just want to say, i was there the night of the asa/la times photo shoot. 

“the rameniac” looks nothing like i imagined.  if i knew, i would definitely went up and shook your hand for this awesome site.  kudos and keep it up!!!

btw - drove from pasadena specifically for asa and gardena.  hit both of them that night

thanks!

which did you prefer, asa or gardena?

asa definitely, but i thought asa lost some point with me on the value department.  smaller portion compared to some other.  the egg was great!!!  the yolk was practically running, with very good flavors

i do agree with you on gardena’s soup, its perhaps some of the richest soup that i have had outside of the home.  the toppings were very disappointing.

last thing, how do you feel about adding minced garlic a la daikokouya?  is it traditional and accepted?  reason being if gardena had the garlic, i believe it would counter the richness and bring a better balance to the whole bowl.

i don’t mind asa’s portion size, mainly because i think america needs to un-supersize everything in general lol.

as for garlic, minced/crushed/pasted garlic is actually used in a LOT of ramen shops in japan… especially when it comes to hakata-style tonkotsu. many places will have a big jar tableside, or even a garlic press and whole cloves for you to press into your bowl in whatever amount you see fit. it’s probably rarer with shoyu ramen, but i don’t think it would mess with tradition too much at all. as an option, it would be great!

lol, reluctantly i concede the portion question to your glaringly obvious point. 

nice to hear your belief on garlic.  i always add some with my daikokuya broth and it just bring balance to the universe.  my god, garlic is luke skywalker of ramen!!!

OMG I didn’t know you’re a musician!  I am too (drums/percussion mainly, including gamelan).  We should form a band, and call it Kaedama. 

LOL! kaedama, live at budokan!

Your stage names can be Kotteri and Assari...hahaha. Can I be your dj? DJ MSG in da house! or should I be in da bowl?

hahaha… keizo are you really a dj?

Kotteri and Assari, that rules.  One person can wear a trenchcoat, and the other prosthetic butt-cheeks.  Har har.

I used to dj way back when. I still have the 1200’s though. They just need to be dusted.