Watami Ramen at Watami Shabu Shabu and Ramen, San Francisco

[Melanie Wong]

A few months ago I finally made my way over to Watami Shabu Shabu and Ramen in the Richmond district. The menu offers many ramen stocks and combinations. Asking my waitress what the specialty might be here, she said, “pork bone”, which would be tonkotsu-style. A homemade noodle option is also available, and hearing Mandarin coming out of the kitchen, I asked if they were hand-pulled. They’re not hand-pulled, but she assured me that they’re made here.

Finally I settled on the namesake "Watami Ramen", sort of a kitchen sink kind of deal, and asked for the noodles cooked “hard”. This had wontons, braised pork ribs, chashu made with fatty pork belly, nori, fish cake, egg, and scallions in pork bone stock, arranged rather haphazardly.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/melaniewong/3465263350/

The stock was on the light side, tasting more Chinese than Japanese. Likewise the meaty wontons. The noodles were too soft and far from “hard”. The pork ribs had a tender, fall-off-the-boneness to them but not much flavor. On the plus side, the spirals of roasted pork belly were kind of interesting both visually and to eat.

Overall, a pleasant bowl of noodles but not one I plan to revisit. Based on this showing, Watami Shabu Shabu and Ramen ranks #26.

PERSONAL RAMEN RANKING
1. Ramen Halu, 375 Saratoga Ave Ste M, San Jose
2. Santouka @ Mitsuwa Hokkaido Festival, 675 Saratoga Ave, San Jose
3. Santa, 805 S B St, San Mateo (pre-move)
4. Himawari, 202 2nd Ave, San Mateo
5. Maru Ichi, 368 Castro St, Mountain View
6. Izakaya Mai, 212 2nd Avenue, San Mateo
7. Ryowa, 859 Villa St, Mountain View
8. Tanto, 1063 E El Camino Real, Sunnyvale
9. Do-Henkotsu House of Tokushima Ramen, 4330 Moorpark Ave, San Jose (closed)
10.Gen Ramen, 47890 Warm Springs Blvd, Fremont (closed)
11.Izakaya Restaurant, 1335 N 1st St, San Jose
12.BY Grill, 3226 Geary Blvd, San Francisco (closed)
13.Norikonoko, 2556 Telegraph Ave, Berkeley
14.Hana, 4320 Moorpark, San Jose
15.Katanaya, 430 Geary Blvd., San Francisco
16.Masa's Sushi, 400 San Antonio Road, Mountain View
17.Gochi, 19980 Homestead Rd, Cupertino
18.Oyaji, 3123 Clement St, San Francisco
19.Sanmi, 3226 Geary Blvd, San Francisco
20.Maru Ichi, 530 Barber Lane, Milpitas
21.Halu Restaurant, 312 8th Ave, San Francisco
22.Hatcho, 1271 Franklin Mall, Santa Clara
23.Kahoo, 4330 Moorpark Ave, San Jose
24.Tomoe, 810 3rd St, San Rafael (closed)
25.Ringer Hut, 1072 Saratoga Ave, San Jose
26.Watami Shabu Shabu and Ramen, 5344 Geary Blvd, San Francisco
27.Kumako, 211 E. Jackson Street, San Jose
28.Japanese Restaurant Hoshi, 246 Saratoga Avenue, Santa Clara
29.Ramen Club, 723 California Dr, Burlingame
30.Ryowa, 2068 University Ave, Berkeley (after ownership change)
31.King Won Ton, 1936 Irving St, San Francisco
32.Tazaki Sushi, 3420 Judah St, San Francisco
33.Ramen Rama, 19774 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino (closed)
34.Ogi-San Ramen, 10789 Blaney Ave, Cupertino (closed)
35.Kaimuki Grill, 104 S El Camino Real, San Mateo
36.Tanto, 1306 Saratoga Ave, San Jose
37.Okazu Ya SF (Noriega), 2445 Noriega St, San Francisco
38.King's Garden Ramen, 39055 Cedar Blvd, Newark (closed)
39.Sushi Bistro, 445 Balboa St, San Francisco
40.Genki Ramen, 3944 Geary Blvd, San Francisco
41.Mitsuwa Hokkaido festival booth, 675 Saratoga Ave, San Jose
42.Lakuni, 325 E 4th Ave, San Mateo
43.100% Healthy Desserts, 1155 Taraval St., San Francisco
44.Mifune, 1737 Post St, San Francisco
45.H2A Noodle, 42318 Fremont Blvd., Fremont (closed)
46.Iroha, 1728 Buchanan St, San Francisco
47.Miraku Noodles, 2131 N Broadway, Walnut Creek
48.Manpuku, 2977 College Ave, Berkeley
49.Tanpopo, 1740 Buchanan Street, San Francisco
50.Sushi Yoshi, 39261 Cedar Blvd, Newark
51.La Shang Niang Ramen (OEC), 42 Dixon Rd, Milpitas
52.Oidon, 71 E. 4th Avenue, San Mateo
53.Taraval Okazu Ya, 1735 Taraval St., San Francisco
54.Suzu Noodle House, 1581 Webster Street, San Francisco
55.Fresh Taste, 2107 El Camino Real, Palo Alto
56.Sapporo-ya, 1581 Webster St, San Francisco
57.Tokyo Ramen, 678 Barber Lane, Milpitas (closed)
58.Kamakura, 2549 Santa Clara Ave, Alameda
59.Mama-san!, 312 8th Ave, San Francisco (closed)
60.Katana-ya Ramen, 10546 San Pablo Ave, El Cerrito
61.Hotei, 1290 9th Ave, San Francisco
62.Bear's Ramen House, 2521 Durant, Berkeley

The Ramen King and I: How the Inventor of Instant Noodles Fixed My Love Life
http://thebooksmith.booksense.com/NAS...

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Watami Shabu Shabu and Ramen
5344 Geary Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94121