I fell hard and fast for Marugame Monzo’s made-from-scratch udon noodles. As a testament to my infatuation, I haven’t dined on sushi or ramen while visiting Little Tokyo since the shop opened a few months back. It’s been pure, unadulterated affection for these chubby darlings from the start.
According to a write up by Miles Clements on the subject, the man behind the magnificent noodles is the restaurant’s general manager Kenji Tateishi. Marugame Monzo is his first stateside restaurant after training in Japan.
The process of transforming a hunk of tough dough into slurp-able strands is simply mesmerizing. The glass-encased workshop guarantees that nearly every seat in the house has a stellar view of the magic in progress from start to finish.
I was seated near the front door on my first visit and at the bar on my second. The latter’s so-close-I-can-almost-taste-it access was much preferred.
