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Santouka Ramen (Arlington Heights, IL & Torrance, CA)

Santouka Ramen (Arlington Heights, IL & Torrance, CA)
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  • Post #31 - March 15th, 2013, 9:13 pm
    Post #31 - March 15th, 2013, 9:13 pm Post #31 - March 15th, 2013, 9:13 pm
    stevez wrote:Lot's of people swear by their tonkotsu ramen, but personally, I've settled on their spicy miso ramen as my favorite.


    Steve, all of Santouka's ramens are tonkotsu-based. A tare of shoyu, shio, or miso is later added to this fatty pork broth base right before serving.
  • Post #32 - July 1st, 2013, 9:10 am
    Post #32 - July 1st, 2013, 9:10 am Post #32 - July 1st, 2013, 9:10 am
    I got in my obligatory ramen fix while visiting a couple of weeks ago, and man... I haven't had some of the recent additions downtown, so I can't compare, but I have to say, I'm really surprised Santouka is so infrequently mentioned.

    Image

    After years in the desert, like a drink of fresh water... um... fresh, porky, fishy, miso-laced water. When I get my biannual fix, I need to stop ordering one large bowl and start ordering three small ones. I just can't get away from the misto.
    Dominic Armato
    Dining Critic
    The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com
  • Post #33 - July 2nd, 2013, 8:48 am
    Post #33 - July 2nd, 2013, 8:48 am Post #33 - July 2nd, 2013, 8:48 am
    The wait time on weekends has increased dramatically... so much so that they now post a handwritten wait time sign near the register. A few weeks ago on a Sunday mid-afternoon it was 1 hour, and this past Saturday around 2pm it was 30 minutes. So if you are going, go straight to Santouka, order, then do your grocery shopping. The "Information Booth" held our groceries without a problem while we ate. The ramen was a delicious as ever, and is completely worth the 45 min drive for me.
  • Post #34 - December 11th, 2013, 8:59 pm
    Post #34 - December 11th, 2013, 8:59 pm Post #34 - December 11th, 2013, 8:59 pm
    Does anyone know when Santouka opens on Saturday?
  • Post #35 - December 11th, 2013, 9:08 pm
    Post #35 - December 11th, 2013, 9:08 pm Post #35 - December 11th, 2013, 9:08 pm
    Octarine wrote:Does anyone know when Santouka opens on Saturday?

    11am. http://www.mitsuwa.com/tenpo/cica/eindex.html
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard
  • Post #36 - December 11th, 2013, 10:03 pm
    Post #36 - December 11th, 2013, 10:03 pm Post #36 - December 11th, 2013, 10:03 pm
    Man that was hard to find on that page. I looked like three times till I found it.
  • Post #37 - March 10th, 2014, 3:57 pm
    Post #37 - March 10th, 2014, 3:57 pm Post #37 - March 10th, 2014, 3:57 pm
    It's been ages since I been to Mitsuwa. I was there yesterday. So long, in fact, that the last time I was there, I'm pretty sure, Santouka wasn't. I think the last time I went, the "hot" dish were the pancakes with bonito flakes and cross-hatches of sweet sauce and Kewpie mayo. Not apropos necessarily for this thread, but man has Mitsuwa fallen. The store was dingy and not particularly well stocked. It was not the outing that a trip to Super H or Fresh Farms is for sure.

    The ramen? Wonder what other recent experiences are, but color me also unimpressed, at least with a bowl of spicy miso. It was just flat, especially as compared to Misoya where all the flavors bump into each other. Also, no where near what I had at Monta in Las Vegas. Maybe it's my philistine tastes need more than Santouka can offer, but I also wonder, with the state of affairs at Mitsuwa, if things have declined here too.
    Think Yiddish, Dress British - Advice of Evil Ronnie to me.
  • Post #38 - March 10th, 2014, 8:59 pm
    Post #38 - March 10th, 2014, 8:59 pm Post #38 - March 10th, 2014, 8:59 pm
    Well, I almost got killed trying to make my way to Mitsewa last Sunday, my goal being to have a bowl of ramen at Santouka and then get all the ingredients I needed to make my own ramen after taking a class at JASC on Ramen in early February. I am obviously still alive to tell the tale (thanks be to whatever cosmic thing was there for me) but as I exited on Arlington Heights Rd. an IDOT snow plow truck did a double whammy on me. First, it was spraying so much salt that my windshield wipers couldn't keep up with it and if that was bad enough, just when I put on the brakes to try and get behind him, he dropped his plow on the snow between the left and right hand lanes and it all came on my windshield, three to four inches of super heavy, dirty nasty snow. I hope to never be in that seat again. couldn't see a thing, knew I had a minivan on my ass, ugh. But I didn't die, so hey, what's not to love?

    So I pulled into the Mitsuwa parking lot kind of um, shaking. But I am totally with Vital Information. And maybe I am clouded because I did mutter after major deep "I didn't just die" breaths, and then I truly said out loud, "This ramen better be good."

