Ramen Summer School: Yatai at Breadbar

I'd like to preface this post by telling you how happy it makes me to be loving food blogging again.  Upon awaking this morning, laying in bed listening to the breathing of my three favorite beings and the occasional click-click-clicking toenails of one restless GSD puppy, I reflected on my meal last night. Low and behold, I couldn't wait to get to my iMac, gaze out my window into the gloom and bougainvillea, edit my photos and start to construct this post in my head. Waking up to excitement over a new post is what keeps me going, an indicator I'm doing something I love.

Yatai at Breadbar

8718 W 3rd Street

Los Angeles, CA 90024

310-205-0124

Now through July 24th

Yatai at Breadbar on 3rd is a 6-week long pop-up ramen restaurant.  Taken from Breadbar's website:

BREADBAR | West Third Street proudly announces a new Japanese inspired pop-up concept, "Yatai Ramen Twist", now - July 24th. On Mondays - Saturdays from 5-10pm, guests can enjoy Japanese street food in the heart of West Hollywood. "Yatai" is a small, mobile Japanese food stand typically selling ramen and other hot dishes.

Created by Ironnori Concepts, Chef Kazuo Shimamura will create fresh ramen dishes weekly, from Tomato Ramen to Foie Gras Ramen, to classics like Spicy Miso and Shoyu Ramen. Gyoza (pot-stickers) and flavored Boba Teas will be on hand.

Space is limited for Yatai | Ramen Twist. RSVP by calling 310.205.0124 or visit opentable.com to secure your place now!

What is a yatai?  A yatai is much like the bacon-wrapped hot dog carts you will find on street corners in Echo Park.  

image courtesy of:  Khaosan-Fukuoka Hostel

I didn't see many of these when I was in Tokyo, but I saw a few.  Love the one with the yellow curtains in the background, sitting within the curtains must either the pleasant illusion that one is in a very small restaurant or at the very least block out passing exhaust fumes.  Japanese do an excellent job with small and makeshift spaces.

These little food stands are built into the walls underneath train platforms. They are sprinkled throughout Tokyo at various train stations. Walking past, you are enveloped by the scents of various noodle broths, sushi rice, robata.

The menu.  Last night they offered eight versions of ramen, four classic and four with a twist. Click to enlarge if you fancy.

From the side menu: kale gyoza.

Dark green filling wrapped inside fairly traditional dough, crimped at the edges. Originally Chinese, these treats spread to Japan and beyond to Southern and Southeast Asia.

H brought a nice bottle of chianti that stood up well to the salty-sweet broth and meats in our bowls. Breadbar pop-ups at the 3rd Street location are BYOB, and they happily pop the cork and provide you with glasses.

Pig's foot gyoza.  Satisfying the current rage for anything that constitutes nose-to-tail dining.

The filling here was satisfyingly fatty, smooth and silky with a little substantial and solid flesh to chew on.  Both gyoza were delicious, but I preferred the stand out flavors of the kale.

Our giant bowls of ramen came out with little paper labels so as not to confuse us with similar looking bowls. Is this done at all ramen restaurants? In the words of Greg Stink, I have no idea. 

Huge hot steaming bowl of oxtail ramen. Oxtail flavor soup, truffle oil, marine poached egg.  Any flavors from the truffle oil were blown away by the strong flavors of the hot, sweet broth. The twist offerings were described as having heartier broths and thicker noodles than the classic preparations.  The broth in the oxtail was rich and a little oily, probably from the slightly fatty oxtail.  What is an oxtail, you might ask. Well you might not, but J did. Oxtail is the culinary name for the tail of cattle.  

image courtesy of: Donald Russell

Above, oxtail in its pre-cooked state. You can clearly see the center of the vertebrae, and once the meat has been cooked and stripped from the bone, you can see the spinal and transverse processes.

image courtesy of these people

About halfway through (and durn close to being completely full tummy-wise) you can see the quality and texture of the noodles.

Chianti was a great choice to accompany my dish. It stood up very nicely to my rich broth without overpowering all the subtle flavors.

 

Above, D ordered the classic miso ramen. All classic bowls came with marine poached egg, kurobota pork belly, nori, bamboo shoot, kikurage mushroom, Tokyo negi onions.

H had the spicy miso ramen.

J ate the shoyu ramen. These S boys are bottomless pits. Both finished their entire bowls. I took a little to-go container home and cannot wait for lunch time.

Our server, who has served me beautifully at many a Ludobites, gifted us a small bag of beautiful Breadbar financiers. Thank you for the cookies and see you soon at Ludobites!

Addendum: Peeking at my to-go container of beautiful left over ramen, I am happy to report the broth has gellified.  Meaning the broth is made by roasting and boiling bones over a period of time. I have heard two different stories about where the gelatin comes from when making a stock.  The connective tissue has collagen, which converts to gelatin that thickens the liquid, becoming gelee like when cold. But I have also read that the bones themselves contain gelatin. Nevermind, because we are looking for the natural occurrence of gelatin in a stock which thickens and enrichens our soup naturally without further additives.  One gets it from making a proper stock using lots of bones and cooking the heck out of them for a very long time. Like Mom does.