Asa Ramen — Restaurant in Orem

The only thing about this little place that may be a negative is the parking. State street can be kind of crazy and there's only one way into the parking in the back. However, the moment you sit down to a bowl of steaming hot ramen, let the broth warm your chest, and feel the thinly cut pork melting in your mouth, it makes the journey worth it.

I had a sick stomach when I went and decided to have the miso ramen. As a testament to how amazing the food was, the moment that warm, gentle broth hit my stomach, I felt like a little child in the comforting arms of my mother again. This may sound over dramatic to some of you, but once you try it you will understand.

To talk about the soup itself, the onions and mushrooms are bursting with flavor, the bamboo shoots soak up the broth and add a beautifully sweet and fresh flavor to it, the egg is perfect boiled with a silky soft yolk, and the savory marbled pork melts in your mouth. They also have chili paste for those of you who love some extra spice. The ramen noodles themselves are actually rather hearty and take up the flavor of the broth and other ingredients beautifully in the chicken based soups. They're much thinner in the pork based broths. After today, I have to admit the Tonkatsu is my favorite when mixed with the chili paste.

To top this off, the staff is incredibly friendly and make wonderful suggestions. They check on everyone in the restaurant. Service was very quick and since the shop is smaller than most restaurants, it encourages a friendly atmosphere between the guests as well. All of us sitting at the bar were making conversation about the food, of course. When you have a comfort meal like this, it's hard not to announce how happy you are. I can't wait to go back.

edit We tried the mochi today too. They're fantastic! (no pics of the ramen as I couldn't stop eating...

I was very excited to try the Ramen at Asa Ramen for the first time. I wasn’t feeling well, so I called in to get a to go order. I told the young man on the phone 1 full bowl Ramen to go. He asked what kind and that there were four kinds. I asked what the kinds were... He replied curtly, “we’re very busy right now” and seemed very annoyed with the question. I told him I didn’t have a menu and hadn’t been to the restaurant before, so if he wasn’t able to help I’d go somewhere else, but if he could, that would be great. He made a “huff” sound...ya know, a sigh like you really don’t want to deal with someone...and then said “there’s 2 chicken and 2 pork”. I said “pork, what are the two kinds?” He said something quickly that I didn’t understand and then said, “that’s a good one”. I said that one is fine really not knowing what I ordered. He then said it would be ready in 15 minutes and added, “you have to come in anyway” as if to berate me for calling in...which is kind of the point of a to go order. So you don’t have to go into a busy restaurant when you don’t feel well and wait, but I let that slide and asked him if he needed my name.

And he hung up on me.

On one hand, I’ve worked in a restaurant before and understand feeling rushed and frustrated when it’s busy. On the other, the rude tone, passive aggressive comments, and not really being sure if my food will be ready when I arrive because he didn’t get my name, I was reminded of the Seinfeld episode with the Soup Nazi.

The phone call was so rude I went to...

Mixed experience. *Coming from someone who lived in Japan and ate ramen every week. Food: 4 stars. Experience: 3 stars

For those looking for a fun experience and super yummy meal, COME. This place is extremely delicious and all my friends who have never had ramen loved it. The prices aren’t horrible either.

For the die hard ramen fans: the broth was so peppery it totally killed authenticity for me. But..Still delicious. Would come back.

Experience: We were told we’d have to wait around 30 minutes for a party of four. We waited 75 minutes. We had come at 8pm so eating at 9:30pm was a bit of a bummer. And we had to wait it outside in the cold but I’m understanding of that and we’re good talkers so it’s cool. Inside, the waitress was super nice and stated she was new. I tried to understand their menu but it poorly laid out? It just didn’t make sense. I explained what broth I wanted for my ramen with regular toppings and chashu (not realizing the “regular toppings” included a couple pieces already) and I got extra chashu...like 8 or 9 pieces (extra$$$). There was no clarification of, “did you mean you want extra chashu?” But again, I’m understanding of her being new. When the food came, it was certainly delicious. I didn’t receive any bamboo which, from what I was told, is included in the standard toppings and was a little bummed. Just kind of another, “aw dang” moment.

And they just compiled to give me more of a “meh” experience here. I would like to come back and give it another try though! the food...