Shin-Sen-Gumi, Fountain Valley
Well I'm late posting this one, but better late than never.
I heard about Shinsengumi Gardena from a friend, so I thought I'd go to their web-site to check them out. I found out that not only do they have five restaurants, most of them do ramen, but that there is one close to me in Fountain Vally. So I asked my ramen buddy, Ken, if he wanted to take a scooter ride down to F.V. to check it out, he agreed, so off we went.
18315 Brookhurst St. #1 Fountain Valley, Ca (714)962-8952
We arrived 15 min. before opening, and a line had already developed. We put our name on the list to assure ourselves a spot once open. Just before opening the crew approached the door all together as if it were some kind of greeting ritual. But instead of opening the fellow I believe to be head chef lead them in a ceremony that was a kin to a coaches pep talk before a game. It was quite a site, I must learn more about this practice and it's significance to restaurant running generally, and ramen production specifically.
This place is a bit of a mix between old school ramen-ya, and modern cafe style ramen joint. I mean the building is literally divided down the middle.The west end of the building is a cafe/diner looking place with its own full kitchen, laminated tables and steel chairs. And on the other side of the shared wall is the old school wooden counter with wooden pub size chairs, very cool. We were fortunate enough to be seated on the old school side. I would have been content to sit on the diner side, but it was a cool experience to sit where we had a view of the yakitori grill and the family sized Chabudai on a raised platform. As you walk in, the entire crew shouts a traditional Japanese greeting to you that is very welcoming, and sets the tone for the rest of the visit.
The menu is kind of a score card where you choose how they make your ramen. You pick the base, you pick the noodle, and you pick the toppings. The noodle choice is soft, normal or firm, the broth is light, normal or thick. Since I've not been here before I decided to go normal on everything to establish a base line of what exactly is normal. I further chose chashu, negi and egg as my toppings. They also ask you if you will be wanting extra noodles later so that they can have them ready should you need them. You can get the ramen by itself, or with various appetizer or sides. I went with the gyoza, of course.
When the bowl arrived I knew this ramen would not disappoint. It looked so good with the negi and ginger lovingly sprinkled on top, two hanjuku egg and loads of chashu. The eggs struck a nice balance between firm and runny, just the way I like them. The chashu was not melt in your mouth, but quite good none the less. The noodles were very nice, close to the best I've had. All in all a damn good bowl of ramen, so good in fact that I finished the entire bowl, a first for me.
The gyoza are quite nice, and very obviously made on site. The filling was a tad under done,(pinkish), which you usually don't want with pork, but they were just fine, and I'm still here to talk about it so no harm no fowl.
At some point during our meal, the guy it seams is the team leader brought out a meat slicer and several packages of pork roll, and proceeded to slice the chashu for further ramen production. What a show, I know I'm easily entertained.
The part that surprised me most was the check. I thought I was keeping a running tab in my mind as to what the bill would be, but was floored when it finally arrived. The basic ramen is $6.95, you add for gyoza, toppings, and drinks, and the total with tip came to $20.00 each. A little high I thought at the time, but upon reflection if that's what it costs to have a quality experience, a great show, and the knowledge that your helping to keep a nice old school ramen-ya open, it's worth it.
As you walk out, the entire crew shouts a thank you to you and welcomes you to come back soon.
On balance a very nice visit, I give Shin-sen-gumi 5 chopsticks.
I heard about Shinsengumi Gardena from a friend, so I thought I'd go to their web-site to check them out. I found out that not only do they have five restaurants, most of them do ramen, but that there is one close to me in Fountain Vally. So I asked my ramen buddy, Ken, if he wanted to take a scooter ride down to F.V. to check it out, he agreed, so off we went.
18315 Brookhurst St. #1 Fountain Valley, Ca (714)962-8952
We arrived 15 min. before opening, and a line had already developed. We put our name on the list to assure ourselves a spot once open. Just before opening the crew approached the door all together as if it were some kind of greeting ritual. But instead of opening the fellow I believe to be head chef lead them in a ceremony that was a kin to a coaches pep talk before a game. It was quite a site, I must learn more about this practice and it's significance to restaurant running generally, and ramen production specifically.
This place is a bit of a mix between old school ramen-ya, and modern cafe style ramen joint. I mean the building is literally divided down the middle.The west end of the building is a cafe/diner looking place with its own full kitchen, laminated tables and steel chairs. And on the other side of the shared wall is the old school wooden counter with wooden pub size chairs, very cool. We were fortunate enough to be seated on the old school side. I would have been content to sit on the diner side, but it was a cool experience to sit where we had a view of the yakitori grill and the family sized Chabudai on a raised platform. As you walk in, the entire crew shouts a traditional Japanese greeting to you that is very welcoming, and sets the tone for the rest of the visit.
The menu is kind of a score card where you choose how they make your ramen. You pick the base, you pick the noodle, and you pick the toppings. The noodle choice is soft, normal or firm, the broth is light, normal or thick. Since I've not been here before I decided to go normal on everything to establish a base line of what exactly is normal. I further chose chashu, negi and egg as my toppings. They also ask you if you will be wanting extra noodles later so that they can have them ready should you need them. You can get the ramen by itself, or with various appetizer or sides. I went with the gyoza, of course.
When the bowl arrived I knew this ramen would not disappoint. It looked so good with the negi and ginger lovingly sprinkled on top, two hanjuku egg and loads of chashu. The eggs struck a nice balance between firm and runny, just the way I like them. The chashu was not melt in your mouth, but quite good none the less. The noodles were very nice, close to the best I've had. All in all a damn good bowl of ramen, so good in fact that I finished the entire bowl, a first for me.
The gyoza are quite nice, and very obviously made on site. The filling was a tad under done,(pinkish), which you usually don't want with pork, but they were just fine, and I'm still here to talk about it so no harm no fowl.
At some point during our meal, the guy it seams is the team leader brought out a meat slicer and several packages of pork roll, and proceeded to slice the chashu for further ramen production. What a show, I know I'm easily entertained.
The part that surprised me most was the check. I thought I was keeping a running tab in my mind as to what the bill would be, but was floored when it finally arrived. The basic ramen is $6.95, you add for gyoza, toppings, and drinks, and the total with tip came to $20.00 each. A little high I thought at the time, but upon reflection if that's what it costs to have a quality experience, a great show, and the knowledge that your helping to keep a nice old school ramen-ya open, it's worth it.
As you walk out, the entire crew shouts a thank you to you and welcomes you to come back soon.
On balance a very nice visit, I give Shin-sen-gumi 5 chopsticks.
Labels: Orange County
posted by Dan G at 8:11 PM
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