Recommended bowl: Sophisticated ramen...

Master Namioka-san previously worked as a chef at an upscale kaiseki ryori (a traditional, multi-course Japanese restaurant). He's brought some of the delicacy associated with that cooking tradition into the ramen kitchen at Heiemon.

Heiemon's ramen isn't big on bold flavors and impact. It's all subtly – refined ramen for the refined ramen fan. This is a soup that will make you think.

Both shio and shoyu are available in several varieties, including tsukemen. We're partial to the shoyu, which seems to be the consensus in ramen geekdom. Namioka-san uses a huge amount of konbu (sea kelp) in his dashi, so much so that we assumed there must be some kind of shellfish in the mix when we had our first taste (there isn't). The ingredients are all-natural; no MSG. Despite the bowl's Zen-like simplicity, you can tell a great deal of thought and effort goes into its every aspect.