Mountain - Rowland Heights, CA

18414 Colima Rd Unit R
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(626) 810-9697

In a desperate effort not to exceed more than ten days between posts, I went digging deep into the Hong Kong Palace area of Rowland Heights only to discover...the...WORST RAMEN EVER!!! I honestly never thought I could find a ramen this bad. I know that ramen isn't their specialty, but come on...this was horrendous. Why even have it on the menu?!! I've never not finished a ramen before no matter how bad it was (Noodle World included), but I guess--like they say--there's a first for everything. After only a few slurps, we asked for the check and left. With that said, let's not waste any more time.

BBQ Pork-ramen: Basically a really bland chashu ramen with mushy, overcooked noodles. It even came topped with not one, but TWO gnats. Yum!


Chicken Ball-ramen: Need I say anything else?...I think not.

Hanashima - Rowland Heights, CA

1738 1/4 Nogales St.
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(626) 839-5906

Literally translated, Hanashima means Flower Island. A strange name for a ramen-ya, but thank goodness names don't make the ramen. Sandwiched between a Korean restaurant and a laundromat, could Hanashima be that ramen rose which grows from concrete? Early signs say no, but I've been wrong about first impressions before. Plus, the Chinese waiter/manager speaks fluent Japanese and claims to have been born in Japan.



Shoyu-ramen: I honestly expected worse. This shoyu-ramen wasn't quite bland, but it's definitely on the lighter side as far as taste goes. The soup also had a minor sweetness to it that made it stand out. The crinkled noodles were much like the ones you'll find at most ramen-ya's. Not original but they still tasted good. The toppings (chashu, baby bok choy, menma, negi, naruto, and nori) all tasted very normal and unimpressive.


Mabo-ramen: This mabo-ramen was created by injecting the shoyu-ramen with anthrocytes. I think I've found the world's first bionic ramen! Ten times better than the shoyu, this spicy specimen took me through a full spectrum of emotions. I highly recommend it if you're in the mood for mabo. The only negative for me was the size of the tofu. Bigger chunks would have been better.


Gyoza: A little too much meat, but otherwise delicious. Plenty of garlic, but not too overwhelming. A good companion to the ramen.

Igosi Ramen - Rowland Heights, CA

18333 Colima Rd.
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(626) 913-9974

Sometimes it's nice to have a little spice. Korean owned and operated, Igosi ramen is not your typical Japanese ramen-ya. They serve the more traditional Korean ramyun so don't be fooled (like I was) when your google search for ramen turns up Igosi. Located a few doors down from DoReMi market in a small Korean shopping center, I soon parked and realized that I wasn't going to have a normal ramen lunch. But since there's ramen in their name, I might as well go and get it over with. I guess I could use the practice for Orochon's "Special 2" ramen.

Regular ramen: Regular ramen? Regular to whom? I didn't see anything regular about this ramen. If I were to name it, I'd call it Irregular! But then again, I'm sort of out of my element here. This ramen reminded me of those college days when my Korean friend's would bring over cases of Nong Shim Shin Ramyun and we would live off of it for days. The noodle texture was practically identical to the Shin Ramyun. The only differences were that this soup was a tad spicier and the toppings were unusual--at least to me. The toppings consisted of sliced mochi (I think), green onions, egg, a sliced pepper, and seaweed. It actually wasn't bad. If I'm ever in the mood for spicy, I may just have to go back. But next time I'll be sure to bring a headband.

Tampopo Ramen- Rowland Heights, CA

1388 S. Fullerton Rd., #125
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
626-965-9038

Hidden in the predominately chinese center known as Diamond Plaza in Rowland Heights, I was surprised to see a ramen-ya that was actually being operated by native japanese speakers. Nevertheless, this restaurant with a familiar name, Tampopo, was a must try for the ramen lover in me. I didn't expect too much at first, especially due to the reputations of "other" Tampopo restaurants in Southern California with below average ramen. Not to mention that this place is new and located in an odd food court style room where all five restaurants are separated by four-foot tall barriers. Service was great considering I was only one of five other customers. It will be interesting to see how service changes once they become busier. Anyway, on to why we are here--the ramen!

Shoyu-ramen (soy sauce flavored): Since shoyu-ramen is typically the most popular, it is generally the best to use in determining ramen quality. I typically like to judge a ramen by the texture of the noodle, flavor of the base, and the union of toppings with the overall ramen. In this case, the noodles were very good (almost perfect...almost), the soup base was average, and the toppings did not impress me at all. But I did enjoy being there and I will definitely be coming back soon.

Tonkotsu-ramen (pork flavored): The tonkotsu-ramen was better than the shoyu. Although noodle texture was the same, the base was much more flavorful. Perhaps because the pork bone is usually fattier than shoyu.

Mabo-ramen: By far the best ramen (see pic below) that I have tasted to date from this place. The noodles were consistently great once again but the major difference was the flavor of the mabo sauce. I've tasted watery mabo ramen in the past from other restaurants that were either too spicy or not spicy enough. This was very different. The ground pork, tofu, and mabo sauce all blended with the soy sauce base perfectly. I definitely recommend this to everyone. I think I just might even have to order mabo ramen from now on!


Gyoza: Okay, it is hard to find a decent gyoza these days and this was no exception. It is only worth mentioning the gyoza to tell you NOT to order it. Don't waste your money or taste buds on this one! You can even see the unworthiness in the pic below.


Special Hiyashi: I didn't try this myself but from what I hear it was pretty good. Compared to the traditional Hiyashi-chuuka (summer ramen), this one does not include ham and is noted as a vegetarian dish. With tofu replacing the ham, this is a vegetarian delight on a hot summer day. The only complaint that I heard was the plate being too small and awkwardly shaped to mix up all the ingredients.