Shoku Ramen Bar has Your Noodles and Your Sandwich Covered

Shoku Ramen Bar is a hidden away little spot to get ramen and other delicious items for a price that won't leave a huge hole in your wallet. Nicely portioned dishes and a wide variety make Shoku a place that you should seriously consider checking out if you're in the neighborhood.

Food -
The man attraction at Shoku is the ramen. And of that they have many varieties. I tried the spicy black garlic chashu ramen tonight and it was excellent. The broth was spicy (but not overly so) and had a delicious richness that I felt elevated it. It was also packed with extras like seaweed, corn, egg, and more! Also on the menu is ramen with other proteins such as chicken, beef, or tofu. There's even a plain ramen if you don't want any of that for a pretty cheap price! If you're more of an udon fan... guess what... they have udon on the menu as well!

To go along with your ramen, you probably want some appetizers, and Shoku has them ready for you. Many of the mainstays are available such as edamame, wakame, and gyoza. The gyoza can be prepared either pan fried or deep fried. It was nice to have a choice and I asked for pan fried. In hindsight, I think the deep fried version would have been a bit more enjoyable. I'm a big fan of chicken karaage and gave that a try tonight. It had a different style of fry to it than usual. Not bad, but it's not the type I prefer. My friend saw that they had octopus on the menu and gave that a shot. She thought it was a little too sweet for her taste.

One menu item that I thought was very unique were the sandwiches they offered. You can select pork or chicken. The meat is served tonkatsu style with vegetables. It had a good size to it and I felt it could make a pretty decent meal.

Service/Atmosphere - 
We came on a slow day of the week, so the servers had some time to really wait on us and make sure everything was good. The servers were excellent and talkative. It was great to ask them a little about the restaurant and their favorites on the menu. They were really awesome.

The restaurant itself has a cut look to it. It's not overly fancy, but the decor does the job well and the booths have a comfy feel to them.

Price -
Price is probably the best aspect of Shoku. The items are very reasonable. The ramen I ordered was $8.95 and that is the highest priced one. I mentioned already that it was full of good ingredients and can fill you up. I thought it was a great deal! The sandwich is also priced well at just $5. I'm not sure if they'll adjust pricing up soon, but if they don't, I'd say that Shoku has some of the best deals in town.

Special Tips and Recommendations -
I recommend the spicy black garlic chashu ramen that I ordered. In fact, both me and my friend ordered it as it looked the best. Our server came over and actually said it was her favorite as well. So with that amount of recommendation, I'd say it's the one to get! If you're afraid it might be too spicy... well... it isn't. It's an enjoyable amount of spice that only the extremely sensitive should be wary of.

Bottom Line - 
A great price with friendly service and good portions makes for an excellent place to eat. If I lived closer to Shoku I could see myself stopping by quite often for a nice lunch!

Letter Grade

B

The branding for Shoku is very well done.

You can get a number of bottled drinks from their cold case.

The octopus appetizer.

Chicken karaage is a bit of a different preparation.

You can order sandwiches off the menu and they are quite a good size.

The ramen is filled with ingredients.

Gyoza that was pan fried. Deep frying also an option.

Ramen House Tenjin Serves the People of the Pocket

Ramen places are popping up all over town, many are good, but they can sometimes feel like cookie-cutter copies of themselves. Ramen House Tenjin doesn't have that feel. Delivering outstanding service and a multitude of different ramen options, Ramen House Tenjin is the perfect ramen place to serve the folks who live in the Pocket area of Sacramento.

Food -
Ramen House Tenjin provides its patrons with a menu full of ramen. It can be daunting to figure out what to eat, but their first page provides the most common versions - so if you're in doubt, try one of those. As usual, my wife got the white tonkotsu ramen, while I got the red. The white tonkotsu ramen isn't spicy at all, but had a nice smooth and savory flavor. The broth had a good flavor, not the most complex that there is, but one that has a good taste to it.

The red tonkotsu ramen is the spicy variation. I enjoyed the taste of this ramen, but it could have used just a little more spiciness to it. As it came, the heat was there, but only just. I found that the spicy taste of this ramen was quite different than other tonkotsu ramen that I have had at other places. Not that it was better or worse tasting than other restaurants... just a bit different. Overall I did enjoy the ramen and would get it again given the chance.

Aside from these standard ramen types, Tenjin also offers tan tan men (a spicy bowl topped with flavored ground pork), kimchi ramen, challenge ramen (a very hot dish), and more.

