Golden Pork Ton-kotsu Ramen Bar newest ramen hotspot

Nadine Kam photos
Meet your new obsession, the Golden Pork Classic ramen at Golden Pork Ton-kotsu Ramen Bar.

IKKA Dining International, the Hawaii subsidiary of Japan-based IKKA Dining Project, opened Golden Pork Ton-kotsu Ramen Bar with the intention of offering the best ramen in Honolulu, and I think they’ve struck gold with their Golden Pork classic Kyushu-style ramen.

This is the one foodies I know have been craving since their first taste of the collagen-thickened pork bone broth. Spicy and garlic versions also have their merits to the point where, until you find your favorite, you will be caught up in a vicious cycle of desire. If you order the classic, you will long for the spicy. If you order the spicy, you will long for garlic, etc., etc. As much as I like them all, I appreciate the unadorned purity of the classic.

The funny thing is that while the classic elicits many a “Wow!” and “OMG!” moment from local ramen enthusiasts, friends from Japan say people from the Motherland would not be as excited because all this is standard over there. If this raises standards here, so much the better.

The space formerly occupied by Mediterraneo has been fully transformed.

A moonscape featuring Mount Fuji was created in tile on one side of the room.

Of course the broth, created by extracting marrow, minerals and collagen from pork bones over four hours, is only half the equation. The other half is the noodle, and chef Masahiro Endo spent a year going back and forth with Sun Noodle to perfect the thin, straight noodle exclusive to Golden Pork. It is so fine and so much like ramen noodles from Japan that I was surprised it was made by Sun, which I associate with a bouncier, chewier noodle. This breakthrough is very impressive.

Golden Pork was set to be open straight through from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, but word spread quickly during the soft opening period. When the restaurant officially opened its doors March 29, they ended up having to close early after running out of broth by 8:30 p.m.

Beyond the three ramen and three tsukemen specialties, there are salads and side dishes. For something new, try the “Monja” salad, a variation of the Tokyo street-style monjayaki, or crisp veggie pancake. Shredded cabbage and crisp fried noodles are tossed together with corn, bonito flakes and a light dusting of yellow curry. My full review appears in the April 1 issue of the Star-Advertiser.

Golden Pork Ton-kotsu Ramen Bar is at 1279 S. King St. Call 888-5358. Until further notice, hours are 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, and 5 to 11 p.m. for dinner with last call for food 30 minutes prior to closing. Also, while the restaurant awaits its liquor license, patrons are invited to BYOB with no corkage fee.

A D.I.Y. Caesar salad allows you to mix in as much or as little of the soft-boiled egg as you want (it’s hidden under all that Parmesan).

Golden Pork buns are juicy and topped with a teriyaki glaze and sweet aioli with mustard; currently $3.50 each.

Spicy red miso dragon ramen with shichimi tonkotsu broth.

Agu — A Ramen Bistro celebrates one-year anniversary

Nadine Kam photos
Hisashi “Teddy” Uehara shows the Okinawan rafute that was on the menu celebrating AGU’s one-year anniversary.


Agu — A Ramen Bistro celebrated its first anniversary over two days, Dec. 5 and 6, with a glass of champagne to toast the restaurant, and a trio of complimentary appetizers to start meals.

The event started Okinawa shisa (lion-dog) dance, plus music and dance by Ryukyukoku Matsuri Daiko Hawaii.

The complimentary appetizers included Jidori chicken liver pate, a collaboration between Agu chef Hisashi Uehara and Thomas Jones, president of Agu’s parent company, Gyotaku Japanese Restaurants.

Jidori chicken liver påté, topped with a layer of lard to preserve moisture.

Next came Okinawan rafute, nine-hour stewed pork belly with brown sugar, and AGUcini, Uehara’s interpretation of the arancini, with rice and components of the restaurant’s signature “Innovative Hot Mess” rolled in panko and deep-fried.

The brown sugar-sweetened rafute.

The Innovative Hot Mess ramen was my pick for favorite food of the year in the Star-Advertiser and Diamond Head Theatre’s Ilima Awards because of the audacity of the decadent creation incorporating pork, se-abura (rendered pork back fat), fresh garlic, black garlic oil, garlic butter, Parmesan cheese, and more. The AGUcini was made a bit healthier with a persimmon salsa.

The AGUcini, served with persimmon salsa, combined some of chef Uehara’s favorite ingredients: rice, pork and Parmesan cheese.

I usually gravitate to heavier tonkotsu ramen, but given the heft of the complimentary appetizers, on this night sought out the lighter Jidori yuzu ramen.

Agu proved popular from Day 1, and coming in early 2015 will be a second location, in Waipahu. Uehara explained they needed a central kitchen big enough to keep up with the demand of making his various, laborious 18-hour ramen broths. In the restaurant’s earliest days, we could not always count on getting the ramen we wanted because if he wasn’t satisfied with the broth, he wouldn’t serve it.

A third location is also in the works.
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Agu — A Ramen Bistro is at 925 Isenberg St. (in front of the Saint Louis Alumni Clubhouse). Call (808) 492-1637.


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First course: Slurp popup brings ramen to Vino

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Slurp’s tan tan ramen with chashu, Tokyo negi, chopped choi sum and 7-minute egg. This sesame-garlic-miso combo was my favorite of the day.

Since Vino opened, chef Keith Endo has been associated with the restaurant's Italian and Mediterranean bistro fare. Now he returns to his local roots with the introduction of Slurp, a lunch-time ramen popup within Vino at Waterfront Plaza (Restaurant Row).

The breadth of offerings rival that of a full-size ramen shop, with a range of classic to specialty bowls, that cater to multiple cravings, starting with basic shio, shoyu, tonkotsu, miso and tan tan versions at $8.95 per bowl. All include chashu, Tokyo negi and choi sum.

Chinatown duck ramen is one of the specialty bowls available at Slurp, more reminiscent of Chinese noodle shops than traditional ramen.

There are also some exciting specialty offerings including a kim chee miso stew ramen ($9.95); crab ramen ($16.95) that bears strong resemblance to Vino’s parent Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar’s Dungeness Crab Ramen with Asian Truffle Broth; and a couple of more Chinese- than Japanese-inspired options of Chinatown duck ramen ($14.95) with five-spice broth, and oxtail soup-inspired braised oxtail ramen ($12.95) with cilantro and mustard cabbage.

All feature thin Hakata-style noodles created for the popup by Sun Noodle.

Add-on toppings are a 7-minute egg ($1.25) and bamboo shoots ($2), and side accompaniments are chicken yakitori ($1.50 per stick), pork belly hoisin bun ($2.95 each), kim chee ($2) and gyoza at three for $2.95 or six for $5.45.

To go with your meal, consider liquid slurps of mango, lilikoi or lychee house sodas, ume seltzer, and lemongrass ice tea, or a full range of wines by the glass and bar offerings (it is the domain of Chuck Furuya, after all).
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The popup, inside Vino at 500 Ala Moana Boulevard, is open from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mondays to Fridays. Call (808) 524-8466.

Crab ramen in a truffle broth with Tokyo negi and spicy jalapeño.

Pork belly hoisin buns are a generously sized side offering, at $2.95 each.

Meaty gyoza, at three pieces for $2.95, or six for $5.45.