Tsujita Artisan Noodles Annex

Welcome to Little Osaka, more commonly known as Sawtelle Boulevard in West LA.  Though Sawtelle is smaller than its downtown sister, Little Tokyo, in both size and fame, it has made a good name for itself as the Westside Japanese restaurant row.  Over the years, Sawtelle has become home to a flurry of other cuisines, too.  It has become the go-to spot for curry, Korean-fusion hot dogs, xiao long bao, sushi, Hawaiian shave ice, Taiwanese shave ice, ramen, more ramen, burgers, pizza, shabu shabu (hot pot) and pho.  Did I mention ramen?

I've had Tsujita ramen once before, but I recently made my first visit to the Annex. The Annex is neither appended to nor adjacent to Tsujita LA, but it's located across the street, which is close enough. Notwithstanding this misnomer, it is still a cozy alcove for your perfect bowl of ramen.

Many options in regular and large sizes.  Let me advise you, the regular size is more than enough unless you are, or eat like, Sonya Thomas, aka - the Black Widow.

The noodles are thick and super starchy, and the pork broth is thick and flavorful. It's all very tasty, but don't get greedy.  A little goes a long way. (I learned it the hard way).

Tsujita makes a good bowl of ramen, but what they are best known for is the tsukemen (pronounced "skeh-men").  You take the handmade noodles and dip them in the rich pork broth.  The flavors are salty, but so very good.

Large ramen with char-siu (pork) -- $13.95

Regular Tsukemen with char-siu -- $13.95

Thick pork broth with just one spoonful of spice.

How to eat tsukemen-style noodles:

Stage 1: Squeeze some lime juice all over the noodles.  You'll periodically sprinkle the tangy sweetness of the lime later so don't squeeze it all out at the beginning.  [No lime served at the Annex!]

Stage 2: Take some noodles and dip them in the sauce.  Feel free to use the soup spoon to help gather all the noodles -- they can get unruly sometimes, especially when using chopsticks -- and some additional broth.

Stage 3: Eat and savor as a smile creeps across your satisfied face (creepy?).  Once you are done eating the noodles, you can request some additional soup stock to the remainder of your broth and enjoy it as soup.

Time to get your ramen fix at Tsujita Annex!


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dine-in date: 12/13/13; 6:00 p.m.
cuisine: Japanese Ramen
location: Sawtelle, West LA
hours: 11 am - 11:30 pm
websites: { TsujitaAnnex | yelp | facebook | instagram }
parking: Street meters
attire: Casual
notes: Cash only!
other reviews: { umami mart | O Hei There | Tasting Table }