Chicago Tribune: America’s best ramen shops
When you hear the word “ramen,” what’s the first thing that comes to mind? If you’re like most of us, it’s probably a polystyrene cup filled with the salty instant noodles that you ate way too much of back in college. But over the past decade, there’s been a revolution in America, and real ramen — big steaming bowls of impossibly rich broth, springy noodles, and countless add-ins — has finally made its way across the Pacific in a big way. And from Minneapolis to Honolulu, there are some truly mind-blowing bowls of ramen out there. These are the best ramen shops in America. (This story originally appeared on The Daily Meal.)
JINYA Ramen Bar, Los Angeles — There are 26 Jinya locations across the U.S. these days (including seven in both California and Texas) — a testament to its high quality and to the ample crowds that are still forced to wait for a table on weekend nights — but the original Studio City location is still the place to go. There are no gimmicks here, just big bowls of dashi-spiked ramen in varieties like black tonkotsu and spicy chicken ramen topped with pork chashu, egg, and your choice of more than 20 add-ons including chicken wontons, fried onion, butter, and chicken chashu. (Zain A./Yelp)