Ramen Bar Ichi

When the freeze was over, what warms you up?

No, not liquor... Ramen!

But before something warm.  We must get their takoyaki, Osaka style, which is just seaweed & fish powder on top.

Got a Tonkotsu with extra char-siu (pork slices).  It's Nice and warm for the belly.  The noodles are nice and eggy and elastic. But with the meat, seaweed, scallion and noodles, all very nice down the belly.  The trick is to go right before peak time, i.e. lunch.  The way the wait is minimum.  And you just put your name on the list and wait for your name to be called.  The turnaround over all is pretty short, so it moves pretty fast.

Ramen Bar Ichi

1801 S. Dairy Ashford 

#108

Houston, TX 77077

https://www.ramenbarichi.com/

 

Ichiro Sapporo Ramen

Went back to Bellaire Food Street

It's prior life was Ichiko, and it's already have a second rendition.

I got the Tonkotsu with extra fish cakes.  They lined them all up so pretty.  I can use less corn, but the soup broth was good. The meat was good, the veggie and egg was a good match - separately, but it's not a harmonious together.  I do know and aware that it's not easy to achieve that, but that's where the extra money paying for.  

Funny thing is, though the name of the place is Sapporo Ramen - which is its own style of ramen.  It is supposed to be miso based, so for a Tonkotsu to be their hit was interesting.  Again all the pieces are good on its own. Service is great here, the parking garage definitely help beat the heat.

Ichiro Sapporo Ramen 

9393 Bellaire Blvd

Ste A1

Houston, TX 77036

281-974-1982

 

Raman Moto

Went to Post for dinner with some friends.  There are so many choices in there. 

When you go, pick on the earlier side.  Not only that, you can beat any show-goers or ballgame attendees. The place gets busy when all the events in the area come out at once.  

This time I picked Ramen, I don't recall seeing them there last time. 

Done by the same folks that brings you Tiger Den, Aka Sushi, Mein, Ishin Udon.  So they know a thing or two about noodles.  

I got the Garlic Tonkotsu, which is kinda funny because they just give you a heaping spoon of garlic on top.  The noodle is good, the cha siu (pork) is good, a tad too much on the bamboo & scallion, and the egg wasn't a warm 60 degree egg. The broth is good and has nice texture.  For $16.50, it's not the best ramen in town, but if the mood strike, that'll work.

Ramen Motto

Post HTX

https://www.posthtx.com/eat/ramen-moto

https://www.instagram.com/ramenmoto_tx/

 

Rakkan Ramen

Happened to be at MKT, thought we'd give Rakkan Ramen a try.

They are strategically located at the pretty corridor, so you can't miss them.

For appetizers, we started out to fried gyoza.  That's their sauce on top.  It's much like the other places's dumplings.  Not spectacularly good or bad, but it's part of a combo, and we'll try it.

Then, we got Takoyaki.  Pretty yummy. 

Let's talk Ramen.  I got the Amber, and has soy sauce as base.  First off, the noodle is a tad thicker than the Sun's egg noodle.  The Pork is good, the egg is lack a bit of taste.  The broth base is too thin mainly because they are vegetarian based.  Together is not as bad as some reviews I've heard or read, but it's not somewhere that I 'HAVE To' return to.  

They have seatings in the corridor and you have to get the server's attention occasionally.  They do have a cozy seating inside, if you want to avoid the cold.

Rakkan Ramen

600 N. Shepherd Dr

#515

Houston, TX 77007

346-867-2078

https://rakkanramen.com/locations/houston-heights/

 

Tamashi

It's been a while since I had Tamashi.

Parking here is always a challenge.  They have since carved out spots at the back of the building, but you do need to watch the signs and be respectful of other businesses. 

I got some karaage - which is chicken nuggets Japanese style.

So it comes with everything but broth.

Once you pour the broth over, I also added fried Kani (crab meat).  I just love how they fan it out, but the bag it came in has lots of oil leftover.  

One thing I was kinda sad about the dish was the noodle was all stuck together.  So, even though we don't live far from the place and I pour the broth as soon as I could, the noodle still stuck pretty tight. Took a few tugs to pull them apart.  

