Michael Y.
Yelp
Ajisen Ramen has been one of the most anticipated ramen spots to try on my hitlist for awhile. And with a location right in the heart of Rowland Heights, I was curious whether Ajisen's take on a bowl of ramen was similar to other places I've tried in the area. With this excitement in mind, I ended up dropping by on a Sunday night around 8:30PM right before the restaurant's closing time.
Initially, I chose to grab a bowl at Ajisen quite late because many reviews here on Yelp have talked about the monstrous parking situation and long wait times for a table. But upon entering the restaurant, there were little to no people inside! This expedited the process in all of the best ways as I was able to get my bowl in 10 minutes from the moment I sat down. Though the staff were attentive and fast with service, the mobile ordering system took longer due to the large selection of items, lack of pictures, and confusing payment input system. Choosing quickly to eat and leave before the restaurant closed, I settled on a Premium Pork Ramen which was $16.95 at the time of this review.
Upon receiving the bowl, I was happy to see that it was quite large and filled very close to the top. But despite this, the dish did lack a tad when looking at quantity. Inside the bowl, the thinly sliced premium pork made up about 20% of the dish, the noodles made up about 40%, and the broth took up the remaining 40%. In fact, there were so many noodles to the point where I subconsciously was rationing the pork throughout the meal. After consuming the bowl, I left the restaurant feeling only filled, not full. Looking at the price, 17 dollars leans on the more pricey side for a bowl of ramen in the Rowland Heights area. And looking at the amount of food given compared to the price tag, I'd argue price to portion was just okay.
The quality of the food was definitely there in all aspects of the bowl despite the lack of portion. For one, the noodles were thick and had a perfect amount of chew to them. They tasted of a subtle egg flavor which helped establish a savory baseline for the dish. The broth achieved a similar savory and umami flavor by combining the pork-based stock, a subtle miso powder, and what tasted like black garlic oil. And for last, the thinly sliced pork both added a creamy fatty flavor and a smokey charred flavor to the bowl. Combined together with the broth, everything tasted elevated and lighter on the mouth in result. The flavor was very impressive; definitely one of the best bowls of ramen I've had in the Greater LA area!
Ajisen definitely serves up a hearty bowl of ramen. And with that, I would for sure be happy to return and try more of their different specialty items. But for this experience at the Rowland Heights location, I'd argue the Premium Pork Ramen deserves a solid 4 stars out of 5. Though there was nothing wrong with the taste of the food, the lack of pork in this particular bowl made it harder to justify from a price to portion standpoint. On the other hand though, Ajisen offers many different bowls of ramen, most giving just as much quantity if not more at a lower price point of 14-5 dollars. In all, Ajisen Ramen lives up to its historic origins and will definitely be earning a spot among ramen spots I frequent. Great flavors, Ajisen!