The last time I walked into Tenkaippin, I learned that the Kotteri Ramen was no longer available. Not off-menu. Nothing. I got up and left. It was too much shock to take.
A few months passed. After overcoming the sniffles a bunch of times, I felt a pretty bad cold coming on. One of my relief spots was Tenkaippin last week, where I ordered the Spicy Tantan Ramen. And fried garlic. Never disappointing.
The bill came out to somewhere below $20 (not including tip), but it was worth it. Tantan is similar to Kotteri, filling and rich. Kotteri, I was told some time back by one of the waitresses, was getting too difficult to make. They get the ingredients from Japan and costs were going up.
I did some research* (watching YouTube videos) and one place in Kyushu makes that rich Kotteri broth by boiling pig heads along with other bones and parts. That means the brain melts down into the broth. I don't know if Tenkaippin did this, and it wouldn't bother me. It was the best (and only) Kotteri I'd ever known until I tried Agu's quite awesome Kotteri recently, but I still miss it the Tenkaippin original.
Comments