Ramen Happiness: 誠や: Bowl #13

The end of a busy week called for a Ramen dinner. Husband picked me up after my last class of the day and we steered our trusty EK Wagon towards the coast. Heading south along the shore offered spectacular views of the setting sun and the crashing surf. Opting for the scenic (and free) highway led us through many shanty seaside towns that looked as though they were minutes away from being invaded by pirates. Houses and buildings were crammed into the side of the hills; only the narrow highway preventing them from tumbling into the rolling ocean. After thirty minutes of winding curves, we came upon (and passed, at first) a small shop standing alone on the side of the highway

誠や (Makoto-ya) is just outside downtown 糸魚川 (Itoigawa) city where restaurants are famous for using squid ink in their recipes. The restaurant we decided on for dinner did offer つけ麺 (tsukemen) with squid ink noodles for dipping, but when we arrived the button for this dish was flashing a red “X” meaning they were sold out for the day. Feeling a little let down, as well as really hungry from my long day, I ordered my favorite chashu-men. Once our tickets were submitted, we were seated at the counter where we got to watch the one man show that was kitchen at 誠や.

The bowl of chashu-men was just as would be expected. A standard array of toppings lay atop a bed of thin, flat noodles that were floating in a clear, yet flavorful broth. Sipping the soup felt warm and comforting, the kind of feeling that true soul food creates. With the noodles doing their job of wearing the soup like a warm winter coat, each bite was a perfect combination of chewy and savory. Tender slices of chashu, nicely marbled with fat, blanketed the top of the bowl. The menma had a unique flavor, almost smoky and were not as fibrous as others I have had before. The complete product was well rounded and had no negatives to weigh down the positives.

Having started a new job remodeling a ski hotel and doing a lot of grunt work all week, Husband was very hungry. On the ticket machine there was an option for a tonkotsu shoyu ramen that cost more than all the rest of the bowls. On the verge of starving he decided to go for it and was glad that he did. The ramen was amazing! A creamy, tan colored broth rich with pork and shoyu flavor, dashed with black pepper and piping hot covered the same flat soup hugging noodles. Menma, that was nearly as tender as the meat, poked up out of the murky liquid along with green onions, sliced garlic, pork fat niblets, and some stringy form of dark seaweed not yet encountered on our journey. None of this was the best part though… Resting across the top, daring you to take a bite were three long strips of braised then charred pork belly. The three oversize pieces of triple thick bacon like goodness were exactly what poor Husband needed after a long work week. He inhaled the bowl in its entirety.

After we finished our dinner it was time to leave and make the drive back home. I had forgotten to take a picture of the outside of the shop, as is my tradition. Unfortunately, the sun was well past set and there were no outside lights to illuminate the store front or sign. I was able to snap a somewhat dim shot when Husband pulled the car out and faced the headlights toward the building. The drive home felt thankfully shorter than it took to get there as Husband and I were both eager to start our weekend, which had four shops in Nagaoka on the schedule. Those posts will be coming soon!