42637 Sat Jan 07 04:07:29 -0800 2006 4 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 207037 Friday I dropped by Suzu Noodle House in Japantown for a return visit for lunch. Much as I want to like this place, this was worse than the first trip and I left my bowl of ramen uneaten. I opted for mabo ramen, which uses shoyu stock topped with mapo-spicy tofu. The topping was just okay as the tofu was rather coarse and the sauce was gloppy. I liked the stock much better this round. Meatier in flavor yet still quite light and greaseless, the shoyu flavoring was pleasantly subtle to let the other flavors shine through. The problem was the noodles. I ordered them "hard", and they were indeed. They were wound into a tight skein to support the tofu topping above the surface of the stock as shown in the photo below. As I loosened some with my chopsticks and lifted them out of the soup, the caustic smell that had been a problem in my previous visit hit my nostrils. I took a bite, and the unpleasant alkali taste was even stronger than the smell. I suspected that by ordering them cooked hard, the noodles had less time in the boiling water to dissipate the alkali treatment. I called my server over and had her sniff the noodles. She said that was the smell of real ramen. I told her that I understood that, but this was too strong and sickening to eat, and asked if the dish could be made over boiling another batch of noodles in a fresh pot of water. When she went back in the kitchen with my request, I could over hear an agitated male voice saying that the smell was the special water and nothing could be changed. She was most apologetic when she came out to tell me that the dish could not be made any differently. I thanked her for her trouble, and said that I was sorry that they could not offer me anything else. With that, I got up and left. Once out the door, I could feel my upper lip and tip of the tongue start to smart. Luckily I was parked close by and had a tangerine in the car. I quickly peeled it, popped a couple segments in my mouth, and the acidic juices helped wash away the burning sensation and prevented further injury. Suzu has improved its stock since my previous visit. Yet, since I don't have a taste for caustic noodles, I have to drop its ranking down to #40 from #38. PERSONAL RAMEN RANKING 1. Ramen Halu, 375 Saratoga Ave Ste M, San Jose 2. Santa, 805 S B St, San Mateo 3. Ryowa, 2068 University Ave, Berkeley 4. Himawari, 202 2nd Ave, San Mateo 5. Ryowa, 859 Villa St, Mountain View 6. Tanto, 1063 E El Camino Real, Sunnyvale 7. Maru Ichi, 368 Castro St, Mountain View 8. Do-Henkotsu House of Tokushima Ramen, 4330 Moorpark Ave, San Jose 9. Gen Ramen, 47890 Warm Springs Blvd, Fremont 10.BY Grill, 3226 Geary Blvd, San Francisco 11.Norikonoko, 2556 Telegraph Ave, Berkeley 12.Hana, 4320 Moorpark, San Jose 13.Masa's Sushi, 400 San Antonio Road, Mountain View 14.Oyaji, 3123 Clement St, San Francisco 15.Maru Ichi, 530 Barber Lane, Milpitas 16.Niko Niko Sushi/Katanaya, 336 O'Farrell St, San Francisco 17.Hatcho, 1271 Franklin Mall, Santa Clara 18.Tomoe, 810 3rd St, San Rafael (closed) 19.Ringer Hut, 1072 Saratoga Ave, San Jose 20.Izakaya Mai, 212 2nd Avenue, San Mateo 21.Ramen Club, 723 California Dr, Burlingame 22.Tazaki Sushi, 3420 Judah St, San Francisco 23.Ramen Rama, 19774 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino 24.Ogi-San Ramen, 10789 Blaney Ave, Cupertino 25.Kaimuki Grill, 104 S El Camino Real, San Mateo 26.Tanto, 1306 Saratoga Ave, San Jose 27.Okazu Ya SF (Noriega), 2445 Noriega St, San Francisco 28.King's Garden Ramen, 39055 Cedar Blvd, Newark 29.Sushi Bistro, 445 Balboa St, San Francisco 30.Mitsuwa Hokkaido festival booth, 675 Saratoga Ave, San Jose 31.Lakuni, 325 E 4th Ave, San Mateo 32.Mifune, 1737 Post St, San Francisco 33.Iroha, 1728 Buchanan St, San Francisco 34.Miraku Noodles, 2131 N Broadway, Walnut Creek 35.Manpuku, 2977 College Ave, Berkeley 36.Tanpopo, 1740 Buchanan Street, San Francisco 37.Sushi Yoshi, 39261 Cedar Blvd, Newark 38.La Shang Niang Ramen (OEC), 42 Dixon Rd, Milpitas 39.Oidon, 71 E. 4th Avenue, San Mateo 40.Suzu Noodle House, 1581 Webster Street, San Francisco 41.Sapporo-ya, 1581 Webster St, San Francisco 42.Tokyo Ramen, 678 Barber Lane, Milpitas 43.Kamakura, 2549 Santa Clara Ave, Alameda 44.Mama-san!, 312 8th Ave, San Francisco 45.Katana-ya Ramen, 10546 San Pablo Ave, El Cerrito 46.Hotei, 1290 9th Ave, San Francisco 47.Bear's Ramen House, 2521 Durant, Berkeley Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/33005#146925 Image: http://home.earthlink.net/~melanista/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/suzumabo.jpg Sat Jan 07 04:07:29 -0800 2006 0 Melanie Wong 1 207044 Are you suggesting that a particular restaurant is serving food that can cause actual bodily injury? That's a pretty startling allegation for a chowhound post and one that is fraught with peril, if you ask me. Link: http://eatingchinese.org Sat Jan 07 09:54:59 -0800 2006 207037 0 Gary Soup 2 207054 There can be too much of a good thing. If you've ever eaten more than a small amount of preserved egg (pei dan) straight and unmixed without any pickles for acid to counteract the alkaline, you can get the same caustic effect and take the surface off your tongue. The kansui of (real) ramen and the base solution used for pei dan are known hazards for those who are sensitive to alkaline solutions, which I happen to be. I felt it was worth posting about the place because some ramen lovers want more of this particular character, and this is a place they can find it. The shoyu soup stock is worth trying. Sat Jan 07 12:38:15 -0800 2006 207044 0 Melanie Wong 3 207056 Hey Melanie, Here's something to consider, I'd hate to lose the Forum's Doyen of Ramen, TBAs and XLBs. "The first symptom of an allergic reaction to food is often itching and swelling in the mouth, tongue and throat. You may also get some or all of the following symptoms: skin reactions, such as swelling and itching, eczema and flushing vomiting and diarrhoea dizziness wheezing swelling of the lips runny nose An allergic reaction to food usually happens quickly - typically within an hour of eating the trigger food and sometimes almost immediately. A severe, whole-body allergic reaction is called anaphylaxis, or an anaphylactic shock. Anaphylaxis is a rare but potentially fatal allergic reaction." Sat Jan 07 12:45:00 -0800 2006 207054 0 TomG 4 207057 No, this was not an allergic reaction. Ramen is treated with an alkaline solution to create a certain texture and taste. Likewise pei dan is cured with alkaline compounds. These are caustic and depending on the pH of one's saliva and the concentration of the base, can burn delicate tissues. OTOH, I've also "tenderized" my tongue and blistered my mouth by eating too much fresh pineapple on Maui in one sitting. (g) Sat Jan 07 12:50:19 -0800 2006 207056 0 Melanie Wong