As always, I chose to order the chicken karaage as an appetizer. The karaage was well fried and came with a slice of lemon. The karaage was the traditional type and didn't have much grease or oily taste to it at all. The flavor was good and the lemon added a nice citrus element. This appetizer is on par with what I would expect of this dish.

If you're wanting some rice, Tenjin has that base covered. Pork, chicken, and beef bowls are all on the menu. You can also opt for cold noodles, stir fried noodles, or udon soup. I told you the menu was big!

Service/Atmosphere - 
I found the service at Tenjin to be superb. Every single staff member was welcoming and friendly. I was honestly very surprised as sometimes at these ramen places the service can be iffy. Even with our kid here, they were awesome. In fact, they were very good to him and made sure he had a high chair and bowls for his food. My wife was blown away by the service and couldn't stop raving about it as we recapped our time there.

As for the atmosphere, Tenjin is well furnished with a simple, yet classy decor. There isn't anything extremely hip or modern here, just a solid, clean eating environment.

Price -
The prices at Tenjin are similar to other ramen restaurants. Ramen bowls are around the ten dollar mark. You can choose to add extra toppings, noodles, or soup for an extra fee. All in all, I'd say the prices at Tenjin are moderate and compare well to other restaurants of its ilk - definitely not an overpriced place to eat.

Special Tips and Recommendations -
Some restaurants close on a weekday to get their break. Ramen House Tenjin does so on Tuesdays, so make sure you don't come on that day! If you do you'll be disappointed!

Bottom Line - 
Ramen House Tenjin is a very solid choice for ramen, not just in the Pocket area, but of all Sacramento. The service is really great and the food options will leave anyone who comes happy after their visit!

Letter Grade

A-

New restaurant in the Pocket area of Sacramento.

They gave the kid this really cute bowl to use.

The standard pork ramen - non-spicy.

Beef over rice.

Chicken Karaage.

Natomas' Ramen Fix!

Natomas has always had a great deal of food options, but ramen wasn't really ever one of them. Koshi Ramen Bar adds this popular noodle dish to the options when dining in this part of Sacramento. Like many ramen restaurants around Sac, I foresee this one as being quite popular - so make sure you arrive before the huge lunch and dinner rushes!

Food -
Koshi Ramen Bar is, of course, a place to get ramen. You can get the usual bevy of soup bases here such as tonkotsu, miso, and shoyu, as well as veggie, black garlic, chicken, and seafood. It's quite a vast selection! Being me, I've already decided I'm a tonkotsu guy, so I go for it on my visit. After selecting the type of ramen you would like you can apply heat to it. Select from four levels of spiciness to get the exact taste you want. I went for the medium spice and I felt it was exactly a medium level!

If you'd like other toppings for the ramen you can go ahead and select more items. Most of the extras like corn are a dollar more, but getting more pork is two bucks as is extra ramen noodles. I'm a big fan of the ability to really customize the your ramen bowl, so this is a great feature!

Aside from the ramen, there is a nice selection of appetizers on the menu. Many of these starters are dishes common to ramen places. You'll find chicken karaage, gyoza, and tempura but also things like lumpia, spam masubi, and even grilled whole squid. The pricing on the appetizers range from around four dollars to eight.

Finally, if you're not in the noodle mood, you can get one of the three rice bowls that are offered. There's chashu and chicken which are pretty par for the course... but there's also unagi on the menu as well! For those of you not in the know, unagi is eel! And it is quite delicious! I didn't get a chance to try the unagi here at Koshi, but I would very much like to in a future visit.

On a negative note, on this particular visit to Koshi, I found that the egg and chashu were a bit cold in my ramen bowl. It was kind of a shock to feel that temperature as I was eating. The two items seemed to be fully cooked so I'm not sure why they had that temperature. This is something I'll have to pay close attention to the next time.

Service/Atmosphere - 
The servers at Koshi Ramen Bar are extremely friendly. I felt that the worker who took my order up front was being very nice. I appreciate the effort to make me feel welcome in the restaurant. It certainly does make the entire experience better.

The restaurant itself is beautifully decorated. The color tones and wall art give the place a modern look that is very inviting. You can tell that some thoughtful design went into creating the dining atmosphere here.

Price -
The ramen bowls are around $10 each - actually a little more. Adding an appetizer and a drink is going to get you near the $20 range. I'd say that if you're on a budget and want to get filled up, this may not be the place for you as every extra thing will be more money out of your wallet.

Special Tips and Recommendations -
Be wise when adding things to your bowl of ramen. At one to two dollars each for extras, the price of just a bowl of ramen can get pretty high pretty fast. Like I mentioned in the price category of this review, make sure you tabulate everything you select and make sure you're willing to pay it!

