Ramen Happiness: 暁: Bowl #2

Heading into my second week of the challenge and I'm already falling behind in my posts. Week one was a success, in my opinion. Visiting four shops put a small, but satisfying, dent in the overall goal of thirty by Halloween. Now that it is my weekend and I have mostly recovered from Husband's big Saturday night birthday bash, it is time to buckle down and write about some tasty noodles. There's nothing like a trip to the beach to catch some last rays of the summer sun to get the creativity moving.

On Wednesday, which was day two of the journey, the husband and I decided on lunch at 暁 (Akatsuki), or "Dawn" when the kanji is translated. He had been to this shop on a previous occasion with a friend and had yet to take me there. Since it is pretty close to our apartment it seemed like a good choice for my lunch break. From what I can surmise with my limited translation skills, the one of the reasons for 暁's popularity is their chashu. It is cooked with secret ingredients at a low temperature and served rare and tender.

We were their first customers of the day and each ordered a bowl of Ramen, one standard order and one chashu-men order. I love Ramen shops (and all restaurants really) that just stick to what they know and do best. The menu at 暁 is this way; no muss, no fuss. The lovely lady who took our order was also the cook who prepared our lunch. The Ramen was ready very quickly and we were able to see a little bit of her well-oiled routine of preparing her bowls. They are proud of their soup with its thick pork broth made from a dashi of pig bones and meat. This was my kind of soup; rich and savory with strong meat and shoyu flavors. Good to the last drop.

After translating the small blurb from the Komachi magazine about this shop, I can fully agree with their reasoning of its popularity. The chashu was definitely unique and unlike the standard slices you get at the quick get in-get out shops scattered throughout Japan. Their pride in their recipe is apparent and it is certainly earned. It had a flavor all its own that was enhanced by the broth. Other mediocre bowls of Ramen rely on the broth to make the chashu have a better flavor, but the juicy pink slices of pork at 暁 could stand all on their own. I wish I could have a thick slab with some mashed potatoes and green beans, like a pot roast dinner.

Also a plus, the noodles were thicker and had great texture. Husband and I are both fond of the thicker cut noodles that maintain a delicious coating of broth as they are slurped up. Nothing is worse than thin, flavorless noodles. 暁 keeps it pretty simple when it comes to other toppings with some pieces of menma (bamboo shoots), cut green onions and a sheet of nori (seaweed). The real focus is meant to be on the savory broth and succulent chashu.