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When my buddy found out that I had yet to go to Sato Ramen on Main St. in the North Buffalo area, he almost lost his mind. He found out on Thursday when we were enjoying the Pappy Van Winkle at Marble & Rye, and we decided today was the day. Ramen is a great meal for a cold winter day, and being that it was 18 degrees this afternoon, it was a good day for Ramen. The place doesn't have a ton of seating, but at the time we went (2pm), we were able to sit no problem. My friend had been there numerous times, and his tastes are similar to mine, so I got the same bowl that he got. I apologize for not knowing the name of the bowl I got, but it was the 2nd option on the list of Ramen bowls, and the 'regular' size - not the smaller size. We actually started off with a plate of Okonomiyaka fries. Okonomiyaki is a traditional Japanese 'pancake' dish, which is covered in Okonomiyaki sauce, and kewpie mayo and garnishes - Okonomiyaki sauce is a combination of ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, Soy sauce, and some form of sweetener. These fries were unbelievably good. The only fries that came close to these were Kimchee fries that I had from a food truck in Austin TX. They smacked of umami in a way that I wished more food did - the garnishes and the kewpie mayo made me think that maybe chili cheese fries weren't as good as I thought they were, and that from this point on, if I were to eat chili cheese fries, that I might be overwhelmed with a strong desire to just have Okonomiyaki fries. Anyways, I highly recommend getting a plate of them while you wait for your Ramen.
The Ramen itself was amazing, it warmed me right up on this cold day, and hit all the right spot. I have seen the movie 'Tampopo' a handful of times, and I always think of the 'Ramen master' scene where the young man is learning how to eat Ramen right. There's a very specific process and mindset that goes into experiencing the bowl --- here:
I feel that this bowl of Ramen was on the level where that level of respect to the dish was required. Each ingredient shined on its own - The noodles were hearty and not pasty like when I cook my own ramen, the roasted pork was still very flavorful even after sitting in the broth - pork I make often times takes on the flavor of the broth and vice-versa, not in this case. The egg - sitting there staring me down as I held out as long as I could, was a present to my mouth when I ate it. I didn't break it up, I popped the whole thing in my mouth, and I could tell that the chef had sprinkled some salt on it before adding it to the Ramen - and it was just so good. The vegetables still had some snap to them, and the other hidden gems hiding throughout the bowl just made the experience great. I cannot wait to get back in for a different selection - I know Sato on Main will not let me down!
