Monta Ramen

Good ramen takes an extreme level of time, patience and expertise; very few apply as much as any of these qualities to their ramen as does Monta Ramen. It is a simple, traditional Tokyo-style ramen restaurant with a simple menu: Three types of broth, two types of noodles, a couple add-ons, and a couple sides (the mentaiko bowl, if you've never had one, is a real treat). Quality AND quantity prevail at Monta, where the giant bowls hold well over a quart of freshly made alkaline noodles, velvety rich broth, and melt-in-your-mouth chashu pork.

"Hot noodles on a cold day is good; cold noodles on a hot day is even better," says Bryan Bass, VP of Carver Road Hospitality. Throw in a couple Sapporos, some fried gyoza, and an extra nitamago (soy sauce marinated medium-boiled egg) and you've got heaven in a bowl.

Many gourmands of quality ramen cite Monta as the best bowl in town: Branden Powers and Adam Rains of The Golden Tiki, food writer and podcaster Al Mancini, food writers Andy Wang and Mitchell Wilburn, and many others go there to slake their craving for tonkatsu.