Bottom Line - 
Koshi Ramen Bar is a great add to the restaurants in Natomas. I'd happily come here for a ramen fix. The service is friendly and the restaurant is nicely furnished. I had a minor issue with my food on this visit, but I don't think it's par for the course. I'm looking forward to the next go-around!

Letter Grade

B+

Koshi is located to the right of the movie theater in Natomas.

Medium spicy ramen.

Nice piece of wood!

The 'Other' Ramen House - Ramen House Raijin

When you're craving some good ramen in Sacramento, I would typically steer you towards Ramen House Ryujin. It's probably the most popular ramen restaurant in town. But often times Ryujin has a long line and a long wait time. Rather than waiting, some folks (who are in the know) walk right across the street to Ramen House Raijin to get their ramen fix on. It's just about as good as Ryujin, and an excellent place to satisfy your noodle desires.

Food -
If I'm not mistaken, Ryujin and Raijin have the same ownership, so the food can't be too much different from each other. In fact, many of the menu items are similar between the two places. Raijin, I believe, actually has more food item offerings - but I could be mistaken.

As for the food at Raijin, there are plenty of ramen choices to select from. If you're in a spicy mood, there are spicy ramen flavors to get. Typically this spicy ramen flavors come with a red colored broth. It really isn't that spicy, but will give you a nice kick of heat. If you're just like that hint of spiciness, these bowls of ramen will really hit the spot. I like to add extra noodles to my ramen to make the dish just a little bigger. If you're really hungry, double noodles is also an option to get.

The milder brothers come in pork and soy varieties. They offer a much milder and smoother taste than the spicy ramen. These milder tastes still boast a rich flavor that is very enjoyable. What I love about Raijin is the ability to customize your bowl with the exact ingredients you want in it. The menu does a great job of showing you exactly what you can put in and at what cost.

Ramen's most important feature is the noodle. And the noodles at Raijin are absolutely addicting! Often times I finish my extra noodle bowl and crave even more - making me wish I had gone with double noodles. The ramen here has the perfect texture; it's so easy to eat!

Another favorite dish of mine at Raijin is the chashu rice dish. It's the same pork that you find in the ramen dishes, but prepared a different way. It pairs with rice perfectly. This is a dish that I will sometimes order alongside my ramen just because it is so good. On a recent visit my I got this for my mom and she enjoyed it very much - even though she is a very critical eater!

If you're looking for starters, Raijin has plenty of appetizers to get you going. I often order a little plate of fried chicken karaage. I select the spicy version and it comes loaded with this insane looking amount of peppers. Looks are deceiving though as the dish really isn't very hot at all!

Service/Atmosphere - 
Raijin is all about getting you in, seated, eating, and out! You'll often be able to get a table relatively quickly as the dining area here is large. There's ample space for many customers to dine in. A bar area is available as well, but often there should be table space if that's what you're looking for. Raijin has some Japanese style decor all around, but it hasn't been very well kept up and looks as thought it could use a bit of cleaning. I'm sure that's not a priority as business here is quite brisk.

The servers here do their jobs exactly as they need to. They are friendly enough and check in on you from time to time. If you need anything, just flag one down and they will get you what you need. It's a pretty no nonsense experience, so just expect that.

Price -
Bowls of ramen will be around the ten dollar mark. Adding more noodles or extra ingredients will boost that amount a little higher. Overall the prices at Raijin aren't that bad. Everything is reasonably priced. It's not on the cheaper side, but sits nicely in the middle - I certainly wouldn't say it is a high priced place to go.

Special Tips and Recommendations -
Come to Raijin if Ryujin is too long a wait! I'd say the food is 90% as good as what Ryujin is. Sure, Ryujin is a little better in my opinion, but you have to factor in the wait time over there. If you're hungry, this place will satisfy you!

In terms of food, give the chicken karaage a try. It is fried very nicely and comes out pipping hot. They have a few different varieties of it here - pick the one that appeals to you the most!

Bottom Line - 
Raijin is a solid choice to get ramen in Sacramento. It often gets overshadowed by its neighbor Ramen House Ryujin, but Raijin continues to go on strong for a good reason... it's a great place to eat in and of itself!

Letter Grade

B+

This chashu rice dish is off the charts!

The Tokyo ramen has a soy sauce base.

Spicy chicken karaage isn't as intimidating as it appears to be.

