves of raw garlic soaked in this shout sauce and a garlic smasher clamp at each table for your leisure of unlimited garlic squeezing. Feel free to make your ramen as garlicky as you desire!
Bon appetit! ‘Tis the season for a delicious bowl of ramen!
