There’s a little restaurant found in a converted Pizza Hut building that’s filling the need of the D.C. periphery–more ramen shops.
Located in Fairfax, Va., Marumen offers four different styles of ramen: shio, shoyu, miso, and spicy miso. The shop is unique in that it also offers tsukemen, which is like ramen, but usually with thicker noodles that are served in a separate bowl and intended to be dipped into the broth, which is thicker and more sauce-like.
Marumen also offers a number of appetizers. We got the Chicarrones. Odd, right? Ordering a Spanish/Latin American/South American food staple at a ramen shop. Well, there’s something about pork rinds that fits really neatly into Japanese cuisine.
I should add that you get complimentary edamame with your meal when you sit down. Yummy.
I’d like to go back and try the shoyu ramen before I form any opinions. What’s cool to see is that Marumen appears to be owned by a group of folks in their mid-twenties, so it’s nice to see a young Millennial restaurant, so to speak.
As for the ramen I got, it appeared to have burnt garlic oil on top. I ordered the bowl with extra corn and bamboo shoots, which added some texture to the dish. The pork was pretty light. The broth was peppery, I thought. Not bad. The egg was absolutely delicious. The noodles were good, too. Here’s a closeup:
Check it out if you’re ever in the area!
Peripheral Chew 