Orenchi Ramen - Santa Clara

IN HONOR OF JAPAN  

Remember my notorious hatred for ramen and my never ending quest to find a bowl of ramen that would change my mind? and no, it was not just that bad bowl of street fair ramen that spurned me, it was also this lackluster bowl from Japantown, and at least one more from a popular place in LA that have all disappointed me. I have a stubborn tendency to refuse to accept that there are foods I just don't like. So despite not liking them, I keep eating them at various eateries hoping that one day I will understand what others see in the dish. Search no more as I have now found life changing ramen at Orenchi in Santa Clara. My friends recommended this to me and I went with them once before but I returned to introduce Phil to it. The wait was over 1 hour long and I hear this is standard.

 Once seated, I ordered the Orenchi Ramen with tonkotsu base with all you see above, and I added extra spinach for $1.

Phil also ordered the orenchi ramen but chose the omori (larger portion) for $1.50 extra. 

We observed the red powdered pepper and ground garlic or horse radish? seasonings while we waited. That white garlic or horse radish thing turned out to be so good when mixed in with the soup. Someone tell me what it is please.

Someone's a little tired and hungry because we spent an hour waiting in the lobby and we're starving by the time this photo was taken.

Finally our agedashi tofu appetizer came. I've only had agedashi tofu twice. This would rank in 2nd place but it is still very good. The portion was tiny for ~$5 though. Still loved it.

Forgot the price of this chicken karage. This is one of Phil's favorites and he ranks it as one of his top 3 chicken karages he has had in his entire life. I ranked it as number 1. The best chicken karage I've ever had. Bonus points because I don't really like chicken karage but it converted me. You always have to score higher for a conversion. 

ahh my ramen. my life changing ramen. so good. tonkotsu broth is the best. flavorful. brothy? I am really at a loss for words to describe broth. tee hee. The soft boiled egg is everyone's favorite because it's perfectly boiled with a soft white part but a runny yolk. There is a pork slice in there, some bamboo shoots, delicious soft noodles and my favorite, sliced wood ear mushrooms. That extra $1 for the spinach is so worth it. It gave an extra pop to my noodle. And also adding the red pepper and the white horse radish gave the broth a great kick.

 Phil only added the red pepper to his bowl but he seemed to like the kick it gave. Basic is good, I guess you don't need extra spinach if you're Mr. Boring....

 Orenchi is indeed life changing ramen. I went from having ramen maybe once every two years, to twice in one month. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! Totally worth the wait. Get the orenchi ramen with the tonkotsu broth but my friends have really enjoyed the shoyu also.

I am sure you are all aware of the crises in Japan. If you would like to help, you can donate to The American Red Cross, Unicef, or here is a helpful site for things you can do to help. Don't forget that the animals will need help too so please check out World Vets.

Orenchi Ramen on Yelp