Despite the current popularity of street food (both gourmet and dirty), I can’t get a good bowl of ramen or pho anywhere near my house. There’s plenty of paparazzi and overpriced breakfast, but hearty bowls of pork-rich broth require at least a twenty minute drive.
Luckily Breadbar continue their limited-engagement pop-up series with Yatai Ramen Twist. In Japan, “yatai” are food stalls that cater to “salary men” coming home from work. In America I am such a man.
Chefs Kazuo Shimamura and Noriyuki Sugie of Ironnori Concepts are serving up a short list of classic versions and modern twists on ramen.
To start we ordered Pig Feet Gyoza and Vegetarian Kale Gyoza ($8). The pig feet gyoza were a sign of the extremely rich, decadent flavors to come. They were burning hot, salty bites of delicious, richness.
We ordered the shoyu ramen ($10) and spicy miso ramen ($11) each with marinated poached egg, kurobuta Pork belly, nori, bamboo shoots, kikurage, and Tokyo negi).
We circulated the bowls, and I happened to start with the shoyu. Upon the first bite it was very bold and rich. It wasn’t until I tried the next bowls that I realized it was the blandest of all. The spicy miso was hands down my favorite. Enough spice to notice but not to overpower the blend of complimentary flavors.
From the twisted ramen menu we chose the oxtail ramen with truffle oil, marinated poached egg ($14) and foie gras ramen with rich consommé and chopped chives ($18).
The broths differed greatly in flavor, but were both very powerful. The oxtail’s broth was sweeter, with subtle truffle flavor. The foie gras’ broth was substantially stronger, the richest of all four.
For dessert we got macarons from Breadbar’s pastry fridge and an iced coffee boba ($4).
Just like the original Ludo Bites, this BYOB night provides a fun, high quality dining experience at a reasonable price. It runs Monday-Saturday from 5-10pm until July 24th, so call 310.205.0124 to make a reservation.
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