Orange County Ramen House Heading for Hillcrest | Eater San Diego

"Started in Irvine in 2017 and now with a second branch in Long Beach, HiroNori Craft Ramen is opening its first San Diego location this December on Fifth Avenue in Hillcrest in a 1,101-square-foot space. Co-founder Hiromichi Igarashi, who moved to the U.S. from Japan more than a decade ago after working as a ramen chef, created HiroNori to showcase classic Japanese techniques alongside some American influences. The menu highlights a tonkotsu ramen made with a pork broth simmered all day until milky and rich and topped with pork chashu, green onion, spinach, seaweed, and bean sprouts; a soy-based shoyu ramen; and a vegan option featuring a sesame miso broth with broccolini, tofu, corn, bean sprouts, soy meat, baby kale, and chili oil. The operation also runs a Los Angeles factory that makes two types of noodles for its own stores and other ramen shops, and offers rice bowls topped with pork, chicken, spicy tuna, and salmon poke as well as appetizers ranging from cucumber crab salad to pork buns and crispy garlic-soy chicken thighs. Igarashi says he hopes to eventually serve beer and wine and has ideas for additional HiroNori locations and other eateries in the San Diego area." - Candice Woo