Naga Naga Ramen - Pasadena, CA

On my drive back from meeting rameniac at the new Naga Naga Ramen in Pasadena, I began to daydream. Whatever was in that soup, it made me want to write a spoof of Top Gun based solely on ramen. Of course it would be called Top Ramen, but everything would be pronounced phonetically using Japanese syllables. So, in actuality it would be called Toppu Ramen. I even detailed the perfect cast in my mind. Rameniac would play Maburiku (Maverick), edjusted would play Goosoo (Goose), I would play Aisu Man (Ice Man), Brian would play Suraidaa (Slider), Nate would play Maalin (Merlin), Pepsi Monster would play Jestaa (Jester), Dennis would play Vwipaa (Viper), BB would play Chaalee (Charlie), and Paul could play Meg Ryan's part. Haha..no offense. And Exile Kiss, don't think I forgot about ya. You could play Holleewuddo (Hollywood). I arrived home before I could lay out the main plot so maybe I'll finish it after my next visit. Or not...

"I feeru za needo...Za needo for MSG!"
(If I've offended you by your inclusion, I apologize. Have your agent contact me asap.)

Anyway, I guess I was trying to convey that I wasn't really impressed by "Long Long" Ramen. To me, it was a cross between Noodle World and Ajisen. You can be the judge of that statement. There was a definitive Thai influence throughout the menu so I may possibly come back to try the Tomyum "Revolutionary" Ramen someday cuz it looked good. The Naga Naga Ramen that I had today was supposed to be Tonkotsu, but it lacked porkiness. Yeah I know, it didn't make any sense to me either. The chashu tasted like ham or canadian bacon and the menma was a bit tough. The noodles were decent...sort of. I used to live in Pasadena and would always hope for a true ramen-ya to arrive in Old Town. Sadly, this isn't the true ramen-ya that I was expecting. Maybe I don't regret moving after all.

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49 E. Colorado Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91105
(626) 585-8822
Hours: Unknown

Gyu-Kaku - Pasadena, CA

70 W. Green St.
Pasadena, CA 91105
(626) 405-4842
www.gyu-kaku.com

A friend once told me that Gyu-Kaku's ramen is really good! Specifically, they said Gyu-Kaku's ramen in Pasadena is really good! And this was the same friend that said Tokyo Table's ramen is really good. Can you see where this is going? Yup, I'm definitely gonna have to reconsider this friendship over the holidays...hehe.


Goma Negi Ramen: The menu describes it as: "Ramen served in a special SHIO broth topped with ample Green Onions & Sesame Seeds." I will describe it as: "Sapporo Ichiban noodles overcooked in a stone pot and served in a special instant-like soup with a touch of Green Onions & Sesame Seeds." I'm sorry, but I could've made this at home.


The only positive thing about this ramen was the chashu, but that still wasn't even great. There's also a raw egg dropped in that gets cooked in the soup. You know, just like when you make instant ramen at home.


Thank goodness this is a Japanese BBQ restaurant and not a ramen-ya! My favorite is the Harami Miso! So next time you're stuck in Pasadena and desperately craving ramen, just chew a stick of gum until that craving dissipates. But if you must eat the ramen here, please do so at your own risk. Otherwise just stick to the meat and beer!


Okay, you can still be my friend...

Lunch:
FRI-SUN 11:30am - 4pm
Dinner:
MON-THU 5pm - 10:30pm
FRI-SAT 5pm - 11:30pm
SUN 5pm – 10pm

Noodle World - Pasadena, CA

24 W. Colorado Blvd.
Pasadena, CA 91105
(626) 585-5885
www.noodleworld.com

If you're stuck in Old Town Pasadena desperately craving some ramen, then you're better off walking across the street to Famima!! and checking out their instant noodle collection. Noodle World (formerly Boba World) is not known for their ramen and quite frankly I don't understand why they even bother to have it on the menu. If this were the only noodle shop in the world that served ramen, I would probably be heading the next NASA expedition in search of ramen on Mars!

Ramen: Not much to rave about here so I'll try to make it brief. The soup smelled and tasted like shiitake. It reminded me of udon broth. I think this might be a new species of ramenudon--something that probably should be extinct if you ask me. The noodles were on par with the worst of them and the toppings were even worse. I particularly detest cilantro in my ramen and the chashu (or what looked like chashu) tasted more like processed chicken or some other four-legged furry animal. Normally a HUGE fan of menma, I couldn't bare to eat these. At least they had some decent smoothies to wash most of the rancid taste out of my mouth.


Extra Famima!! pics (NOT NOODLE WORLD!):