I didn’t try any food trucks this last trip to Vancouver but I did chance upon a new ramen shop in the West End, Marutama Ramen (780 Bidwell Street). It’s a decent-sized space just off Robson Street, one block east of Denman Street where the popular Kintaro Ramen and Motomachi Shokudo are located.
This place uses a chicken broth, which they offer mild or spicy, and thinner ramen noodles, which can be cooked soft, regular, or al dente. Flipping to the backside of their menu, I noticed that this is actually a chain restaurant with other shops in Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong.
While you wait for your bowl of ramen, you can sip cold mugi-cha, which is a barley wheat tea commonly had in Japan, a nice touch on a hot summer day and an alternative to cold water. The service was attentive (my tea cup was quickly filled each time I emptied it…which was quite often) and friendly, all of the servers and cooks are Japanese, and the ramen was delicious. You can get a tamago ramen as well, which includes a marinated soft-boiled egg (heard that it was very tasty!).
I’d definitely recommend trying this place out. Good ambiance, a nice-looking space, and options to eat at the bar (best place to be in a ramen shop, in my opinion) or at tables.
Eat-travel-live 