Folks know I'm not real keen on being among the first in the door when a place opens. But sometimes curiosity gets the better of me and with all the hype Nishiki Ramen was getting...when Candice asked me if I was up for lunch.....during their soft opening; I just couldn't help myself. Still, I tempered my expectations. I mean, even my initial visit to Santouka when they first opened was not very good....and we really don't need to mention Dumpling Hut.
The interior of the shop is wide open and there were perhaps just a dozen people in front of us....something to do with the 1230 opening I think.
The young guys working here are very nice; friendly, pretty well versed in the product, and kept our waters filled....I know; it's a soft opening....but isn't that the purpose of doing that?
The menu for today was simply one ramen ($10), boiled egg is extra ($2), something called "Volcano Sauce" ($1.50) and Chicken Karaage ($7).
So this is the one time I can accurately claim to have had everything on the menu!
So after all the hype over the noodles???? I gotta say, it delivered; nice pull and chew, great texture, maybe the best I've had since Ippudo in Osaka. That red paste in the little bowl is the Volcano Sauce, basically a mildly spicy bean/miso paste which tasted like Gochujang. Overpowers anything in the ramen, but was decent on the chicken karaage. The broth was chicken forward; I believe it's a pork-chicken combination, it's not too thick, but also not overly salty (I was told no MSG is used). Really nice flavor, the black sesame oil was pretty mild. I think it's better than RakiRaki's Premium Ramen. The Chashu is sliced a bit too thin for my tastes. It's very tender and moist, but needs a bit more flavoring. I really couldn't detect any special flavor from the "sea salt seasoning" for the egg; but it was prepared perfectly. My favorite thing? The noodles.....
The Chicken Karaage had nice flavor, but wasn't light and crisp like I prefer.
It's passable but nowhere near as good as my favorites...it's missing a nice deep savory flavor, but did fine dipped in the Volcano Sauce.
While I think the prices are on the high side, I do think I have another place for my ramen rotation. Enjoyed the service, and really liked the noodles. I understand that there's another, thicker version that I'm looking forward to trying.
I'm glad to have had a chance to check this place out. I was told that the planned grand opening is scheduled for Sunday, October 4th. Until then it's the limited menu.
Nishiki Ramen
8055 Armour St
San Diego, CA 92111
hopefully they'll be able to bring up the quality of the food:)
Posted by: kat | Wednesday, 30 September 2015 at 10:45 PM
What a tiny bowl ;-)
Posted by: nhbilly | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 05:24 AM
I hope so too Kat! But those noodles are really good.
Actually the bowl size wasn't too bad Billy.
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 06:31 AM
I'm looking forward to going but will wait for the craziness to die down.
Posted by: jack | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 07:49 AM
Doh! I like my fried chicken crispy and crunchy...
Posted by: Soo H | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 09:35 AM
I drove by last night and the line was around the building! Will definitely wait for the hype to die down.
Posted by: Junichi | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 11:43 AM
Luckily for me there weren't too many people Jack......but I'm sure they're crazy busy now.
I do too Soo.....
Wow, I'm sure it'll be like that for a while Junichi.
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 12:16 PM
We also stopped by during the weekend for their soft opening. Presentation was nice and so were the noodles.
Speaking of grand openings -- JINYA in PB just opened up last week. I'd be interested in knowing your thoughts on their offerings.
Posted by: LL | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 02:17 PM
Hi LL - Yes, I have Jinya on my list...though my sources tell me not to get my hopes up too high!
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 07:00 PM
Good to know you had a good first experience! I've been waiting impatiently for this place and thought about going earlier this week, but decided to wait for the grand opening when they have the full menu.
Posted by: Kirbie | Thursday, 01 October 2015 at 11:01 PM
Hope you enjoy it Kirbie!
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 02 October 2015 at 05:49 AM
Ah! Thank you for the review! I wanted to check it out the other day, but they weren't open.
Posted by: Green After the Rain | Friday, 02 October 2015 at 03:21 PM
Hi Sarah -Give them a shot. I thought it was decent....well, the noodles were good
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 02 October 2015 at 04:06 PM
Great to see your review (and Kirbie's as well). We tried to go "early" on Sunday before they opened but our early wasn't everyone else's early and we still had to wait a while. I was hoping to see things from their full menu except they still only were offering items from their soft opening menu. Maybe next time. :)
Posted by: Darren | Monday, 05 October 2015 at 11:20 PM
Hi Darren - Yeah, I'll wait until the hype passes. I did like the noodles; the broth is rich, but a bot too poultry heavy for my tastes.....I like the fact that I can make out all the flavors though. Have fun!
Posted by: Kirk | Tuesday, 06 October 2015 at 06:47 AM