E Tea & Super Pan make a SUPER DUO in Downtown Sacramento

It's rare when something a bit different hits the scene - I love it when it happens... especially if it's good! And that's exactly what E Tea and Super Pan bring to Sacramento. Asian food done in a unique way that sets it apart from all the other places in town. 

Food -
E Tea and Super Pan occupy the same building. E Tea is the boba cafe portion of the space while Super Pan gives patrons a sit-down experience with a full menu of food items. E Tea drink menus are given out when at Super Pan so don't worry that you can get E Tea drinks by dining in at Super Pan. They got you covered!

Let's talk about E Tea first. E Tea is your standard boba drink place but with their own unique creations for you to try. I love that the menu features their fun drink selection and describes exactly what's in it. The menu really gives you a good baseline of what to expect, and if you want to add or take out anything from the drink, you can! My personal favorite drink is the Almond Queen. I've never had anything like it before. It's an almond (Asian style) flavored drink that isn't tea. It comes with almond pudding and boba - but I skip the boba. IT'S SO GOOD! The almond pudding is so amazing in this drink. My only complaint is that it isn't perfectly smooth. If they somehow got it to be that way I would totally be in love.

Super Pan is where things get really cool, or should I say hot! The reason why the restaurant is called Super Pan is because the main dishes are served on these scorching hot pans. The meat inside is still raw when they bring it to you. The idea is for you to finish the cooking on the pan and then eat the food when it is at its perfect cooking level for you. Now that's a sweet concept.

When you look at the menu, you might find it a bit strange as the meat shown there is RAW. Just know that you will have to finish the cooking! It's just the way it is!

The dishes can come with rice or noodles with a selection of meats like beef, chicken, and salmon. The price of these plates range from about ten dollars to fifteen dollars on the high end. You can also select a sauce to go with the dish. Each sauce is unique and I'm sure you will find one that suits what you are looking for on a visit to Super Pan.

Ramen is also offered at around the ten to twelve dollar range. It's a fair price and the portion of ramen is typical of other places. The presentation of the ramen is a bit average and doesn't look mouth watering, but the broth it comes with is seasoned well - actually, surprisingly nice! The noodles themselves are excellent as well. The only disappointment when it came to the ramen was the pork. It was really large and the texture was too tough.

Appetizers like covered fries, chicken wings, and the like are available for a nice pre-meal warm up or late evening snack. You can even get takoyaki here! It's octopus (you're welcome). Craving some hot pot? Well that's here too! Like I said, Super Pan has a nicely varied menu with a great selection of different items to choose from.

Service/Atmosphere - 
I have to really comment on the servers here. The ones we had tonight were simply amazing. They were kind, courteous, and accommodating. These guys really took care of us and got us everything we needed - especially with our baby in tow. Their professionalism was appreciated greatly. I was sure to tip them nicely for their excellent work.

The overall atmosphere of E Tea and Super Pan is modern. It's a little rough around the edges, but with a little fixing up I think this place could be top notch in the atmosphere department. One thing I do like is the sectioned off parts of the dining room. It makes the restaurant feel more private for the diners that come in. But I suppose that comes at a price as without the partitions there may have been room for more tables.

Price -
E Tea and Super Pan comes in at a moderate price level. Expect to pay around twelve to sixteen dollars to eat here. If you'd like a boba drink to go with your meal then add a few more dollars to that estimate.

Portion size at E Tea is typical of all boba places, but Super Pan has a little less when it comes to the meal portion. I finished my entire hot pan of food and I definitely could have eaten some more.

Special Tips and Recommendations -
Pay attention to the sign just outside the entrance to the restaurant. If you're looking to save a little money, you can check out the different specials of the day. These are regular menu items that have a little discount to them on different days of the week. These specials aren't mentioned by the servers inside, so make sure that they know you want the specially priced item when you go there. Oh yea, and also make sure you order it during the hours the special is available.

As E Tea and Super Pan are located in downtown, parking can be difficult to find on crowded days. The restaurant and cafe are very close to the Sacramento Convention Center so if you attend an event there, you may want to slip in here for a meal or quick drink.

Bottom Line - 
There's a lot to like about E Tea and Super Pan. The concept of the duo restaurants is really good and the food is tasty too. A few enhancements to the food could really make this location a star in the Sacramento food scene.

Letter Grade

B+

Ramen (non-spicy version).

Certainly not the prettiest ramen I've seen.

Baby approves of the boba drinks from E Tea.

Get a hot drink. Get a cute cup.

The Almond Queen give me joy!

