Oh see...

Day 1270:

I've dreamt about a breakfast like this for months! See, it's all about hope. haha.

Since I've been gone there seems to have been a slight explosion of ramen shops in socal. In Costa Mesa alone I count 5 new shops. One of them is Ramen Zetton on Baker near Bristol.

Having recently opened at the end of 2012, there are several ramen to choose from but the Tori Shio Ramen seems to be the most popular.

It's a little heavier than I expected with the chicken broth not being so clear, but I was pleasantly surprised by it's depth of unassuming flavor.

The noodles matched fairly with the overly oily soup and once again I was pleasantly surprised.

I may have to revisit this place before I leave.

Another new shop is Ramen Iroha located in the food court of Marukai Supermarket.

If you didn't know, Ramen Iroha is a chain which has successfully marketed the "Toyama Black" in Japan. Having witnessed how this chain has evolved over the years, I must say that I am not as overly shocked as I should be when assessing the poor quality of this bowl.

No offense to Kurihara-san, but I don't see this shop lasting very long.

I can't believe I even finished the bowl...it was definitely a struggle.