anna had suggested we try this all together next, so here we are! the wait was zilch because anna had walked in ahead of time to grab us a spot (thank you anna)

this spot is pretty well-known in chicago. it’s a small, but cozy venue. they specialize in beef-based broth, which is a switch-up from the typical tonkotsu broth. gabi had the shio house which is gyukotsu, beef jam (seemingly ground beef), shio tare, yuzu, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. anna and i had the shio tokusei, which consisted of the same, but with beef chashu, red onions, menma (which i donated to gabi), and ajitama (also donated to gabi, sorry im a picky guy).

i honestly quite enjoyed it. the broth is quite good and complex with a good balance of oil. the yuzu helps add some acidity and slight citrussy, while the sharpness and slight sweetness of the red onions did a banger job imo. i do wish i wrote this earlier, as i do forget that was the enjoyable part for sure. the noodles were not bad. they were hakata-style, which i enjoyed, but was a bit bland. the weakness here was the beef chashu… it was quite dry, and the beef jam did a much better job at adding umami, although it did essentially still taste like marinated ground beef haha. the aftertaste of the meal was a slight saltiness, nothing some water and drinks wouldn’t fix.

perhaps the beef chashu was a one-time issue, but will not know until i try it again. however, i would likely come back again for the uniqueness of the broth itself (unless future spots deem it unnecessary). the other ramens in their menu seem to have their own charm as well, but the gyukotsu broth itself already breaks the occasional monotony of ramen broth i’ve had thus far.

  • noodle: 7
  • broth: 7.5
  • toppings: 4.5
  • balance: 6.5
  • satisfaction: 7
  • overall: 6.5

refer: ramen review sheet