T-Kumi Ramen in Davis

Yay! Another ramen place in Davis! I LOVE Yakitori Yuchan, but T-Kumi is another wonderful place for ramen! They also have milk teas, rice bowls, and other appetizers to satisfy any cravings you may have. **Introduction changed due to some taking offense to the wording used in the initial introduction. Anyways, hope you enjoy the review and my personal regular guy nothing special opinion!

Food -
T-Kumi has a sign out that asks its patrons to be patient with the time it takes for them to get the food out to you because each dish is made fresh when ordered. They claim that 'fresh is the best'! And for the most part, it's true of the food here at T-Kumi. I found that the items here are a step above the average Asian food place you find in Davis (except for Yakitori Yuchan - that place is quality city!). For whatever reason, restaurants have taken the lower quality, lower price approach to dining in this college town. I guess that caters to the poor college student, but nowadays getting delicious food that doesn't suck is becoming more and more a priority than just filling yourself up with garbage. People's standard have gone up!

The highest quality item on the menu by far is the ramen. And it should be since they claim to be a ramen place first and foremost. I found the ramen to be very good, but not in the upper echelons of great ramen. All the ingredients were great, but I think it needed just a little more complexity to the flavor to get it to where it needed to go. One that that was at a high level was the pork slices though. Oh man... they were extremely tender and had flavor for days. Get the other ingredients to match that level of quality and T-Kumi's ramen could be my favorite ever!

The next best thing at T-Kumi was actually the lemon tea drink I ordered. I was a bit skeptical about getting it because often times I don't like the way boba cafes make this type of beverage. They usually turn out too sweet or too tart or too watered down. It was not so with the drink here. The lemon flavor was perfectly smooth. I think it's because they actually add some passion fruit juice to balance out the flavor. So smart!

The two most disappointing items I had during my visit were the rice bowl and crispy tofu. The crispy tofu wasn't that crispy actually... and ordering it with medium spice levels didn't really provide any heat at all. The tofu was a bit clunky and large rather than delicately fried little cubes of amazingness. I probably wouldn't get them again unless they improve it. And as for the rice bowl... well... that was a regrettable purchase. It turns out the chicken was cooked burnt with a very dry texture. I thought it was edible, but my wife absolutely did not. And to add insult to injury, the broccoli was quite stiff.

So when it comes to food at T-Kumi, I'd recommend just getting the ramen. The other items may be ok, but I think the majority of the effort is in the ramen - so that's the best bet.

Service/Atmosphere - 
I found the servers at T-Kumi to be friendly even though they had to deal with long lines of people wanting to get food. I think they did their best to keep things moving at a good pace. So I didn't have any issues with the servers there.

In terms of atmosphere, the restaurant is nicely decorated. I appreciate the effort put into some furnishings as this has not always been the case with restaurants that open in Davis. My only wish is that there was more space in the restaurant. With the amount of people wanting to come in for food, there simply isn't enough tables to seat everyone. On my visit I ended up sitting at a table right next to the long line to the register. I could deal with it, but the situation certainly wasn't ideal.

And one big flaw for me was that T-Kumi didn't have any high chairs for babies. I'm sure college students were the main focus of the owners, but seating for babies is pretty much a must-have for any restaurant. It's an easy fix, so I hope they are able to bring some in sooner rather than later.

Price -
The prices at T-Kumi aren't too bad. Ramen ranges from about ten to twelve bucks. If you'd like to have more noodles, the option is there for another buck at the time of this review. Drinks are around the four dollar range with appetizers at six to seven and rice bowls around ten. I found the pricing to be rather fair for the quality and amount of food given.

Special Tips and Recommendations -
If you want to come to T-Kumi, first of all... make sure to look up when you arrive at the address! The restaurant is located on the SECOND FLOOR on the RIGHT SIDE of the business area. And be sure to come earlier than peak eating times. I arrived at T-Kumi right before 12 and the line wasn't bad. A couple minutes later the line went to the door and there were no tables left to sit at! So be mindful of the time you choose to go to this restaurant.

As for a food recommendation, of course I recommend the ramen. Make sure you get the pork slices as they are very, very flavorful!

Bottom Line - 
Other than Yakitori Yuchan, T-Kumi has some of the best ramen you can get in Davis. They also have a lot of other fun menu items that I'm sure will peak your interest. I can already tell that this restaurant will be very popular to those in Davis, so make sure you beat the rush and get here early.

Letter Grade

A-

The restaurant is located on the 2nd level.

Apparently the food is FRESH.

Lemon tropical tea is smoooooooth.

The rice bowls could use some improvement.

Just get the ramen. You'll be happy!