Ramen Menma - Basso Drillman Oceanside

**** Ramen Menma - Basso Drillman Oceanside has closed

Now here's a ramen spot with origins in Japan that I had read about several years back. Ikebukuro's Basso Drill-Man ramen is fairly well known by ramen junkies, mainly for the Tsukemen and Abura Soba; basically "oil noodles" in which thick and hefty noodles are coated in "oil" in many cases rendered pork fat with various seasonings. I was quite happy that another ramen shop with a true ramen background was opening up. The catch; Ramen Menma - Basso Drillman was opening in Oceanside. Oceanside!

So, when Eater announced the opening of the shop in June; I just knew I had to check it out. It was just a matter of having the time and making the 30-plus mile drive up to Oceanside.

I find the location interesting, it's not quite Convoy or even Mira Mesa as the restaurant, which has a rather spartan interior is basically across the street from Swami's.

I arrived just as the open sign was turned on and lead over to the bar area. I recall being told that this used to be an Americanized sushi bar. The two women working were quite nice and friendly.

Ordering for me was a no-brainer; being a lover of Sichuan Liang Mian and still make my version of "Oil Noodles"; I just had to try the Abura Soba, which they call Aburasso here. I ordered the "deluxe" version, not cheap at $15.75.

I'm glad I also got the Chicken Karaage, which at $4.25 for four pieces was not cheap. But let me tell you; this is the best karaage I've had in a while. And I got five pieces instead of four.

The coating was so crisp and lightly crunchy, and the dark meat chicken was so moist that it basically exploded when I bit into it.....it was more juicy than the recent XLB I had at Din Tai Fung. It had been marinating for a while as there was a deep soy flavor; perhaps edging on being too salty, with a definite lightly acidic tone, I'm fairly certain they use shio koji or something similar. There was a slight hint of ginger as well. This was quite good.

The Aburasso was soon passed to the Server who brought it over to me. I had seen the medium-thick noodles being mixed with the oil base. I had also seen one of the egg yolks fall out of the white and the poor fellow wrestle with getting it back into place.

The noodles were topped with the afore mentioned egg; nicely flavored, and for once, not served cold as it was nice and warm. The chashu had a very nice soy-slightly sweet flavor and while nice and fatty was on the more chewy side. Not sure about the blanched cabbage, as it brought nothing to the dish.

The flavored oil was on the bland side, with a hint of spice and smokiness. I was looking for a more intense, maybe porky essence. But this wasn't bad at all and several levels above the Abura Soba at hipsterish Nozaru Ramen.

It did a great job of coating the noodles though. And those noodles....you'll either love them or hate them. I enjoyed the wonderful toothsome chewiness....these were noodles with heft and would obviously be great if they were also used in the Tsukemen. Very nice noodles, it looks like you won't have to worry about the noodles being mushy here!

 

As much as I was looking forward to he ramen here, it was the karaage that fueled my return the following weekend.

The karaage this time around was even better than on my previous visit. A bit lighter, less salty, but still with a deep soy flavor.

So crunchy and moist, it was a joy to eat.

I had thought of going with the Tsukemen, but in the end, I chose the Deluxe Shoyu Ramen ($14.75). And while my main motivation was to see how the broth was at Menma, I regretted not getting the Tsukemen as this was less than satisfying.

While the egg and chashu was better this time around, both in terms of texture and flavor, I'm not a fan of the thinner noodles here as it lacks the springiness and toothsomeness of the thicker noodles.

The broth was very one-dimensional, it just seemed dashi heavy and salty, lacking any real savory tones. And while it appeared rich enough it strangely lacked that wonderful tongue coating "aaah" appeal.

My favorite component was strangely the menma, the bamboo shoots were initially crunchy, with an almost meaty finish, making it very satisfying to eat.

The two women working on both visits were very pleasant. And man, that karaage. But all of this comes with an investment for someone living within San Diego. Think of it as being about thirty-five bucks if you include gas and tip. And I was eating solo.

And yet, that karaage beckons me...….and perhaps that tsukemen…….just to see how it compares to Rokurinsha.

Ramen Menma - Basso Drillman Oceanside
509 Mission Ave
Oceanside, CA 92054
Hours:
Tues - Sun 1130am - 230pm, 5pm - 9pm

Comments

[RedDevil]

Glad to hear you finally found some karaage that was good! Juicier than Din Tai Fung's dumplings cracked me up. Keep up the great work.

[Kirk]

That karaage was very good RD! Thanks for the kind words.

[Junichi]

I still need to plan a visit. Wasn't expecting the karaage to be the star of the meal tho! Hope their tsukemen is better than the ramen. The versions at Raki Raki and Yamadaya are mediocre.

[Kirk]

I'll probably go back and try the Tsukemen and get my karaage fix Junichi. There is no good tsukemen in San Diego.....yet....

[Black Belt Jonez]

Hi Kirk!

Thank you for making this post. I moved to San Francisco about a year ago and your blog is how I keep up with the new restaurants opening up back home. I'll have to check this place out later in the month while I'm in town. That karaage looked delicious.

[kat]

good karaage is worth the drive:)

[Kirk]

Hey BBJ - So nice to hear from you! I'm sure you're eating well in SF! Don't be a stranger!

It is Kat......though not sure how often!

[Derek R]

Noodles + chicken look like they're worth the trip. Does anywhere in SD have decent Tsukemen?

[Kirk]

There is no good Tsukemen in San Diego proper Derek. Now, it looks like I'm going to have to drive back up to Oceanside and check out the Tsukemen!

[TFD]

I need like 4 orders of those chicken karaage.

[Kirk]

Lol TFD - Well, this place is a lot closer to you than it is to me!

[Derek R]

I wish RikiRaki didn't suck so much (I've never had their Tsukemen but their ramen has been lousy the few times I've been there). Anywhere up in LA you'd suggest?

[Kirk]

I can't personally vouch for these places Derek; but they are on my "list" - Tsujita in Sawtelle and Okiboru in Chinatown. If you check them out let me know how it is.

[Soo]

Mmmm... Fried chicken. I'll have to try this place next time I'm in Oceanside.

[Kirk]

Yeah, that karaage was surprisingly good Soo!