2011-12-13T23:37:00.000-08:00

After visiting some relatives in Tokyo and returning to Numazu City, the wife suggested that we partake of some Ramen (ラーメン) which is Chinese style noodles served in a deep bowl with hot pork and chicken soup and topped with slices of roast pork, chopped spring onions, and marinated bamboo shoot slivers. Wild Wild Horses Couldn’t Drag Me Away from a Ramen restaurant, but I know that she isn’t crazy about the dish and understood that she was a bit worn out from the two-and-a-half hour drive and didn’t want anything to do with cooking that night. I happily agreed, thinking what a luck break this was.

I’m a predictable, one pattern type of patron at a restaurant. For example, even after well over a hundred visits, complete with perusing a menu with nearly a hundred selections, I would always order Linguine Pescatore. But, at a Ramen restaurant, I’d skip looking at the menu and quickly order Shoyu (醤油-Soy Sauce flavored) Ramen and wait for my wife to decide her selection, which never seemed to be the same from our last visit.

One this particular day I was a bit worn out as well. During the drive to, and the return drive I focused on keeping the conversation light and pleasant. It seems I’ve developed a mumbling and grumbling habit at the wheel over the years, when driving conditions and erratic driver habits disagreed with what I felt was the acceptable norm; in other words, almost always. I glanced at the menu and one selection piqued my curiosity.

It said (味噌チャーシューとワンタンラーメン), Miso chashu and wantan ramen. Miso, or soybean paste is the main ingredient in a soup which I enjoy with meals, especially at breakfast time. Tofu, which is soybean curd, bonito flakes, and fresh green onions are often in the miso soup. Miso ramen is fairly popular, but it was never one of my favorites. The chashu is the sliced roast pork and the wantan are pork dumplings. Chashu and wantan are never served together. The combination was intriguing. I’d have to try this out and hope for a pleasant savory adventure. After ordering it I craved for the Shoyu Ramen in the back of my mind and hoped that I didn’t make a mistake.

While I didn’t drool when my order came, it did look very appetizing. I used the fancy wooden spoon the restaurant provides to sample the soup. If the soup was tasty, the whole bowl would be a delight to eat. Miso often has a slightly tangy or tart taste. This soup was full of a smooth and pleasantly sweet taste, which didn’t linger and teased the palate for more. I was very impressed and satisfied. I kept spoonsful of soup coming and ignored the noodles for a while. After that, a sample of the pork dumplings made me eat all there were before I started attacking the noodles. After I was half-way through ingesting the noodles, I began to wonder about the sliced pork. I usually eat them just before I’m completely finished, so I didn’t give them a thought. This is strange, I thought, did they put them under the noodles? I began checking the remaining contents of the bowl, but they were nowhere to be found.

I double checked the menu and the bill on the table to make sure, and yes, they were part of the order and the check. I mentioned it to my wife and she said I should ask why the roast sliced pork was excluded. I said isn’t it a bit late for that? It would be assumed that I ate them and was trying to get a free second helping. She said no problem and called the young lady who brought our food to the table and made the inquiry. Everyone in the restaurant seemed suddenly interested in our table. The young lady seemed dismayed, asked us to wait for a moment, and went to see the manager.

He came to the table with a platter of sliced pork, apologized repeatedly, and suggested that he should replace my order immediately. I had already finished most of the meal so I thanked him for his offer but refused, saying that the platter he brought was the best solution and tried to explain why it took me so long to notice the missing ingredient.

He apologized again, saying how embarrassed he was for the oversight, and that he wouldn’t blame me if I never returned again.

Well I finished the rest of the meal quickly and reached for the check, but it was not there. Calling the young lady and asking for the check left her looking even more troubled. The manager appeared again, asked me for forgiveness, and refused to hand me the bill. I refused to leave without paying it. This went on for a while, and he finally conceded.

I did not neglect to mention that this was the finest Miso Ramen that I have ever tasted. He appreciated hearing that and handed me five discount meal coupons. I have never enjoyed paying the bill as I did on that day. Come to think of it, it was the first time to get coupons at that restaurant, too.

A Happy Bowl of Ramen