Trendy name, great noodles
34 1/2 E. 1st St. (in Little Tokyo)
Phone: 213-626-4252 | map | website

My home from time to time, with poor artwork and faux-brick on the walls. There is, oddly enough, reggae music playing. This is my hands-down favorite ramen place in Little Tokyo, let alone any other part of L.A.

The ramen bowls are fantastic and allow for your choice of ingredients. I choose the soy sauce broth, Bianca goes for miso. My usual pick is the mabo tofu with ground pork and tofu; in the photo I've included garlic and a hard-boiled egg. We sit with a spoon in one hand and hashi in the other and go to work.

I also recommend miso with chashu pork, scallions and garlic (which they pile on in a wonderfully, ridiculously large heap which will have your pores reeking for hours), or chicken curry ramen, mildly burny with a hard-boiled egg and spinach added.

The experience may leave you sweating and panting, so get a can of UCC iced coffee or oolong tea. The gyoza is fair, and the fried rice is better. When I'm not feeling a hundred percent, I come here to refuel.

They're open until midnight, which always helps. The service can be a little harried, so keep your patience about you; it's worth it.