Ramen Revisits - Tajima Mercury, Ramen Yamadaya (Clairemont), and Ototo

Before leaving the Kearny Mesa area, I did ramen rounds at some of the places that I don't visit very often or had only visited once or twice over the years. Starting with.....

Tajima Mercury:

Remember when they called this place Tajima Sushi & Japanese Tapas Restaurant (we called it Tajima 2)?

I'd actually never had the ramen at this location, usually choosing Tajima's original Convoy location. On this day; I arrived right as they opened and there was already a line!

One interesting observation while I sat and waited to order. The only folks of Asian descent were working..........

I went with the Tajima Ramen ($11) with the thicker noodles.

The broth had a tinny-salty-bitterness that I recalled from past visits. The noodles were over-cooked, the fried garlic just seemed to add to the bitterness. The pork was a pile of crumbly-salty-chewy meat. In fact, one of the customers at the table next to me actually asked the Server if they had changed the way the chashu was made. The ajitama was a nice and supple.

Too bad, because a couple of years ago I actually had a fairly decent bowl at their Hillcrest location.

I still miss the original "Tajima" back in the late 90's.

Tajima Mercury
4411 Mercury St.
San Diego, CA 92111

Ramen Yamadaya:

**** Ramen Yamadaya has closed

Man, had it been nearly two years since I last visited? Though it did seem that over time, Yamadaya seemed to be heading on a slow downhill slide. Still, it had been a while.

It was strangely not busy during lunch when I visited. Strange, because Yamadaya used to be pretty busy on previous lunchtime visits.

I ordered my usual; the Tonkotsu Kotteri, with the noodles "extra firm".

Man, this broth was terrible. Fatty yes, but barely over lukewarm, it was like licking lard....and heck, this from a guy who had seabura (pork backfat) ramen in Japan. There was a greasiness and weird blandness to the broth that even the sweet and slightly pungent black garlic oil couldn't solve. I mentioned this to the young lady serving me.....something I would rarely do and got a blank stare, then an "ok, I'll let the kitchen know...." And then not another response for the entire meal. Like previous visits, the chashu here was dry, tough, and cold. The noodles were fine as was the egg.......though it was ice cold.

I had ordered some chicken karaage......is it just that I missed things or is the Tori Nanban no longer on the menu?

Anyway, if there was anything worse than the ramen, it was the karaage.

Good lord; no color, no crispness, gummy, with no flavor. What's up with the temp of the oil?

Man, this was pretty bad......really sad because the place had to much potential when they first opened up here in 2012.

Ramen Yamadaya
4706 Clairement Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Ototo:

After my terrible ramen at Yamadaya, I thought I should give Otot...um, Ototo another shot even though I thought the ramen here was typical of a "roll and teriyaki" joint....in other words, third tier. Still, it had been about two-and-a-half years since my visit.

I went with the White Tonkotsu Ramen along with some Chicken Karaage.

I went with the shoyu tonkotsu this time around, rather than the shio version I had on my previous visit. While lacking in richness and having a mild bitterness, the broth was fine.....a least it was hot. The noodles were the standard issue, mass produced stuff that's everywhere and it was a bit on the mushy side. The egg....well, it wasn't ice cold, which helped things. The chashu was rubbery.

And guess what? While the chicken karaage wasn't amazing....it was moist and had a "by-the-book" karaage flavor - soy sauce, a touch of ginger, a bit too salty.

It could have used a bit more crispness and a more complex flavor, but this was decent. And it actually looked like chicken karaage.

One more thing. The young lady who waited on me was amazing. There was a family with a young son who came in a few minutes after me. Apparently they were regulars. She was so friendly and engaging, taking time to chat and play with the young boy, while still remaining on top of things. She had that balance of efficiency, friendliness, and professionalism. So heck, I might come back one of these days. Maybe.....

Ototo Sushi Co
5651 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111

Comments

[jason]

That's too bad about Yamadaya, they used to be one of the best and most popular. Wonder if it's the same chefs.

[Kirk]

Hi Jason - On this visit; I recognized none of the kitchen crew...... Man, it was so disappointing.

[Christina C]

I wonder that the popular proliferation of Ramen joints has watered down the quality. If someone has never had superb ramen would they even know what they were missing when they get sub par ramen? Honestly, I would rather eat the package Ramen my mom used to feed me as a child than go to many places.

[Junichi]

I think the last time I had Yamadaya was over a year ago. Soup was so bland. Never went back. Santouka is so much better.

[Kirk]

Hi Christina - I think ramen is now a trendy thing....like I say. The best ramen in San Diego would just be average in Japan.

Man, the stuff I had on this visit to Yamadaya was pretty bad Junichi. Quite sad.

[Som Tommy]

Have you tried rakiraki recently. I am just wondering

[Kirk]

No I haven't ST. Perhaps it's time for a revisit