Ramen Happiness: The Ramen Fair

Now that the challenge is halfway over, and there is still another month before it draws to a close, Husband and I decided to stay in town for the weekend. The knowledge of my love for Ramen is not unknown to those around me, and it has spread even further with the news of my stamp mission. Everyone from friends to students has wanted to share with me their favorite restaurants as well as Ramen related events in the area. This weekend, a small, but popular shopping and restaurant area located on the outskirts of Joetsu played host to a Ramen Fair. It was the twentieth anniversary of the event and who am I to pass up some new bowls of noodles to try.

The event had started in the early afternoon and when we arrived right around five o’clock there was still quite a large crowd in attendance. After purchasing our ticket for our bowl of Ramen we perused the stalls that had been set up for each participating shop. Stretching out from in front of the opening to each counter were lines that had been roped off in order to shuffle people towards their desired soup. Luckily for us, we seemed to have arrived at the lull between the early crowd and the late comers so we were able to merely walk up to the counter offering the Ramen we wished to sample.

We decided to each get a different bowl in order to be able to trade off and each taste two different soups. The best part about this fair was that Ramen chefs from other parts of Japan were present and cooking soups that are served in their shops. せたが屋 (Setaga-ya) is a restaurant located in Tokyo, their name is a play on the name of the ward in which the restaurant resides - 世田谷区 (Setagaya-ku, or Setagaya ward). The last kanji in the restaurant’s name is屋 (ya) which means shop or store. The soup which they were offering had a cloudy broth that was definitely made with pork and fish components in the stock. The flavor was rich, but a little too fishy for my preference. The noodles were so-so - a little thin and sort of tasted like dried noodles brought back to life, which they may well have been. One great part of the dish was the three different cuts of meat that came floating on top. Each piece of chashu was unique; one was fattier, one lean, and the last was darker meat. This little tasting platter of meats was the highlight of overall okay bowl of Ramen.

The second bowl that was selected for tasting was from a shop that has a branch in each Nagano and Nagaoka. The soup was clear and a rich brown color. Using only chicken stock and adding a nice shoyu dashi, or flavoring, created the well balanced broth. Sticking with their chicken campaign, one of the toppings was also a slice of chicken. The typical slice of chashu pork was also present, as well as sliced leeks and menma. The noodles were similar to the first bowl - thin and a little flavorless, but at least they did hold the soup nicely. Husband and I took turns trying both bowls of Ramen and we did agree that the preference leaned towards the second. Fish components are often used in Japanese cooking as bases for soups, but you do not always end up tasting the flavor in the end product. While sometimes it is not a bad thing to have a slight fishy taste, we both agreed that the soup from the first bowl of Ramen did not quite have the right balance for our palate.

After draining our bowls, we walked around the rest of the festival. There was a stage set up with some music, dancing and prize giveaways, but what made Husband most excited was the sight of his favorite food truck. Local to Joetsu is a から揚げ (Kara-age), or fried chicken, restaurant that also likes to make appearances in the festival circuit. Built out of a tiny, little van, they pump out delicious fried chicken like it is nobody’s business. Hot, juicy and bursting with flavor it is served in a cup, coated with your choice of seasoning from garlic salt to curry powder. We shared a small, 5-piece cup of garlic salt chicken while we watched children scream and clamber over each other as the DJs threw prizes from the stage before heading home with full bellies.