Daikokuya

I find it only fair to publish my Daikokuya review after giving it a little ribbing in my Mr. Ramen post. Now, if you live in SoCal and are even just a moderate ramen eater, then chances are you've either been to Daikokuya or heard someone raving about it like it was the second coming of Christ. Mind you, I think the place is decent, but I honestly don't buy into the hype this place garners.

The line here can vary from "wow, it's kind of packed" to "Jesus, that looks like a 2 hour wait." If you do make it in, you have the option of sitting either at a booth or at this pseudo-bar area where you can see the chefs in the back preparing your meal. Granted, I've only sat at the booths, but I do hear that sitting at the bar should be avoided if you can help it, if only to avoid the inevitable barrage of steam coming from the kitchen.

Sitting down you will find a menu with various izakaya-style selections, and only two types of ramen. You have the Daikoku ramen (a pork bone ramen), which is what most people order, or you have the Tsukemen which is the same dish except served with cold noodles on the side and dipped in the pork bone broth. Unfortunately, the only other food I've sampled here was the gyoza and the fried rice. The fried rice was just that: fried rice, nothing too crazy. The gyoza was also alright, nothing standout or mind blowing.

Now, onto the main attraction, the ramen. The Daikoku ramen is decidedly the bowl you will want to order when coming here. The pork bone broth is rich, the pork is fatty and flavorful, and overall it is a very good bowl of ramen. The Tsukemen is perfect for a warm day, as you aren't staring down into a giant bowl of steaming ramen. The cold noodles are decent, but take a turn towards Flavortown once dipped in the pork bone broth. Overall, both bowls are good and definitely worth trying at least once during visits to Little Tokyo.

Sadly, I have quite a few problems with Daikokuya. The number one issue was actually an isolated incident during my last visit, but has unfortunately kept me from coming back: I found a rubber hairband in my bowl of Daikoku ramen. Yes, that's right, those bands that you use to tie your hair back when dealing with food. Repulsive. The other issue I had was disjointed service. Now, I can't shift 100% of the blame to Daikokuya for this because lets face it, this place is the busiest restaurant in Little Tokyo, beating out Shabu Shabu House. But honestly, it stinks having to wave your hands like you're flagging down an airplane on a deserted island. I also hate that rushed feeling you get from eating at places with long waits and little seating; it makes it very hard to relax and enjoy your food.

Daikokuya definitely serves a good bowl of ramen, but unfortunately the long waits, seemingly unclean environment, and awkward service just don't hit home with me. Go at least once to try the Daikoku ramen and see if it was worth the hour+ wait; if it was, then you have your new spot with the other LA hipsters.

Mr. Ramen

I'm always a bit surprised when I read people's impressions of Mr. Ramen down in Little Tokyo on 1st Street. To be fair, it does have the odds stacked against it, being just a few doors down from Daikokuya, which happens to be the "darling" of hipster SoCal ramen eaters. I don't think the often maligned comments are deserved. In fact, I would actually rate Mr. Ramen above Daikokuya.

Upon entering, you'll notice the decor is a little...odd. Random paintings on the wall, autographed pictures of lounge singers, and a collection of small tables and a long bench. Nine times out of ten, reggae can be heard over the speaker system, and to be quite honest, I think all of the above just add to the charm. Not only does Mr. Ramen beat Daikokuya in warmth, but the service is miles better and the selection is outstanding.

Mr. Ramen caters to us savage carnivores, as well as those who stay strictly vegetarian; on the back of their menu, they offer a full selection of vegetarian dishes , including multiple bowls of ramen made with vegetarian broth. Being a ravenous meat-eater, I haven't tried any of these dishes, but the look of satisfaction I saw on my vegetarian cousin's face told me it was probably pretty damn good.

Flipping back to the regular menu, you will find an impressive selection of various bowls of ramen and combos. Their pork bone ramen is a little less flavorful than the one found a hundred feet away at Daikokuya, but it's still an above-average bowl of ramen (especially when dosed with copious amounts of nanami togarashi!) My two personal favorites here are the chicken curry ramen and the spicy chashu ramen. The chicken curry has an amazing broth that isn't too thick or too thin, but just right. Along for the ride are sizable chunks of juicy white meat chicken breast that just suck up the flavor of the broth, resulting in an orgasmic flavor explosion once you bite into it. The spicy chashu doesn't seem like anything special at first; after all, it's regular chashu ramen with an extra kick. But the thing that sets it apart from known heat factories like Orochon is that none of the flavor is lost due to the spiciness. I always dump some more togarashi in it to step it up, but it's also perfect the way it is. The pork is juicy with just the right amount of fat, and the seemingly fresh nori adds in a little more flavor without falling apart.

The waitresses who work here are extremely friendly, and are never seen without a smile. Drinks are usually refilled on time, checks are only brought after the table has been cleared, and the food comes out lightning fast. I'm sure most of this is possible due to the fact that they are rarely super busy (again, due to the cult following of Daikokuya), but you just can't get this friendliness down the street.

