Late Night Noodles

Marissa and I were in unfamiliar territory the other night...far, far west 42nd Street.  I had dragged her over there for a play, which as it turned out was not a particularly great piece of theater.  Centered around a washed up gay screenwriter, it resembled a sit-com from the early 80s.  But thankfully it only lasted for 75 minutes and Marissa had an absolutely brilliant idea for dinner afterwards which soothed the sting that the tiny theater (and its rigid seats) inflicted.

Our resident hole in the wall restaurant experts (and dear friends), Tom and Peter, had been raving about Totto Ramen for as long as they've lived in the neighborhood.  In fact they said that it even rivals, if not surpasses, the great ramen den that is Ippudo.  These were serious allegations.  We had to investigate.

Once we saw the small crowd on 52nd Street it was clear we had arrived.

photo via here

We put our names down on the list and sat down on the bench by the door, gossiping and enjoying the cool night air.  Thirty minutes flew by and presently we were being seated in the tiny shop.

photo via here

We both opted for the miso ramen and were richly rewarded for our (semi) adventurous choice.  Hearty and toothsome and just salty enough, it did wonders to banish a nascent cold I had been nursing.  

photo via here

We both agreed that on the miso ramen front Totto beat out both Ippudo and, sadly, my beloved Rai Rai Ken.  We'll have to go back and order the clear broth version to see how it fares in competition.  And the ramen competition in this town is indeed stiff...but Totto appears to be a true contender.