Setagaya wins
EATERY:
Setagaya
LOCATION:
141 1st Avenue (near 9th st.)
REVIEWS:
Ramen wars raging in the east village! Everyone seems to have an opinion (although that probably says more about the limited crowd I run with, since normal people could really care less...). I was disappointed with Ippudo, for purely self-loathing reasons. I'm sure everyone else will love it though. But here I offer my #1: imho, setagaya is the hand-down place to go in NY for ramen that is authentic and cheap, yet still a totally original creation (that is, unless you are willing to go to the mitsuwa marketplace in jersey for santouka... which is a whole other conversation). I love this ramen, and these days I'm there about 2 or 3 times a week. Please mock freely, I can take it. The specialty (and originally the only ramen choice on the menu) is Shio (salt broth-based) ramen. The thing I heard, which I have no idea whether it is true or not, is that Shio ramen has become super popular in japan recently, as an alternative to the macho-man ramen chefs who make super-rich bowls of pork fat (see Minca and Ippudo... I'm not hating, I love them both). Someone realized that shio is lighter but still has the same potential for complexity as tonkotsu (pork-bone), shouyu (soy-sauce), or miso based soups. Setagaya's shio broth is amaaazing - and I'm told the secret ingredient is scallop oil. The noodles are perfect, perfect, perfect and the toppings are great (including a magically half set hard-boiled egg, that they cut in half with string!).
RANTS & RAVES:
Recently Setagaya added a shouyu ramen to the menu, and it is fantastic. The diced onions in a little pile on the left side of the bowl are actually sauteed in crack, in case you were wondering why you feel like that after. ALSO! My big problem with Ippudo is the ridiculous atmosphere of the place and overly-eager service. Setagaya is actually the antidote to that problem. Fast, cheap, friendly, consistent, etc, etc. I know I'm making a broad claim to call it authentic, when in fact I didn't grow up in japan, but I've been there a few times, and I ate a lot of ramen! And I keep having these dreams where, like, all of a sudden I realize that you can get to tokyo in 20 minutes on the staten island ferry or something. Right? 外国人ですけど、日本の本ラーメンの味が分かるにできますか？宜しくお願いします！
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