Gomaichi Ramen — Restaurant in Redondo Beach

Came here for the first time for a mediocre experience. Having tried a sizeable amount of different ramen restaurants around the South Bay, I was excited for a new place to open up.

I was greeted relatively fast by a server upon entering, and she was knowledgeable on the menu. Downside was that she was very quiet, making it difficult to understand her at times. There were a few occasions where I had to ask her to repeat herself. Furthermore, I had to ask a waiter for a refill after waiting around 10 minutes and not receiving one. I know this detail seems minor, although after requesting a refill, the same server came by three additional times within ~10 or so minutes to refill my water. Lack of experience is most likely to blame for this, especially with the location being new, so it's to be expected.

Now onto the food. I ordered the karaage chicken along with the tonkotsu ramen. The karaage was pretty good, had a solid crunch with a slight ginger flavor. The chashu was amazing, fatty and well-flavored. Unfortunately, that was probably the highlight of the meal. The tonkotsu ramen broth was extremely weak. It was weak to the point where it was hard to even tell it was tonkotsu.

However, my main concern was the pickled ginger they added as a topping to the ramen. I typically wouldn't mind this in stronger broths, as it cuts through the salt and provides a refreshing element to the dish. However, because the broth was so weak, the ginger flavored the broth to the point in which it felt like a ginger soup rather than a tonkotsu. All other topping that came with the ramen were average.

I understand that they're a new location and their main dish is the tantanmen, and hence I'd be willing to come back to try it again sometime. However, for now, I'd recommend staying away from...

Walking in it looked very promising! Condiment trays at every table including soy, vinegar, pepper mix, and chili oil... Service was very quick, thoughtful, and attentive I ordered gyoza and "Tonkotsu Light". The gyōza were incredible! Cooked just right, filling had flavor and was juicy Then the ramen came. To start, there was pickled ginger on top. I've never seen that before in ramen state-side or in Japan. I've never heard of Tonkotsu light, but when I took a sip of the broth, I understood why. It had very little flavor, no depth at all. When I mixed it all together the ginger dominated and was really all I could taste. I tried adding soy and chili oil but it didn't help much. The noodles were a bit thin but cooked well, just the right bite. Bok choy was overcooked with no crunch. There's hope here, if the broth were developed more and ditch the ginger, they're on the right track. The egg could also...

Great to see this sleek new noodle spot in the Whole Foods shopping center on PCH. There are broth choices from spicy to mild and all the traditional favorites are there. The banbanji chicken appetizer was light and refreshing and a great starter. The ramen was very flavorful and had a great punch and the pork was very tender and fell apart. The service was fast and very friendly and they had no problem making a substitution of chicken instead of pork on the ramen. Overall the food here was very good, and the restaurant is very clean and bright. The warm service is another reason we will be returning and trying the rest of the menu. This might be our new Ramen joint... stop in and...