Hi everyone…

Last night was a very inebriated ramen run. I can’t believe I remember everything about it. But at least I can tell you all what happened!

After work in Downtown LA, I went to Santa Monica to stay with my cousin. For dinner, we wanted to go to Kotoya again because it was close to Michelle’s house and I was really in the mood for their delicious ramen! Well, it was still early and Kotoya wasn’t open yet, so we decided to have a drink… or two… or three. Three whiskies.

There was no way we were driving so we caught the bus!

When we arrived, we were seated right away at the bar. Our favorite server was there, her name is Yuko. She is great! Very lovely and friendly Japanese lady. We started off with some Kirin beer. It was a little busy that night and some things took a little longer than before, but Yuko was very apologetic about it and made sure we had everything we needed. We then ordered some Takoyaki and the younger chef who made them served us the takoyaki himself. He was really cute and the takoyaki was delicious!

Takoyaki with katsuobushi! I didn’t know what katsuobushi was for the longest time,
it’s smoked skipjack tuna

I ordered the White Ramen with Shoyu this time, with extra chashu and a soft boiled egg. I asked for the bamboo removed but they seemed to have forgotten that. Michelle ordered exactly what I got last time, the Red Ramen Level 3.

 White ramen with extra chashu and soft-boiled egg

Michelle’s Red Ramen Level 3

Overall my ramen was very good although there was a little more oil than before. But the broth’s flavor was amazing. I really like how consistent they are with the firm noodles and all the toppings were very good. Michelle thought her ramen was just as delicious as it was last time we were there, she said it tasted exactly like the Red Ramen I ordered. Consistency is something anyone should look for when eating at a restaurant and constant improvement. I think this place has got that for the most part. We ordered another bottle of Kirin each and both started feeling really buzzed. Michelle couldn’t finish her ramen, I don’t think she was able to handle the heat so she asked to take it to go.

Jump to bottom of post for restaurant information.

Halfway through dinner, Michelle started chatting with some guy who was having dinner alone, next to us. I think his name was Werner. He was new in town and didn’t really know the area so Michelle invited him to go with us to a bar down the street called Mother’s. That was when things got really interesting. You’ll know this because the photos became blurrier and blurrier as the night progressed.

 It was actually called Mom’s Bar

 I really couldn’t hold the camera still….

 Werner looked like Andy Garcia

 Self Portrait

 Okay, that’s better

 Dancing with herself… uh oh!

Random guy wanted to be in the photo

Michelle and I had two whiskies at Mom’s bar and we were seriously having a hard time walking straight. We parted ways with Andy Garcia and headed over to the bus stop.

When you’re drunk you don’t notice how cold it is and how long you’ve been waiting for the bus

The bus ride was funny. Not gonna say who, but one of us tripped, trying to ask the bus driver which way the bus was heading. I think the passengers were really annoyed at how much time we were taking, trying to figure out where the bus was going. We finally sat down after maybe 5 minutes of holding up the bus. We reached the stop we needed to get to and walked the rest of the way back home. It was a rough walk back.

 Over the 10 Freeway

 Funky street lights!

This photo was not any better…

We thought about going to the Speakeasy bar, a few blocks from Michelle’s place but after 5 whiskies and 2 beers, there was no way we were going to make it there. It was midnight and we had to call it a night.

The next morning Michelle had to go to work early and I managed to sleep in. She left me a note and I thought I should post it here. She’s the only person these days that leaves me notes!

Or so I thought…. I went to my car and found this:

No way ALEXANDER! I love my car and I would not consider selling it to anyone.

Thanks for reading!

Joan

Kotoya Japanese Ramen
11901 Santa Monica Blvd. Suite #111
Los Angeles, CA 90025

The restaurant is in a shopping complex, with their own parking lot and also parking underneath.

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