Hey everyone…

After a long work day, I was exhausted and starving. Ramen and beer sounded good. Some friends that I haven’t seen in a long time were actually in the area last night. But it was way past 11 pm and all the good places were either closed or closing up. So we met up at Kouraku in Little Tokyo, which closed at 3 am. It is located on the corner of 2nd Street and Central Ave.

My friend Sam, who had been on a ramen run a long time ago, is a big foodie and he likes to order weird stuff. Which explains the weird appetizers you’ll see below:

Beef Tongue

Pork Tripe

Just because I’m a brave eater, I tried the beef tongue and the tripe. Can’t say I liked them much. The beef tongue was tough to chew on and the tripe was okay. Anyway, I ordered the Chashu ramen with Shoyu Broth. There was a bit of confusion with the server because I asked him if the broth was just shoyu or if it was their chicken and pork broth with shoyu. He said it was the latter. Sam and my other friend, Thu-Nga shared a Tonkotsu Ramen, and Matt, a recording engineer that I work with, ordered the Won Ton Shoyu Ramen. The only ramen Matt knew about before last night was the packaged kind you can buy for ten cents.

Chashu Ramen with Shoyu Broth

Matt looked so focused and confused….

Okay, he got it!

Honestly, I would not recommend this place. My shoyu broth, which I’m pretty sure was only a shoyu based broth and no tonkotsu/chicken whatsoever, was very bland. There was no depth to the flavor. The noodles were exactly like the noodles from a Top Ramen package, and the pork slices were hard to chew on. I only ate most of my bowl because I was starving. I had a taste of Sam’s tonkotsu broth and it was just as bland.

I looked around and noticed that the restaurant was very dirty, and everyone that came in were obviously people who came from clubs and bars in Little Tokyo, and needed something to sober up. If for some reason, you find yourself drunk and need ramen after 2 am, you can count on this place! Other than that, I wouldn’t come here. I wouldn’t even come here if I was drunk. And you can’t really trust a place with a door that has a  “Do Not Open” sign.

I’m not even going to bother with restaurant information.

Joan