Overall, try out Mr. Ramen. If you love chicken and Japanese curry, then I highly recommend the chicken curry ramen. I know it'll be tough to pull yourself away from the entrancing gaze of Daikokuya, but you owe it to yourself to at least visit this little shop at least once.

Tokiwa Sushi

I guess apologies are in order. I promised an entry months ago, and here my blog sits, unused and unloved. I suppose I'll take the time now to metaphorically run back into the loving arms of my food blog with a bouquet of roses and a "I'm sorry, I never should have left you" speech. Okay, so that joke was lame, but I'm rusty.

I'm going to write off the cuff about a new sushi place in Moorpark that I visited last night with my friend Hector. Tokiwa Sushi is on New Los Angeles Ave, in the same plaza as the billiards, which in turn is across the street from the amazing Cafe Firenze. Now, on to the juicy details.

As soon as you walk into Tokiwa, the first thing you will notice is that it is quite small; there are about 6-8 seats at the sushi bar, and only about 6-7 tables inside. I should point out that this is not to its detriment at all, because the great thing about being a small restaurant is having the advantage of providing a more intimate atmosphere. The decorations are mostly what you would find in a sushi bar, but for some reason the lighting and the paint on the walls come together and create a really relaxed ambiance. I guess it's hard to explain, but just know that this place exudes warmth and relaxation.

We were promptly seated and had our drink orders taken literally about 2 seconds after our cheeks touched the seats. Our beers came almost as quick as they were ordered, which was a pleasant surprise, even if the place was a little slow that night. We were handed the sushi checklist along with a pen, and soon begun our trek to sushi heaven. The list is pretty expansive, full of the usual fare and quite a few interesting originals that were created at Tokiwa. After studying the list like it was some alien being, we eagerly put in our order and waited excitedly for our food.

Now, another thing I want to point out that I absolutely loved about Tokiwa was how they staggered the serving of the food. It's common for a lot of places to just bring out everything at once and make you feel really overwhelmed, especially at sushi when you tend to order a lot of food. Nope, not here. We received two pieces of sushi nigiri and one of the rolls, and once they saw that we had finished those off they brought the rest of the order. I can see some people being a little irritated at this, but I personally loved it. I hate when I have a mountain of food in front of me, it makes me feel like I'm at a Nathan's Hot Dog competition and I need to beat Kobayashi at stuffing everything I can in my face.

The food itself was great. The albacore sushi melted in my mouth, with the right amount of sauce and green onions to top it off. I also ordered red snapper, which was the perfect amount of firmness without having that fishy taste you can get at some places who don't restock their fish regularly. The octopus was also the right amount of chewy with a great flavor that mixed well with the soy sauce. Hector ordered a Tokiwa original called the Kookoo Roll, which is a spicy tuna roll with salmon on top which is sprinkled with black pepper and then hot sealed. The roll was amazing, and normally I'm not a fan of salmon, but the flavors were stunning and the boldness of the black pepper really gave it a kick. It was smoky too due to the roll being hot sealed on the outside, but it matched perfectly with the pepper and the fish.

Another thing I noticed about Tokiwa is that they seem to serve their sushi in a traditional way. Most sushi bars in Japan do not offer you extra wasabi or ginger, because the wasabi is already between the fish and the rice. Tokiwa also does not give you wasabi or ginger, which means you are eating the fish the way the chef intended it to be eaten. If a certain cut of fish works better with a sauce, the chef himself includes the sauce on that fish (as is what happens with albacore sushi). Again this might irritate some people who like to mix and match and customize their order, but I am a fan of eating food the way it is served so this was perfect for me.

Overall, Tokiwa took me by surprise. The quality of the fish is outstanding, the service is friendly and extremely attentive, and the atmosphere really makes you relaxed and helps you enjoy an evening out with friends or someone special. It definitely looks like Moorpark is beginning to get a lot of quality places to eat at, and I encourage every sushi fan to try this place out. I may have to work Tokiwa into my regular sushi rotation of Tomodachi and...Tomodachi, haha.

Visit Tokiwa's website (http://www.mytokiwa.com) for the complete menu as well as their operating hours. Support local restaurants!

Let the Gluttony Commence!

Well now, this was a long time coming!

Welcome to Toe's food blog! I am your hungry host, The Toefoo! Why the "The"? Because there can only be one! Kind of like in Highlander...sans Sean Connery.

This project was originally supposed to start last year, but unfortunately I am a giant lazy bastard and totally just let it slip. Well, no longer! I finally got myself a new camera, dusted the cobwebs off the writer's side of my brain, and am ready to record and report to you all of the wonderful places I stuff my face at with great food and great booze.

Tomorrow will be the first part of the series, which I am making extra special by visiting a place I have yet to have the pleasure dining at. This means I won't have months and months of total extreme fanboy bias clouding my judgment!

All failed attempts at humor and wit aside, I hope everyone enjoys this project I've set out on. Get ready to get your foodage on!