Ramen Adventures: 33 in Jimbocho

Sunday, July 29, 2012

33 in Jimbocho

麺屋33

Showed up a few minutes before opening, and here is what I saw:

スープが売り切れました - The soup has run out. That was 33's way of saying they weren't open yet. I started thinking of a Plan B when the staff opened the door and announced that everything was in order. Your ramen better make up for the undue stress that you caused!

Stress? What stress?

33 is a fantastic blend of all things chicken. The soup is a light chicken-bone shio, simple and aromatic. But then 33 goes crazy! There is the obligatory egg, a chicken meatball, pork chashu, chicken chashu, and some greens.

I've always said that shio ramen needs excellent toppings to stand out, and 33 doesn't disappoint on that.

The master, like many others in his field, visited New York and now plan on opening a shop there. Call it the Ippudo Effect. How could you not see the nightclub-like scene and not dream of someday running one of those.

Good luck. The Ippudo Effect has influenced dozens of quality chefs here in Tokyo. Hollywood only claimed one. To the share of them, though, New York is the only place in America worthy of their gifts. And with Ichiro taking up with the Yankees, the dreams are only going to get stronger.