Tag: San Francisco Bay Area

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Tabemono in SF Bay Area – Taishoken

Tsukemen (つけめん) is a genre of ramen that has been a void in the Bay Area for a while. It is a style of ramen that is focused on dipping your noodles, where the soup is separate from the ramen. You do not drink straight from the broth, as it is concentrated soup that is gravy-like. While a couple of shops in San Francisco have offered their version, they are not good examples of tsukemen. Their broths were too diluted and the noodles are generic. For years, I would have my tsukemen fix in Japan or in Los Angeles (LA Tsujita has some great tsukemen). With Taishoken opening in San Mateo, I can finally get a legit bowl of tsukemen whenever we have a craving. Additionally, I was very surprised by their delicious bowl of vegan yuzu shio ramen on the menu.

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Tabemono in SF – The Shota

The Shota is one of the many omakase restaurants that opened in the last couple of years in San Francisco. The chef/owner is Ingi “Shota” Son. Chef Ingi is familiar to me as he made sushi for me when he worked at Omakase (another sushi spot in SF). I remember that he had a soft, quick, and delicate touch to his sushi making. I also remembered that Omakase’s shari (sushi rice) was not a favorite of mine as I found it soft and under-seasoned. Since Chef Ingi was only one of the many chefs at omakase, I know he did not oversee the direction of the sushi. I read that he went on to work at Hashiri and had prior experience at Morimoto in Napa. Now, having his own restaurant, I was curious to see if his sushi aligned more with my preferences.

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Tabemono in SF Bay Area – Shio Ramen at Noodle in a Haystack

The last several years have been amazing in the ramen scene in Bay Area.  From Japanese imports to local chefs striving to continually evolve their ramen, the landscape is forever changed around this comfort food.  How then can a pop-up serving their home-grown ramen for a $50-$52 course menu compete with several of these heavyweights?  After trying Noodle in a Haystack’s 5 course yuzu shio ramen dinner, I would gladly go back regularly, if only they offered that more spots in their limited pop-up seating.  It truly is one of the best ramen I had in the states. Continue reading “Tabemono in SF Bay Area – Shio Ramen at Noodle in a Haystack”

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