Tamashi

2518 W. Holcomb Blvd

Houston, TX 77030

346-204-5523

https://tamashiramensushi.com

 

Ramen Hakata

This one checking on Yelp paid off.... 

Surprisingly there are quite a few Japanese restaurants specifically ramen restaurants in the area.

Yummy Gyoza - too bad, I saved room for the ramen & dessert and didn't finish these.  We put it in the hotel's fridge and it had gone bad because the fridge was broken... but worth a try if you could.

I also got the Hakata Yuzu Sprinkling Soda - which is like a very citrus 7Up, except the citrus is not lemon, lime or orange.  Yuzu is part of the citrus family, so that works.  That said, it was a tad sweeter than I had expected.  But worth giving it a try.  By the way, the to-go version, is good enough for 3 to split, as long as you're not a soda junkie.  So make sure you don't over order.

For ramen, I decided to get the Hakata Ramen, which has pork, in the pork broth, with veggies like mushroom, sprouts, green onions, 60 degree egg, and of course noodles.  The broth was still piping hot when we sat down to eat.  The bowl of broth hits the to-go container right on mark.  You do need to soak it a bit since the noddle is dry at the bottom.  By the time you pour the broth in, your bowl is so full it was hard to move around to mix the ingredients around.  That said, everything went well together, and not bad.

For dessert, we got the Green Tea Mont Blanc.  I've never seen one before and was highly curious.  It came with whip cream and couple of blueberries in it. It has these green tea strands piped from green tea butter cream, adzuki beans in the middle and sponge cake at the bottom and sprinkled green tea powder for taste.  Not too sweet but just enough to close out the night.  The whipped cream had melted by the time I got it due to heat, but dabbed some on each bite, works in its own way.

You can place the order on their website and go for pickup.  Somehow Yelp order wasn't working for me, but either way, figured it out.  You walk in and a table full of to-go orders were waiting to be picked up.  Pretty efficient on their part.

Ramen Hakata

8300 Gaylord Pkwy

#16

Frisco, TX 75034

469-200-8342

http://www.ramenhakata.com/

 

Tastu-ya Ramen

Was craving for some ramen.

Have to get a pic of the giant cat at Tatsu-ya.

As you walk up, they remind you that you should order online first before walking up to pick up.  And as they say, no mask, no ramen.

It came in well packed packages to ensure save journey to its destination.

You open up there's the the glorious broth.  I do miss how much texture their broth has.  Of course, it's not as good as it is served in person, but it is still quality broth.  

The charsiu and egg are as good as ever.  My compliant is too much mushroom & chives, rather save room for more noodles or more meat.  

Their online ordering is pretty thoughtful, but I will say that if there are issue with your order there's no phone to call in.  They want you to email their info mailbox, which I will say did answer quickly but it is a bit inconvenient.  

I had also ordered Karaage Mushroom & Green tea, both were missed in the order, and of course I didn't discovered until I got home.  Had to email them to resolve.  They were pretty quick and did offer for me to get it, if I were to drive back to the store.  But I was hungry and was not in the mood, but the quickly offered refund, so I appreciate their promptness on that.

Tastu-ya

1722 California St

Houston, TX 

https://www.tatsu-ya.com 

Tamashi

Another take-out, eat at home edition:

This time got Tamashi via GrubHub.  By the way, GH does not deliver from Tamashi, probably better that way.  You do have to pick up.  They set up at the shop that is super fast and convenient.  Of course you can call in your order too.

We got gyoza, pretty fresh, yum yum.  Got the Tonkotsu, they separated the soup with the noodles, which is good because the last thing you want is some soggy noodle and in case the soup turned cold, you wouldn't want to heat up the entire bowl like that. 

So, I picked up at the designated time.  It doesn't take long to get home.  The soup needed to have a quick reheat.  Once you pour it over your bowl of noodle and such, it was easy to go.  It is fast and easy.  I do however felt it's missing something.  When you eat it at the shop, everything went together very well.  Here, you really truly feel the separation of taste.  So that suffered a bit.  Overall, not a bad meal.

