We finally decided to sample Agu Ramen... actually we simply decided to just visit Ward Centre for lunch and whoever didn't have a line - between Piggy Smalls and Agu Ramen - we'd drop in for lunch. Piggy Smalls had a party of five waiting outside and it looked packed on the inside. Agu Ramen had a party of three waiting outside but they had counter seating for two so Agu Ramen it was. I'll admit it... I'm not a huge ramen fan... not because I don't like ramen but because of the serving temperature. Whether it's ramen, sukiyaki or shabu shabu, I can't eat anything that's just south of the sun's temperature. I have a cat's tongue. Though Agu's appetizers did look good online (they wisely include a picture menu online) and they serve the wines of Kenzo Winery. Including the Yui which is their Rose. It is $80 per bottle straight from the winery and I didn't really want to purchase a 6-pack of $80 Rose. But Agu prices it at $55 for a half bottle... reasonable by my standards.
So I ordered a 375ml bottle of Kenzo Yui Rose... a little dried orange peel on the nose with hints of minerality with a nice palate flow and no residual bitterness. The Mrs agreed that it was a good Rose... maybe not $80 per bottle good but good none-the-less...
We then sampled the Fried Mimiga or thinly sliced and fried pigs ears served with their spicy "volcano" sauce. These pigs ears were the BOMB! Leagues above the pigs ears we purchase at the farmer's market enhanced by the Sriracha-like aioli served on the side...
We also sampled the Tori Nanban or Miyazaki style fried chicken served with tartar sauce (my favorite sauce)... very juicy chicken though the skin wasn't as crisp as karaage chicken... but it was still very good...
The Mrs selected the Hakata Tonkotsu ramen which had a rich broth that wasn't salty at all... the char siu also was sliced very thin and very flavorful and the noodles had a good texture, like a good al dente texture...
While I selected the Hiyashi Cold Noodle with a sesame, vinegar sauce that I mixed some of the spicy mustard... again, very good texture of the thin noodles like al dente angel's hair pasta garnished with menma (pickled bamboo shoots), kyuri (cucumber), char siu and kikurage (jelly fish). I was totally satisfied with my meal...
Though we still want to sample the food at Piggy Smalls, we definitely will be back for a second round at Agu Ramen... Since owner Hisashi "Teddy" Uehara already has other shops in Waialae, Waikiki, Kapolei and Pearlridge along with three locations in Houston, perhaps it's time to expand to Kaneohe...
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