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| RER 12.8.12 |
It was part two of a birthday surprise. It was supposed to
be part one, but it became part two because there was a three-hour
wait. At first part one was going to be Momofuku, another trending spot, but
the venue changed to
Ippudo because of familiarity.
I am not sure when noodles became so hot, but they really are.
Both of these restaurants, Momofuku, created by the now famous chef David Chang, and Ippudo,
boasting traditional Japanese ramen, had incredibly long wait and were filled
with passionate eaters.
Ippudo was a maze, dancing with lights and hot bowls,
sprawling counters with low seats, and funky music of so many different genres,
from elevator to the infamous MJ. Like a hipster paradise. Both light and dark;
at first austere, but then really welcoming, as Japanese greetings were called
all across the room as new guests entered.
The menu is an amazing list of appetizers with succinct
descriptions, just enough to maintain mystery. There were combinations that us
foreigners could hardly dream of and traditional items that bring them
foreigners closer to home. Trendy.
And then, at the top of the last page, is a list of 6
different Japanese ramen bases, along with 7 different toppings. It does not sound like a lot
but the possibilities are endless. Essentially, each ramen is just a base, a
broth comprised of different ingredients (vegetarian or meatarian), along with
other floating elements, to add flavors and different textures. Each ramen come
with topping suggestions ranging from pork belly to soft-boiled eggs.
I forgot it was ramen, and what ramen entailed; broth,
ingredients and a bunch of noodles. Basically soup. They were able to pack some flavor into the
broth and even the noodles, that looked pale and non descript. There were
different flavors dancing on the top of the bowl, just waiting to be stirred. A
dollop of some mystery special sauce that comes with the Modern Ramen, a small
heap of scallions, swirling black liquid, a few pieces of soft pork, and then
that special topping from the side list.
I am not a soup person, so this was stepping out of my
comfort zone. My mouth was looking for crunch, and refuge from the saltiness
that it encountered. I was longing for more scallions to breathe freshness and
contrast into the broth and the thin noodles. I enjoyed my extra topping of a
soft-boiled egg, though it was not the most aesthetic of things. The chalky
creaminess of the almost cooked yolk really added some smoothness and balanced
some of the salt levels. To me it got really boring, slurping the same feeling over and over. There was little variety, not allowing me to forget that it was soup.
Our waiter pushed the authentic angle. So authentic, they do
not offer take away or doggie bags, since it is not done in Japan. But that
does not mean I have to be a fan. I repeat, I am not a soup person. I knew that
walking into the place, but I went for my time with my friends, a birthday and
the experience, not necessarily for broth and a pile of noodles. It was deffo a fun place and a fun night, an adventure of ambiance and conversation, and oodles of Japanese noodles.
RER
12.9.12
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| RER 12.8.12 |