Tamashi Ramen

2518 W. Holcomb Blvd

Houston, TX 77030

346-204-5523

https://www.tamashiramensushi.com

Agu Ramen

Was hanging out in Sugarland Town Center, so decided to stop by Agu for some yumminess.

This is the location that makes their own noodles, you can see that thru their kitchen window.

This is their Fried Agu Gyoza.  It is pretty meaty, of course, it's fried, it's just delicious.

I got the Garlic Kotteri Tonkotsu, which the broth is darker, has garlic oil, garlic chips, 60 degree egg, melt in your mouth pork, bamboo, scallion and of course the noodles.  The noodles has more elasticity than the Sun Noodles that a lot of people uses.  I guess not soaking in the broth too long also help with that too.

I always get an enjoyable meal there, even though parking is a challenge it's worth it!

Agu Ramen

2130 Lone Star Dr

Sugar Land, TX 77479

713-588-5601

http://www.aguramen.com

Tamashi Ramen

Went back to Tamashi for some noodles.

Strange thing, as the weather is getting warmer, the line outside of the ramen place is getting shorter.  As a matter of fact, we were able to just walk up and get a table during lunch, which is rare.  I think it is also because Hu's Cooking is now opened, and take away some of that audience too even though they're feeding you very different cuisine.

We were super hungry, and started with an order of gyoza.  YUM!

Tonkotsu, very nice and very fulfilling.  Broth is not bad, and it goes well with the noodles.

I was actually super excited about the fried kani.  It's not anything special, but I love how impressive it came out fried.  It's so crunchy that you don't even taste the crab meat itself.

Anyway, you can see, the noodles quality did not suffer, even though the heat is turning people to something less warm.  They do have decent air con on during the day, so feel free to go have some noodles.

Tamashi Ramen

2518 W. Holcomb Blvd

Houston, TX 77030

346-204-5523

https://www.tamashiramensushi.com

Ramen Jinya

It's been a while since I've been too Jinya.

you know how it is, when you crave ramen, you must have some!

I like sitting at the bar, they always are so attentive and always walking by to check in on us.  Of course, that's where the servers pick up the noodles, so that is a high frequency on the walking-by, but still helps.

This is where my eye is bigger than my stomach.  I ordered karaage, which is fancy words for chicken crispers that comes with ponzu sauce.

Tonkotsu Black - which is pork broth, which has onion, nori, egg, garlic chips, garlic oil, spicy sauce.  I just love their broth, and the noodles just hit the belly just right.  Talk about comfort food for the soul.  I know there are much more on their menu but I just can't help but to go back to my favorite.

In terms of parking, take advantage of the attached parking garage.  It's free, just need to find a spot during busy hours.  And now there's a new Cloud 10 around the corner, it's perfect for the evening.

Ramen Jinya

3201 Louisiana

Houston, TX 77006

832-925-8596

https://jinya-ramenbar.com/locations/detail/midtown

Samurai Noodles

Haven't been back to Samurai Noodles a while, decided to go give them a visit. 

Very easy freeway access, it's right by I-10 and Shepherd.

Here's my meal, I'm ready!!!

I got the Miso Ramen.  It is their Shouyu plus miso.  It has bamboo, scallion, corn, bean sprouts.  I asked for no butter, just not my thing.  And of course char siu.  They made their noodles in house, which is nice.  Mine was harder in texture than I like, but not bad.  The broth was lighter in bodied than I remembered.  The meat didn't break apart when I squeezed it, but not a bad taste.  

When you arrive, just wait to be seated.  Then you place your order and when you're done, just walk up to the cashier and pay.  I see alot of people pick up their order rather than dine-in.  I was curious how they package their noodle and soup, but wasn't able to catch a glimpse.  But if folks do it, it's gotta be do-able.

Samurai Noodle

1802 Durham Dr

Houston, TX 77007

832-879-2982

https://samurainoodlehouston.com

Tamashi Ramen

Met up with my friend (aka dining guest) for lunch at Tamashi.

We've both been here separately and it is actually between both of our neighborhoods, so no excuse not to meet up.  Plus, we both love noodles, that is a definite must!

We shared the takoyaki, which is the little fried battered bread balls with chunks of octopus inside.  Frankly, they are do-able, I still like Ichi Bar Ramen's takoyaki better, but this will do.

