Today marks 2 years of Gio and I documenting all of our ramen adventures from across the globe! Thanks to everyone who has supported us and our love of everything ramen!
Nojo Ramen Tavern: CHICKEN PAITAN SOY SAUCE RAMEN
Place: Nojo Ramen Tavern
Address: 231 Franklin St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Website: http://nojosf.com/
Ramen: Chicken Paitan Soy Sauce Ramen. Whole slow-braised Chicken leg, blackened Garlic Oil, Nira Chives, red & green onions, dashi egg, fish powder, fried gobo ($18.5) + spice bomb ($1.5)
Price: $20
For those of you who have not read Matt’s review of his meal at NOJO posted below, do so now. We both ate there on the same day, at different times and ordered different things but like Matt, mine was most excellent and this is now my #1 Favorite ramen joint in the Bay Area.
I’ve had Nojo recommended to me by a few folks and I am happy to say that those recommendations were correct. The food is incredible and their ramen is god-tier. I know what you are thinking… chicken ramen? No Tonkotu? Wont that be weak and light. Nope. It’s rich! It’s powerful! It’s flavorful! It’s a must try!
Located in Hayes Valley near City Hall, Nojo is always busy. We got there 15 minutes before it opened and there was already a line. We perused the menu , which all looked excellent, but I knew what I was having before I even sat down, the highly recommended CHICKEN PAITAN SOY SAUCE RAMEN. According to the menu, this chicken/soy based ramen comes with a whole slow-braised chicken leg (what?), blackened garlic oil, green onions & a dashi egg! Now, before the main event, we had some amazing appies: Spicy Chicken Fritters, Yuzu Miso Cucumbers, salted Combu Celery and Tofu & Avocado Salad, all of them were fresh & flavorful and highly enjoyable but enough of that, what about the ramen? Well, what greeted me was a steaming bowl of top-tier excellence.
To tell you how good this bowl of ramen is, I ate everything! Every noodle, every chive, every last drop of broth. Usually I have a few spoons left over because I just can’t fit anymore into my belly but this time, no way was I going to waste this absolute goodness. The chicken leg was fantastic, crispy skin, “fall of the bone” succulent meat that popped the already flavorful broth into the stratosphere. The fresh mix of onions & chives balanced the richness of the bowl perfectly, the noodles were thick and held the broth well and finally the egg was perfect. Despite its high price tag and daunting giant leg of chicken, this was a 5 star bowl of ramen and one that I have no problem recommending as one of the best bowls of ramen outside of Japan.
My wife tried their spicier CHICKEN PAITAN TAN-TAN SPICY MISO RAMEN which was equally delicious, rich, spicy hot with an amazing hit of sesame, I would heartily recommend that one as well. And based on Matt’s love of the TOMATO PAITAN discussed below, Nojo obviously has three amazing bowls worth experiencing so do yourself a favor and get there for a great visit to flavor town! You won’t be disappointed.
SCORE: 
Yuzu Ramen & Broffee:
Address: 1298 65th St #1, Emeryville, CA 94608
Website: http://www.yuzurb.com/
Ramen: Spicy Tonkotsu. Chasu, menma, arugula, cayenne pepper slivers, soft boiled egg
Price: $15
Another new shop to pop-up during this amazing ramen boom, Yuzu Ramen & Broffee sits in a quite, honestly odd, part of Emeryville away from all of the hustle and bustle of Bay Street. Little known to me it honestly popped up in the Facebook advertisment feeds one day and I thought, hey, let’s try this out for lunch.
We popped over about a week ago for lunch after running some errands and made it in just before closing. (2pm is end of lunch) The actual restaraunt is layed out really cool, with an awesome back patio with heaters and blankets for those cold nights.
I went with my usual, the Spicy Tonkotsu. The bowl arrived and honestly it wasn’t anything to phone home about visually. The toppings looked good, were placed neatly, and it was very no-nonsense. The broth however, Wow! One of the better Tonkotsu broths I have had here in the Bay Area. Rich and creamy with some really nice layers of flavor including a bit of garlic and a hint of white pepper to then accompany the heat of the chili oil. The noodles were thin and basic, but were really well done. Not the best I have had, but really nothing to complain about. The Chasu was fantastic, perfectly cooked with a hint of smoke from being either grilled or bbq’d after the roasting. The egg, however, was disappointing. Way under cooked and not seasoned it was a total let down. Had the egg been cooked a tiny bit longer and seasoned it would have been a great dish. Especially at $15. This was a solid $10 ramen at best.
For East Bay spots it’s a good place to go. I will go back again for sure.
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