We could have eaten at Daikokuya in Little Tokyo on our last trip to Southern California, but the line outside was too long. Since we weren’t in any hurry today, we put our name on the list and waited over an hour to get seated. There are branches throughout the southland. Ramen addicts seem to love it. Food critic Jonathan Gold also chimed in with his praises.
Their ramen is truly special. The broth was wonderfully rich and the noodles had a nice chew that together make the Daikoku ramen a contender for best ramen anywhere. Some of us ordered the regular ramen; a kotteri version is available that will appeal to aficionados of extra porky and fatty broth.
I noticed a paper menu on the walls that advertised the kichimen ramen, which is basically the regular ramen broth with added spiciness and tartness. This, I ordered. In addition, the noodles and condiments are served on the side, which means that you can choose to dip the noodles in the broth instead of combining it. I’m not a dipper (the dipper vs. soaker preference battle rages in our family when eating soba), so I dumped everything into the broth. Herein lies the problem because by doing this, the ramen gets cooled down considerably. While the broth is really delicious, I’d prefer my ramen piping hot. Halved barely hard-cooked eggs, whose slightly darkened egg whites hint at a soy sauce bath, tons of minced green onions, bean sprouts, sliced, almost slivered kurobuta and sour bamboo shoots complete the condiment ingredients. (The regular ramen has everything mixed together and the pork is sliced in larger pieces.)
I noticed several people eating what looked like sausages, so when we left, I looked at their menu (posted outside) and saw “sausages” listed under appetizers. These too are made with kurobuta. I might have to try these the next time.
Daikokuya
327 E 1st Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213.626.1680
zoomeboshi 
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