    To be fair to the Santouka stand, I have been there before. I thought it was exciting the first time, but since the wonderful Ramen Wars have been set into place in Chicago, I have not thought it was the best. I am a big fan of Takashi and Wasabi on Milwaukee. Haven't been to Misoya in Mt. Prospect but that's on my list! Again, I am going back to VI: It was fine, it didn't suck but it wasn't great at all. It was just "meh." No depth, nada. There were two Latina young women who gave their table up to me, they had obviously ordered the Spicy broth and when I saw that in their bowls, I thought, maybe I had should have ordrered that for more depth and flavor. Was it spicy? I asked. "No," they said, "It was fine but it wasn't spicy and we wished it was even more so."
    I will go back to Mitsuwa for super specific ingredients but I won't go for Ramen.

    bjt
    "eating is an agricultural act" wendell berry
  • Post #39 - March 21st, 2018, 5:12 pm
    Post #39 - March 21st, 2018, 5:12 pm Post #39 - March 21st, 2018, 5:12 pm
    Continuing on my recent ramen kick, a visit to Santouka at Mitsuwa today. Mitsuwa is actually the ramen joint I visit the most and my typical order (my favorite style indeed) is their shoyu. Today I was again reminded why I'm such a big fan - a wonderful, not too thick tonkotsu broth, terrific accompaniments that lend some umami and sea flavors, and nice, chewy noodles. The chashu pork is tender yet boring, but I've been informed that the "special" pork is the way to go here. Funny - I've been countless times and I don't think I've tried it . . . next time.

    In any event, though I really enjoyed High Five's ramen this past Monday, I prefer Mitsuwa's, though I'll take High Five's noodles (from Sun Noodle Company).

    Image
    Santouka's shoyu ramen, medium bowl
  • Post #40 - December 11th, 2018, 9:07 am
    Post #40 - December 11th, 2018, 9:07 am Post #40 - December 11th, 2018, 9:07 am
    Image

    Shoyu ramen with special pork was perfect in my book this weekend: deep bone-rich briny soup, springy noodles, funky menma, awesome fatty pork. I haven't had a better bowl in Chicago. (I frequent Strings in Chinatown but my standard order is chazuke). No wait at 11:45 AM.
  • Post #41 - January 22nd, 2021, 1:41 pm
    Post #41 - January 22nd, 2021, 1:41 pm Post #41 - January 22nd, 2021, 1:41 pm
    Santouka is adapting to the pandemic. In the past, this was a cash-only and no takeout type of establishment. I used to bring my own containers so that I could pack the ramen for takeout (which was inconvenient). It was nice to be able to order the ramen for takeout and to be able to pay with a credit card. I didn't see any customers at any of the Mitsuwa food stalls when I was at the food court yesterday (Thursday) at 5:30 pm. I hope that business at the food court is better after the pandemic is over.

    Spicy Miso Ramen (with ikura/salmon rice bowl) and a half eaten pork belly/pork cheek side:

    Image

    We tried both the salt ramen and the spicy miso ramen. We all liked the spicy miso ramen the best.
    Last edited by shorty on February 2nd, 2022, 9:12 am, edited 3 times in total.
  • Post #42 - January 22nd, 2021, 7:59 pm
    Post #42 - January 22nd, 2021, 7:59 pm Post #42 - January 22nd, 2021, 7:59 pm
    Thanks for this update. We were wondering how the food court in Mitsuwa was doing. We assumed it had been shut down or would be very difficult to transport Ramen back home. This is one of the first places we are going to visit when things open up.
    What disease did cured ham actually have?
  • Post #43 - February 4th, 2021, 9:55 pm
    Post #43 - February 4th, 2021, 9:55 pm Post #43 - February 4th, 2021, 9:55 pm
    A number of ramen shacks in Tokyo | Yokohama have ensued offering bowls for take-out. However, it is more likely to be its Tsukemen; the paralleling dish to Ramen in which the broth is already separate from the noodles.
    The noodles are commonly served cold. This should travel better.
    Santouka should provide instructions accompanying it for how long to reheat the broth, and at which temperature it should be. :)
    Valuable links for survival, without the monetization attempt: https://pqrs-ltd.xyz/bookmark4.html
  • Post #44 - February 5th, 2021, 7:27 am
    Post #44 - February 5th, 2021, 7:27 am Post #44 - February 5th, 2021, 7:27 am
    pudgym29 wrote: A number of ramen shacks in Tokyo | Yokohama have ensued offering bowls for take-out. However, it is more likely to be its Tsukemen; the paralleling dish to Ramen in which the broth is already separate from the noodles.
    The noodles are commonly served cold. This should travel better.
    Santouka should provide instructions accompanying it for how long to reheat the broth, and at which temperature it should be. :)


    The couple times I've ordered ramen during the pandemic have been from menya goku. I've asked them to leave the noodles uncooked and they've been very accommodating.

    I know it's a little more work but that's the only way I'll order carry out ramen.
  • Post #45 - May 12th, 2021, 2:49 pm
    Post #45 - May 12th, 2021, 2:49 pm Post #45 - May 12th, 2021, 2:49 pm
    Miso ramen, ikura bowl, soy egg. Its been a while, almost forgot how good Santouka ramen tasted.

    Not crowded in the least, no line at noon, easy to get a table.

    click to expand
    Image
    Image

    Santouka ramen, count me a Fan!
    Hold my beer . . .

    Low & Slow
  • Post #46 - September 28th, 2021, 2:24 pm
    Post #46 - September 28th, 2021, 2:24 pm Post #46 - September 28th, 2021, 2:24 pm
    Really nice bowl of spicy ramen with charsiu today at Santouka . . .

    Image
    Spicy Ramen with Charsiu

    Not sure if there is a lunch rush these days but if so, we were definitely ahead of it. Food court was quite mellow, as was the overall scene at Mitsuwa. Midweek lunchtime is not a bad time to go.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #47 - April 23rd, 2023, 7:55 pm
    Post #47 - April 23rd, 2023, 7:55 pm Post #47 - April 23rd, 2023, 7:55 pm
    4pm. No one in line. 40 min wait. Sorry to pass.
    "In pursuit of joys untasted"
    from Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata

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