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Looks like Rude Dante and the RJG's were in California at the same time. He was in northern while we were down south. Our adventure will be recorded here soon.
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Out in the Bay area for a couple days, I've been staying at the south end of the bay in Santa Clara for the first time in many years. Just down the road from Levi Stadium. Did a quick recon of the area yesterday and found a little strip mall with multiple likely options to explore. One of my oldest friends works in the area, so we planned to meet for lunch today. I offer 2 choices - a Ban Mi that recently opened, and the ramen joint listed above. Mike opted for Ramen.
Not being anything like a connoisseur, I immediately went for a dish that would have been available at any crummy noodle joint in Tokyo (Tonkatsu - ramen with pork). Mike opted for vegan ramen, and we discussed sides (edamame or crispy chicken) and settled on 'both'. No liquor / beer / wine here, so we opted for just water to drink.
Noodles were great, broth tasty and also hearty, with just the right amount of seaweed, egg, herbs, scallions and other veggies to make every bite contain something to relish. Both of us popped chicken chunks into the broth, and I also experimented with some edamame and a bit of the chili paste that accompanied our lunches. Mike raved about his veggies and shared a piece of charred broccolini with me. We ate well!
Not a cheap place, and also a bit crowded, we waited 15 min or so for a table and spent some $65 for lunch for two. Part of that is service charge, another part is just bay area prices. But both of us said it was the best ramen we'd had in years - maybe ever. Definitely a topper on the RJG for this genre.
Locations: 9 in California
4300 Great America Pkwy #180, Santa Clara, CA 95054Out in the Bay area for a couple days, I've been staying at the south end of the bay in Santa Clara for the first time in many years. Just down the road from Levi Stadium. Did a quick recon of the area yesterday and found a little strip mall with multiple likely options to explore. One of my oldest friends works in the area, so we planned to meet for lunch today. I offer 2 choices - a Ban Mi that recently opened, and the ramen joint listed above. Mike opted for Ramen.
Not being anything like a connoisseur, I immediately went for a dish that would have been available at any crummy noodle joint in Tokyo (Tonkatsu - ramen with pork). Mike opted for vegan ramen, and we discussed sides (edamame or crispy chicken) and settled on 'both'. No liquor / beer / wine here, so we opted for just water to drink.
Noodles were great, broth tasty and also hearty, with just the right amount of seaweed, egg, herbs, scallions and other veggies to make every bite contain something to relish. Both of us popped chicken chunks into the broth, and I also experimented with some edamame and a bit of the chili paste that accompanied our lunches. Mike raved about his veggies and shared a piece of charred broccolini with me. We ate well!
Not a cheap place, and also a bit crowded, we waited 15 min or so for a table and spent some $65 for lunch for two. Part of that is service charge, another part is just bay area prices. But both of us said it was the best ramen we'd had in years - maybe ever. Definitely a topper on the RJG for this genre.
- Rude Dante review
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