After watching PBS network’s The Mind of a Chef episode where Chef David Chang visits Japan to dissect the making of great Japanese ramen, talk of the deliciously brewed soup broths and the science behind making springy ramen noodles only made me hungry for a hot bowl of ramen. It may be 30C/86F outside, but I’m dreaming of ramen. Then again, I’m always one to say “yes” to noodle soup 😛

In the West End of Vancouver, BC, Canada, it feels like the number of ramen shops rivals the number of Starbucks coffee houses. Just on Robson Street between Denman Street and Cardero Street alone, you’ll find 4 popular Vancouver Japanese ramen noodle restaurants (… and 1 Starbucks ;)):
– Hokkaido Ramen “Santouka”, 1690 Robson Street
– Motomachi Shokudo, 740 Denman Street
– Kintaro Ramen, 788 Denman Street
– Benkai Ramen, 1741 Robson Street and 545 W Broadway

It may be battle ramen in this part of Vancouver West, but each of the ‘famous four’ ramen shops above do offer unique ramen experiences – from the Tokyo simple, in-and-out fast food ramen (Kintaro Ramen) to the charcoal “black” ramen soup base (Motomachi Shokudo).

Our ramen discoveries in Silicon Valley have led us returning back to these ones for more:
– Hokkaido Ramen “Santouka”, San Jose, CA – inside Mitsuwa Market Place
– Maru Ichi, Mountain View, CA
– Shin Shin Men Men, Cupertino, CA
– Orenchi Ramen, Santa Clara, CA
– … and still looking for more to explore.

Happy eating … or slurping 😉

P.S. If you love ramen, check out “http://www.ramenramenramen.net” – a blog about ramen and more ramen!