Shops serving the Japanese noodle dishes seem to be proliferating in Vancouver
Mia Stainsby
Sun
Menya Japanese Noodle owner and chef Shuichi Hara with one of his Kyushu-style ramen noodle specialties. Photograph by: Bill Keay, Vancouver Sun
MENYA JAPANESE NOODLE
401 West Broadway, 604-873-3277
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There’s ramen and there’s ramen, apparently. At Menya Japanese Noodle it’s the Kyushu kind where the broth is somewhat milky from the pork bones and marrow. “Around Tokyo, the soup is clear,” says owner Shuichi Hara, who went back to his native Japan “to study ramen for five years.”
When I asked where he studied ramen, he laughed. “I worked for my mother-in-law. She has three, four restaurants.”
In Japan, ramen is a popular fast food. “Like hamburger is here,” he says. “Western people eat hamburger, we eat ramen, even in summer.” But in Vancouver, sushi seems to have overtaken hamburgers as the iconic everyday food.
Judging by the accelerated openings, ramen shops seem to be making inroads in the last year. Motomachi Shodudo on Denman (where a pinch of charcoal powder for digestion and cleansing turns the broth slightly grey) and Benkei Noodle Shop on Robson were a couple of ramen newcomers in the past year. Shogun, downtown, has had a full house at lunch for years and Kintaro, on Denman, has the same at dinner.
Actually, when you think of all the instant ramen noodles sold (ever heard of Mr. Noodle or Sapporo Ichiban?), you have to wonder if it’s not rivalling Kraft Dinner in the world of instant food. I know when I’m backpacking, I’m a sucker for instant ramen.
At Menya, diners hunch over enormous bowls of noodles. The Kyushi-style noodles aren’t as kinky (as in curled) as other ramen noodles. They’re also thinner, “like angel hair [pasta],” says Hara, who has a local company make them to his specifications. The Nagasaki Chanpon dish is a particularly full load with meat, seafood and veggies. The Ramen “set” will get you ramen, gyoza (freshly made) and a rice ball. For those who don’t eat meat, there’s a soba noodle dish made with fish stock.
The cost of the dishes is in line with recessionary times. A bowl of noodles that you won’t be able to finish, without bringing larger-sized clothing, costs about $7.
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