About 2 weeks after rotator cuff surgery I went to LA for 10 days. My dog Pepper was staying with my mom while I recovered, and I missed him desperately. I thought the 10 days in LA would give me and my mom some time together too, and give me a chance to recuperate.
Eating out is one of my great enjoyments. Luckily my mom enjoys eating out as much as I do, so we made a list of a half dozen restaurants that we wanted to try while I was in LA. We almost got to all of them. I will tell you about those I especially liked, so if you have an opportunity to visit LA you will have some great places to dine.
On a Tuesday afternoon we headed to Sawtelle Blvd in West Los Angeles. There are probably 30 Asian restaurants on a three block area of Sawtelle. I had heard great things about Tsujita, often called the "king of ramen restaurants" so that's where we went. Normally there is a line around the block waiting to get in, but we timed it just right, and got a table inside right away. Almost all the customers were Asian, which is always a good sign. The restaurant itself gave me the feeling of walking into a ramen shop in Tokyo. I loved it.
The ramen was fantastic. The broth was deeply flavored with pork, garlic and onion. The noodles were perfectly cooked, the egg on top was delicious, and we added some extra toppings.
There are basically only two things to get at Tsujita. Ramen, either vegan or pork broth with delicious toppings, or tsukemen Tsujita style (Dipping noodle.) The latter dish dips cold noodles into hot broth. Ramen is just hot noodles and hot soup.
If you thought ramen was the 25cent package that you used to cook in your dorm room in college, think again. Tsujita ramen is a sophisticated soup, with layers of flavor. It is so flavorful. I can't wait to go again.
The good news is that there is now a ramen shop in San Diego that is owned and operated by a man who spent 5 years working at Tsujita in Los Angeles. The restaurant is called Artisan Noodle Tatsuki on Broadway. I can't wait to try it.
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