I got the Shoyu, with clear broth, slices of fish cakes, egg, chase, bamboo, veggies, and of course noodles.

I saw this on the Curry Tsukemen, and was curious, so I went ahead and ordered it.  So, it is actually a side of fried kani.  Which is kinda cool looking.  It is split open, and battered and fried.  The entire thing is thin like a giant round cookie, but it's really a kani.

Entire meal, was super fulfilling, no complaint here.

We got there just as the lunch time winding down.  They do stay true to the sign in sheet, and the turnaround was pretty quick.  If you have some time, do wait for it.  If not, plenty of food options nearby, but will have to cure your noodle fix another day.

Tamashi Ramen & Sushi

2518 W. Holcomb Blvd

Houston, TX 77030

346-204-5523

https://www.tamashiramensushi.com

Yoshi Ramen

There's a new Sushi/Ramen place that took over the former Fajita Pete's on W. Holcomb.

 Their turn around for this shop was very quick too.  It was ready before we realized it was a sushi/ramen shop.

 The menu is not anything out of the ordinary, you can see some customer pics here.

 I got a black bean sauce ramen with an iced tea.

A closer look: black bean sauce, pork broth, fish cake, sprout, bamboo, char siu (I ordered extra), scallion, and egg (I promised it's in there).  The entire dish was ok, the broth is fine, noodles is the ever so popular Sun Noodles.  

Personally, it is nothing spectacular, for the price that they're charging, I think it's unfair.  The prices they charged is near Ramen Jinya and Ramen Tatsuya.  Even Tamashi down the street, charge a dollar less.  Does a dollar really matter?  No, but that's about 10% more than the other, by that it seems huge when the quality of the dish is not nearly as good as the others.

Their prices on sushi is near Osaka's across the street, which is near a high end sushi place.  That said, unless I'm in a pinch, don't think I'll be going there as my staple.

Yoshi Ramen

4050 Bellaire Blvd

Houston, Tx 77025

832-831-5258

http://www.yoshihouston.com

Kura Sushi

Been kinda excited to come to Kura sushi. 

Saw lots of friends (foodie and regulars alike) that they seems to have decent fish, and cool ordering system.  The little box on top of the ordering screen gives out prices as you eat, one price for every 15 plates - good luck!

Much like the other conveyor belt sushi places, they have the plates to count how much you've consumed.  Here we have Ebi (shrimp) and Sake (salmon) - pretty fresh.

Seared beef with yakiniku sauce and seared salmon with mayo.

Seared beef with unami sauce, this one was good enough that we ordered another plate.

Squid and Scallop - pretty decent.

This one wasn't as special as it looked.  I was curious by the presentation, it is really just the sushi deconstructed.  The bottom is rice, you get a slightly larger size fish, roe and cucumber.  Don't be fooled, get the sushi!

When you order something on the screen, they will also use the screen to alert you when it is ready.  When it is about to arrive, the screen will pop up a message and the kitchen staff will shoot the dish to you and it'll end up right in front of you.

We ordered a ramen to share, just because between the rice and fish, we knew we'd be hungry as soon as we walk out the door.  So we split the ramen.  Soup is ok especially when this is not their specialty.  The egg was done well and the pork was good, but were they all 'married' together?  No.  Does it pass the test of ramen in a pinch?  Yes.  Is it so horrible that I'll never order it again?  Probably no.  

The place is pretty high tech, you walk in, put you name on the list via their iPad, take a seat.  They grab you, have a server take your drink order and you pretty much don't see him until you check out.  They collect the plate via the shoot in front of you, which is also how they can count how many plates you've eaten.  The only weird thing as that if you are seated with 2 people, the second person may not have racked up any plates, you still need to check out even though you had zero.  They didn't explain that when we were there  and were having super trouble trying to close out our tab.

In the Midtown location, it's great that the parking garage is attached, short walk to the door.  Don't forget your ticket, you need it in order to pay before you go to your car.  Also observe the reserved spots, they are not obvious.

Kura Revolving Sushi Bar

Midtown

3510 Main Street

Houston, TX 77002

713-636-2696

https://kurausa.com/