375 Saratoga Ave, Suite M, San Jose, CA. 95129, (408) 246-3933
Last visited - September of 2009
(Ramen Halu at night, image from my own library) When you go out craving something to eat and end up getting something different, your judgment of a place will never be too objective. Here's the story, we drove down all the way to San Jose hungry for some "whole shibang" shrimp from the Boiling Crab, but when we got there the wait was two and a half hours. That's right, the girl said 2.5 HOURS! We couldn't wait that long, so we got two pounds to go for a later time and went to Ramen Halu for the first time.
The place was mentioned by my friend months earlier and I told her that I'd check it out if I was in the San Jose area. I guess I found the time to do so that night. The drive there was not too bad, but you'd never expect a ramen place on Los Gatos ave. So Ramen Halu is nestled between an Indian supermarket and a cash checking place. From across the way you can see a Casino and a hoff brau restaurant on its diagonal. When we drove in the parking lot we thought we went to the wrong part of town, nevertheless I heard Japanese folks speaking outside a small store front, and sure enough there was a Ramen restaurant.
The service is laid-back in Ramen Halu, they seem to have some really greenhorn waiters that take their time in cleaning off tables and checking up on the tables. The theme of the restaurant is beaches and surfing. The little eatery was lined with surfboards and they give you the check on a conch shell. And like the theme suggests, the waiters reminded me of chilled out surfers serving you on their own time. Luckily, they have a speedy kitchen and our ramen came pretty quick. I ordered the Ramen Halu, my girlfriend ordered the tan-tan noodles, and our other friend ordered the Ramen Halu with buckwheat noodles. Out of the three, I found the tan-tan noodles the tastiest. The Ramen Halu was supposed to be this healthy soup with noodles that'd make you strong and cleanse your system. Of course healthy food never tastes great. I found the soup simple and not enough flavoring. My friend thought it was a bit too oily for her and that the soup was dominated by the bamboo shoots' flavoring. It might have been saltier than one is used to also. Not to be unfair, the tan-tan noodles are really good and I recommend that for all those that are in the San Jose area. They probably have a decent ramen too, we just didn't try it that first time.
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