In part one of Ramen Wars, I tried three Ramen joints in San Francisco to try to find some amazing Ramen. Sadly, all three were lacking, but I’m bringing the best of the three forward to go against three more Ramen places. I’ll be comparing R&B Cafe to Katana-Ya Ramen, Orenchi Beyond and Iza Ramen to see which of them is the best!
1. Katana-Ya Ramen
I had heard good things about Katana-Ya, so I headed to Union Square to check it out. I went downstairs into the basement on a hot day and was shown a seat at the bar. I decided to go for the Katanaya Ramen, mostly because if it’s the ramen named after the restaurant, it should be the best, right? You get to choose between Miso, Soy or Salt broth, and the ramen itself came topped with chashu pork, chicken karaage and potstickers for about $16. So it’s not cheap, but there at least were a lot of toppings (plus the egg was not extra, which is always a bonus). I opted for the spicy version for an extra seventy-five cents. All in all it was a pretty decent bowl of ramen. The noodles were pretty good and the broth was decent. However, the fried toppings kind of sunk into the bowl, so they weren’t that crispy when I tried to eat them which was a bit of a disappointment. It was definitely better than any of the previous ones I had eaten, but it wasn’t scratching that “amazing ramen” itch yet.
Noodles: ★★★☆☆
Soup: ★★★★☆
Toppings: ★★★☆☆
Egg: ★★★★☆
Price: ★★★☆☆
2. Orenchi Beyond
This wasn’t my first choice of ramen joints in the area. I first stopped by Ken Ken Ramen as I had heard great things and they do Tan Tan Men ramen, but annoyingly, they don’t serve ramen at lunch. I’d never heard of a ramen place that doesn’t serve ramen, so angrily I left and headed to nearby Orenchi Beyond. Luckily, they also had Tan Tan Men on the menu, so I went for that, and of course, I had to add the egg. However, the ramen itself was $17 and with the addition of the egg, it ran it up to close to $20…for a bowl of soup! When it arrived, I was a bit disappointed. The broth was good, but the noodles we incredibly thick and chewy, and not at all what I really expect from ramen. Maybe they are homemade, but I really wasn’t a fan of the size or texture of the noodles. And the egg was served whole, which to me seems really lazy as it makes it incredibly hard to eat. Overall, I was definitely unimpressed with Orenchi Beyond.
Noodles: ★☆☆☆☆
Soup: ★★★★☆
Toppings: ★★★☆☆
Egg: ★★☆☆☆
Price: ★☆☆☆☆
3. Iza Ramen
Iza Ramen is only open for lunch a few days a week (at least the SOMA branch), so I managed to time some errands so I could be here when they opened. They do a really great lunch special involving a bowl of ramen, some potstickers and chicken karaage and a soft drink for $20. I think I paid an extra fifty cents for the spicy option on the lunch special. (The karaage and potstickers were pretty fantastic.) The broth is really flavorful, and I think it’s due to the fact they use fish in it as well. The toppings were brilliant as the pork melted in your mouth (so much of the pork is really overcooked). Top that off with a well cooked egg and some great noodles, and you’re looking a really good bowl of soup!
Noodles: ★★★★☆
Soup: ★★★★★
Toppings: ★★★★★
Egg: ★★★★☆
Price: ★★★★★
Winner: Iza Ramen
It is the winner hands down. R&B Cafe basically only moved on due to the price and the ability to customize the ramen, and both Katana-Ya and Orenchi Beyond were better than it as well. However, I was so happy with the ramen at Iza Ramen, that I am kind of dreaming about when I can go back. The addition of the starters and soft drink deal for lunch really sold it for me price wise as well. It’s going to be a tough one to beat, but we’ll see if there are any places that can! I’m always looking for recommendations to try out, so feel free to let me know of your favorite places in the comments!
Ranking:
1. Iza Ramen
2. Katana-Ya Ramen
3. R&B Cafe
4. Ramen Underground
5. Kiramachi Ramen
6. Orenchi Beyond
Your description of Iza Ramen is fantastic! I must try it!
I stay at Hotel Diva every year, which is next door to Katana-Ya, so I always get take-out there while I’m in the city. I’m glad they rated well with you! I’ll consider them “Gay Gastronaut Approved” next time. 🙂
Hahaha. I mean it was good, but not amazing there.
But Iza Ramen was something special!