Will do!
Culmination. Off Sandy 
The Chorizo-men was my first mad scientist moment that I hit a grand slam with. Our housemade blend is killer.
Someday I’ll be moving to Michigan and depending how this venture goes I may open a spot near Detroit.
Back in 2014 I visited Japan and waited in line for 1.5hrs for a bowl of ramen at Mutekiya. My life flashed before my eyes and I’d never had ramen that was so delicious. I became obsessed with learning how to make it. I made a batch every week for a year, refining my technique, and getting it dialed in. I started to host ramen parties and always got good feedback and I started to think I could do this for a living.
I have always loved to BBQ, make salsas, and sauces so I started incorporating those elements into my ramen. It’s really been a game changer as far as evolving my ramen and developing a unique market for our shop. On top of chorizo I do a smoked pulled pork, a charbroiled/smoked chicken thigh, bourbon marinated fried chicken, and do a lot with koji marinade on our tofu and chicken. I also smoke and charbroil our bones/veggies for our broth that takes it to the next level.
It took over 2 years to find a location. I got extremely lucky landing our spot in a trendy location. I quit my job that I had been at for 19 years to start this restaurant and COVID hit. Luckily the neighborhood has been great supporting us to start. It would be great to see more Den mates stop by down the road.
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Rain all year in Oregon except for June - August we have sunshine most everyday. We don’t get much snow out here in the valley, but we do get some ice/snow in the eastern part of the state Nov-Feb.
It’s good to read about someone following his passion for food to start his own business. I’ve had a few ideas myself that I’ve never followed through on, so when I read about a denmate taking the plunge, I instantly want to cheer you on. I hope for your sake (and all of ours, really) that we get back to something that looks normal soon. 
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Yeah, I’m right there with ya! My wife and I are always kicking around ideas for restaurants and where to put-up strip malls, etc. …and I’m cheering-on anybody that has the coconuts to open-up a restaurant and follow their dreams (or any other endeavor for that matter).
I’m someone who is always thinking about how to make products better and I’m currently working on a patent idea, it was my “a-ha” moment and I believe it’s something that will totally catch fire. I’m hoping that in a couple of years I’m able just to cash-out and sell the idea and for me and my wife to walk-off into the sunset and retire.
Good luck, Lionsblood…and anyone else who follows their dreams!
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I just got rid of my restaurants after 19 years, opened the first one when I was 25, in Madison, WI. The restaurant business is as much a life style as it is a career. Now I’m down to my catering company and a banquet facility. Found it too difficult to be successful as a restauranteur, Dad and Husband. And with covid shutting down my other businesses, I started Day/Swing Trading (BBA Finance). The road life takes us down is a crazy journey.
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Thanks, man. I appreciate it. My joke until I was 35 was “I don’t know what I want to do when I grow up” and then boom, I found my passion. It’s not just the food but creating a brand and a vibe. I feel we have a solid foundation. We just gotta survive this mess.
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Sounds like you’re doing whatever you gotta do to survive. I admire you adapting and doing what you gotta do.
I’m at a very good place in life to pull the trigger on this. My 3 boys are 14, 16, & 18 so I got a small army of slave labor. They’ve worked harder and smarter than I ever imagined. Now that we are running a business, it’s night and day from doing chores at home. My nephews have been a huge help as well as my mom and sisters. It’s been a very cool experience to have my family come together to build this. Prior, we’d only get together for holidays so it’s been a big deal that we spend so much time together now.
Shameless self promotion is the best kind. Congratulations! May you have many prosperous days of noodle happiness ahead.
Not really about survival, we did really well in the business (2 restaurant, 2 banquet facilities, catering company and a contract for all food serices at a country club). For me, i delayed having kids for my career, now kids are 9 and 12, and my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. I needed to be at home more frequently, working nights and weekends wasn’t in the best interest of my family. I loved the industry, but times changed. I’ve always been financially motivated and never considered working for anyone else, so the trading just fit. Most difficult part of trading - sitting at a desk, I hate it!
Portland is the perfect setting for a shop like yours. Having traveled extensively, i would classify Portland as one of the best food cities in the country. Eclectic, fresh, sustainable, a ton of talented people intrested in the industry, great walking districts and a population that embraces local proprietors. Awesome job, menu looks great. Ramen/Asian food in general pairs well with smoked meats and fish. We used to do a house smoked Andouille that was popular and paired well with shell fish, coconut and fresh greens. Far from Japanese, more Thai, but the creative use of ingredients is defining in the industry.
Any chance you could post some photo’s?
Here’s something moderately both Lions and food related - a local restaurant group that wants to bring me in as the brewing and brand specialist is meeting tomorrow with Suh as one of the investors
My friend who is spearheading the project also bought Suhs dads jazz club that never quite launched
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Nice! Congrats man! I know Suh was part of the group that launched Bae’s Chicken and they are turning all of the old Boxer Ramens into Bae’s. Haven’t been there yet but it looks amazing.
Wasn’t implying your businesses were failing and you changed, just your life circumstances and that you adapted to do what was best for you and your fam.
Yes, Portland is a great foodie town. I’m branding ourselves as “Portland ramen” so the locals can really latch onto it as one of their own…as it is. That smoked Andouille with coconut sounds incredible. I have a Thai inspired ramen that I will launch as a special soon. I love the fresh ingredients and spice of Thai food. The beauty of ramen is that it’s whatever you make it. There are no rules and no boundaries. It keeps me inspired to keep creating new variations.
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Wish I had time to take professional photos of my food. It’s on my never ending TDL. For my convenience, here’s our IG feed: https://www.instagram.com/baka.umai/
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I just bought a professional-quality full frame digital SLR if you ever want to do some good shots let me know. Thing takes awesome shots. Going to start trying to take more sexy beer photos for social media
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Thanks! But I’ve got cases of camera gear for when I was a photographer in a previous life. I lugged all of my lighting gear here and was gonna setup a photoshoot but then got too busy. One of these days…
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This is killing me, exactly the type of food I can’t get enough of. Just got back from 2 weeks fishing in Wyoming, pretty pedestrian food choices where I was at. Did have some Elk and obviously fish, but I’m all over Asian food choices. Pictures were great, thanks.
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