Tsukemen Ramen at Ramen Ryowa, Mtn View?

[hhc]

Who's tried the Tsukemen Ramen at Ramen Ryowa, Mtn View? It looks like the cold ramen w/ the hot & sour soy base on the side.

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Ryowa
859 Villa St, Mountain View, CA 94041

[eatzalot]

Had it at least 15 times in the last year or two. Mentioned it a couple of times here including a posting (link below) comparing known strengths of the (now) three very different ramen houses in downtown MV. Here's more detail.

For me, this dish (about $8, lunch or dinner) was a sharp reminder that you can eat often at a restaurant, literally for years, yet stay blissfully ignorant of some of the most interesting or notable offerings. Ryowa's tsukemen and several other specialties are toward the back of the menu, hard to know much about them from just the menu. I heard about it when a server mentioned that tsukemen was a staff favorite. After I tried it, it was all I ordered there for the next several months.

A special type of flat noodles is served _warm_ on a plate garnished with several greens, bamboo shoots, slivers of cold cooked pork. A bowl of clear soup broth accompanies, flavored with grated ginger (which makes it slightly tart -- believe me; I've tried to duplicate the dish closely at home), and with some of the hot pepper paste with Chinese chives (house condiment, provided in jars on the counter). The result is a "hot-and-sour" broth, moderately hot (you can easily add more of the savory pepper paste). You dip, or soak, the noodles and garnishes in the broth. It's a unique dish and very satisfying. My only complaints are that the noodles occasionally seem slightly undercooked and tough, and that the lukewarm noodles and cold garnishes rapidly cool the hot bowl of broth (so you can't "steep" the noodles for further cooking, as with typical hot ramen bowls).

I'll add further (on the experience of remaining ignorant of some of a restaurant's best specialties) that I have favorites at Maru Ichi, Ryowa's nearby competitor, which I particularly go there for -- mentioned in related threads. Yet many of the people I see commenting on or characterizing Maru Ichi online don't mention those dishes, and may be just as unaware of those as I was of Ryowa's tsukemen. A reminder to explore restaurants' menus more, and ask employees for comments.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7514...

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Ryowa
859 Villa St, Mountain View, CA 94041

Maru Ichi Restaurant
368 Castro St, Mountain View, CA 94041

[Melanie Wong]

Heheh, your undercooked and tough is what I consider firm and correct texture. :-) The special noodles are also referred to as handmade at Ryowa. Here's my post from 2005 when I tried the tsukemen at Ryowa in Berkeley. That post was still under common ownership at the time.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/38562

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Ryowa
2068 University Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

[eatzalot]

Maybe so. Though before second-guessing my noodle description (as I don't recall you being presnt to try the batches I'm reporting :-), you should know that I have some experience with noodles (have also made several kinds at home for decades) and I distinguish carefully between firm/elastic and undercooked. The occasional orders I mentioned (out of 15 or 20 I've tried) were undercooked by any standards including those of the other noodlephiles I was with, the rest were pleasantly firm. Also, the broth bowl I've had at Ryowa (MV) 2009-2011 seems somewhat different from your detailed 2005 description from Berkeley. And the generous pint of soup stock has been well flavored but not what I'd call "reduced and salty," so that as mentioned before, I've been inclined to add the house pepper paste to intensify it (another employee tip).

Anyway I find the dish very satisfying with a good level of hot and sour. It was the occasional marginal noodle undercooking (and some need for variety) that broke my long streak of ordering only tsukemen at Ryowa.

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Ryowa
859 Villa St, Mountain View, CA 94041