Neginegi ramen at Yataimura

The Neginegi ramen is so nice, you have to say it twice. That's what the photo says. Heaps of sharp, grassy Tokyo negi swim in a thick, rich pork broth carried by thin al dente noodles.

Yataimura at Shirokiya is currently featuring a ramen festival with popular dishes from around Japan. The bowl of ramen I just finished is from Menya Ifou Do Do in Osaka.

The kitchen crew was a well-oiled machine, cranking out these bowls in the face of a long line of hungry ramen fans. It was with the precision of a Soup Nazi line that I got to the head of the long line, ordered the Neginegi ramen, and was immediately served a steaming bowl of ramen. This bowl was a very of-the-moment dish, an immediate momentary bliss as the aromas wafted up to my nose. In the noisy slurp of the noodles, right there and then, I realized life is just a bowl of ramen, and it is good.