Thursday, November 14, 2013

Eat in San Francisco: Ken Ken Ramen


Tonkotsu ramen with the classic hakata style flavor base

Last night I tried Ken Ken Ramen on 18th Street in the Mission with an old friend. When describing the restaurant to me initially, she used the words "busy" and "popular," which I correctly deciphered as "hip" and "delicious."

On the outside, Ken Ken seems like a typical hole-in-the-wall, while inside it's more of a tropical club scene. It's crowded, paper lanterns cover the ceiling, progressively louder music plays, neon paint and/or blacklight are present, people-watching opportunities abound, and a bar takes up most of the waiting area. Although there was a bit of a line, the wait was much better than at other trendy spots in the city. Besides, it gave us a moment to experience the disco music playing in the synthetic vine-draped restroom.

We both ordered the tonkotsu ramen with the classic flavor base. It came with all the traditional ramen fixins', including braised pork, a soft-boiled egg, and green onions. Apart from the tasty pork, the highlight of the dish would have to be the broth that was also rich in flavor. Although I'm not used to having such salty foods, this was a nice treat.

While I'm not a ramen-head by any means, I can say that theirs is one of the best I've tried. Plus, Ken Ken Ramen almost has more character than soup.

Ken Ken Ramen
3378 18th St., San Francisco, CA 94110
Open: Tuesday - Saturday 6 - 10, Sunday 12 - 3:30 & 6 - 9

Check out more posts from San Francisco.

Longtime blog support, Cal alum, and  über talented photographer, Katie Roseff, just shot an amazing lookbook for Shop At Image. It's neat.

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