Now Open, Portland’s Wu-Rons Is Showcasing Nagahama-Style Tonkotsu Ramen | Eater Portland

"Opened earlier this month by Shintaro Yamada and chef Taka Terashita in the former Noraneko space, Wu-Rons specializes in Nagahama-style tonkotsu ramen and deliberately avoids Portland-Japanese fusion to recreate the bowls Yamada remembers from Fukuoka. The tonkotsu broth boils for around eight to ten hours before landing in a bowl with a pile of thin, firm noodles; a layer of sesame seeds mingles with floating scallions and thick sliced-and-seared slabs of chashu pork, and while the exact broth recipe remains under lock-and-key, it manages to be light in texture despite a rich depth of flavor. Terashita—who spent 25 years in Manhattan kitchens, including time working for celebrated French-Japanese chef Tadashi Ono—says the key to tonkotsu is balance and using the whole pig (head, ham bone, back bone). The current menu is extremely simple (Nagahama ramen, Nagahama miso ramen, and a vegetarian tantan made with both dried and fresh mushrooms), with possible future additions like karaage and selected sakes, and the decor—Coleman lamps above the order counter, an “Outdoor life” sign, Tokyo Tribes references and hip hop on the speakers—aims to give the shop a pumped, street-culture energy." - Brooke Jackson-Glidden