New Valley Ramen Joint: Tamashii Ramen House

tonkotsu shoya ramen

I was so excited to see a new ramen joint in the valley, but alas, it wasn't that good. 

Let's start with the positives of this place.

#1: Free parking the back lot. It's tiny though, so you might have to end up parking on Ventura Blvd which isn't that easy.

#2: Service was friendly

#3: Cute decor

Now, on to the negatives.

#1: Ramen wasn't very flavorful. I ordered the tonkotsu shoyu ramen which came with bamboo shoots, green onions, 1/2 of a hard boiled egg, crispy onions, and "succulent" pork. 

The pork was not succulent at all. It was quite chewy and hard to eat. The noodles are huge and curly. I'm more a fan of the thin, straight noodles. I felt the noodles were comparable to the ones in Top Ramen

#2: They charge you $.50 for garlic. Really? It's just a side of garlic! Throw it in for free, like most other ramen places do.

#3: The huge wooden spoon provided does not make it easy for you to drink your soup or put your noodles in. We had to ask for a regular soup spoon. 

#4: Portions are on the smaller side for ramen.

All in all, the place wasn't horrible, but I won't be coming back. There's way better ramen places in the area.

Tamashii Ramen House
14531 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
(818) 990-1268

Tatsu Ramen: Sawtelle

The only good thing about this place is their iPad ordering system. 

Other than that, this ramen joint falls short on everything. 

The ramen runs around $10 per bowl, which is more expensive than other ramen restaurants in the area. 

Jinya down the street runs about $9 and tastes 100 times better. 

The ramen was salty, yet lacked real flavor. How is that even possible? The broth was this weird cloudy color, so not appetizing. 

Old Skool Ramen

The pork was inedible and tasted and looked like rubber. 

Noodles were like the ones you could buy at the supermarket for $0.35 each. 

Epic fail all around. 

Service was fine, but they didn't have to do much except bring the food, water and the bill. 

Pass!

Tatsu Ramen

2123 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025

Ramen Yamadaya- Sherman Oaks

We had a craving for ramen the other night, so I suggested this place since it was kinda close by.

I've already tried the Westwood location, where they burned my mouth with the super spicy red powder, but remembered that everyone raved about the broth.

So, we decided to give the Sherman Oaks location a try.

Parking is free in the lot. It's located next to Baskin Robbins.

We arrived at 9:45 pm and they still served us, even though they were closing at 10 pm. Yay for that. And no surly faces either.

We all ordered the Tonkotsu Kotteri which is fatty broth with black garlic oil. ($8.45)

I like the thin, straight ramen noodles way better than the curly ones, and that's exactly what we got. Broth was super fatty, but tasty. I liked that it came with half an egg and bamboo shoots. I did have to add some spicy powder to the broth tho, since it needed an extra kick.

Overall, good food, good service and decent prices. Not bad for the valley!


Ramen Yamadaya
15030 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
818-501-1115

Tsujita LA Artisan Noodle

In the last few months, I've had the pleasure of visiting this popular noodle restaurant five or six times. On my first trip, it was definitely a five star experience. The last few times I've gone, it's dwindled down to 4 stars overall.

The wait can be ridiculous if you go anytime after it opens. I've gone there at 11:15 am, 15 minutes after opening and have waited 30 minutes. On a weekday, no less. On weekends, forget it, it's definitely at least 45 minutes. My advice, get there early, like before 11 am.

Tsukemen is the way to go here. These thick noodles are not ramen, but beat their ramen by a landslide. Basically, you dip the tsukemen  into a pork based broth that has pork, egg and bamboo shoots. The fatty broth is damn delicious and if you're really a glutton, you can ask them to fill the remaining broth with hot water so you can drink the fat. Yeah, I did that once and I was thirsty for the rest of the day. I also gained a couple pounds from that meal so don't do that if you're on a diet.

Tsukemen with egg

Tonkotsu ramen

The ramen is pretty good, although the portion size is smaller than other ramen places. However, if you're still hungry, you can ask for a side order of just noodles to add to your ramen broth. I think the bowls just look smaller, because after I was done with my ramen, I was stuffed! I still think Santouka has better ramen and it's cheaper too.


They have spicy tuna rice bowls on the menu as well for those who don't want noodles.

The service is usually good, but I have felt rushed at times. Not good for someone who has waited outside for a while.

BTW, cash only. Hit the ATM before going.


4****


Tsujita LA
2057 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 231-7373

Koraku Ramen- Sherman Oaks

Located in a strip mall off Ventura Blvd, Koraku is pretty easy to miss. The only reason I came upon this place was because we were craving ramen and this was the only restaurant close by.

We rolled up around 2 pm on a weekend and the place was pretty empty except for another party sitting at the bar. We chose a booth and started ordering right away. Everything looked good, but then again, everything looks good when you are starving.

The waitress was efficient and semi-helpful only because her English wasn't that good. I changed my order and she didn't seem to mind so definite plus.

Rice balls: One came with bonito and the other had salmon in it. Nice presentation, but I didn't eat any. My companions did and said they were okay. Too much rice, not enough filling.

Mapo tofu ramen: I love mapo tofu. It's one of my favorite Chinese dishes. So, when I saw this epic combo, I was super stoked to try it. Unfortunately, it wasn't as good as it sounded. The broth lacked flavor which is surprising considering all the ground pork and tofu it came with. I couldn't finish the bowl, just wasn't good to me.

Popeye ramen: Cool name and sure lived up to it. Packed with tons of spinach and slices of pork, this ramen was tastier than mine. It's in a soy based broth so that could be the reason.

Croquette: Pretty tasty! Potato croquette with ground pork served with some julienned cabbage and some dipping sauce. Wish it came with more than just one per order.

Pork fried rice: My favorite! The portion was a bit small for sharing, especially with how tasty it was. I liked the small bits of egg, carrots and green onion mixed in there. Yum.

Overall, the food and service were good. I would come back and give their ramen a second chance.

3***

Koraku Ramen
14425 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423(818) 906-0045