The Oyster Seiten

Review

The Oyster Seiten was a popup special at KC Craft Ramen from Seiten wo Tsuke, a ramen shop in Hiroshima, Japan. The broth was hot enough, which I appreciated. My first sip made me think it was an oyster broth, but the oyster flavor came from the paste on top. The beef bone broth itself was fairly light, with a salt-forward flavor. Beef bone ramen is unusual here, and I liked trying something different, but I was disappointed that the broth itself did not taste of oyster. Oyster ramen is something I rarely find in the U.S., so I had been looking forward to that part. The noodles were medium in thickness and much too soft for my taste. This was one of the biggest disappointments of the bowl.

I enjoyed the variety of toppings, and the DX upgrade made the bowl feel generous. It added round steak chashu, diced seared round steak, fried lotus root, and extra seasoned egg. The diced beef was rare, tender, well seasoned, and delicious. The smoked pork chashu and round steak chashu were also tender and tasty. Along with the oyster paste, the bowl included red onion, rice crackers, and wood ear mushrooms. There was almost too much green onion, though.

The restaurant was extremely busy, with a line stretching outside. It took about 30 minutes to get inside. The biggest practical problem was parking. The lot was too small for the crowd, so I had to park farther away and walk over.

The base price was $16.98. With the $5 DX Topping, my bowl came to $21.98. The soft noodles and lack of oyster flavor in the broth left me more disappointed than I had expected. Even with the generous toppings, the bowl did not feel worth the price.