H1Noodle1

A wave of nausea washed over me at 5am on Thursday and I was instantly concerned. Had I been struck with H1N1? Or could my fabulous dinner last night possibly have turned against me? Despite lacking sick leave, which is parsimoniously combined with my holiday leave, I knew that hopping on the work train would be out of the question so I crawled back into bed and tried to shove my queasiness aside.

I seem to have a proclivity for becoming ill after ramen consumption, which is devastating considering the fact that it’s one of my favorite winter meals. Having lived in Japan for a year, delicious and authentic ramen is difficult to come by so I was terribly anxious to head to Boom Noodle in Bellevue on Thursday after work. Little did I know my indulgences would later be regrets…

Instead of forcing Brett to take the bus home due to a meeting that ran late that day, I decided that we should make an affair out of the occasion. I would shop whilst he was otherwise occupied since my work whistle blows at 4. After that, the two of us could head to Boom in Bellevue, which is conveniently en route back to Ballard. For those less savvy on Japanese culture, a boom is something of which one is incredibly fond. Noodles are naturally this restaurant’s particular boom.

We arrived at 5:30pm to a sparsely occupied space. The aesthetic of Boom Noodle is intrinsically Japanese, though the space is considerably larger. Images from FRUiTS, a Tokyo magazine focused on Japanese street style adorn the walls.

What I enjoy most is that even though the ventilation and piping systems are exposed on the ceilings, all seating is nested underneath cozy wooden lofts offering an inviting feeling despite the vast interior. Since it was thus far unoccupied, our host allowed me to select a regal half moon booth large enough to accommodate ten guests. Brett and I perched ourselves on our throne and perused the drink menu. I requested their kiddie drink “Yuzu Lemonade” with vodka and Brett ordered his gold standard. Yuzu Lemonade is a delicious combination of the Japanese citrus fruit yuzu (tart and comparable to grapefruit), lemonade, Calpico (a Japanese soft drink which is milky in colour and very sweet) and an umeboshi float (sour plum). I found the addition of vodka to be just what the doctor ordered to cut the overly sweet finish of Calpico.


Since the drink ordering was settled, I decided to poke through the upstairs izakaya in order to make my way to the loo (hidden in the bowels of the Bellevue Square mall.) The first time Brett and I frequented Boom, when it opened back in March, I became disoriented and subsequently lost in the veritable crazy straw of hallways. This time I eschewed the crazy straw and bounded up a stairwell that separates Boom Noodle from Blue C Sushi and leads to the izakaya above, which is a small bungalow-style bar offering small plates from the adjoining restaurants and cocktails aplenty. En route, I happened upon a hidden back room complete with Guitar Hero and various other X-Box 360 and Wii games. As a server slinked past me, I inquired about the particulars of this room and she sagely informed me that for a minimum order of one thousand dollars worth of grub, the room could be mine. I lingered and gazed longingly at the elite quarters, intensely wishing that someone would throw my birthday there.


Heading back downstairs, it was time for the hedonism to commence. We began with salt and pepper tofu that were waiting on the table upon my return. The chewy tofu was encapsulated in a crispy deep-fried shell and served with a side of sautéed green onion and jalapeño, with an accompanying mound of grilled seasoning in which to dip the tasty cubes. Having an affinity for tsukemono (Japanese pickles), I asked our affable server if the restaurant had any available. Fortunately for me they did, though it was not listed on the menu. He presented me with a geometric display of pickled green beans, radishes, and carrots surrounding a tiny mound of white rice. Because one starter is obviously not enough, I also chose the miso rice cakes for us to enjoy. These starters were pan-seared, which resulted in chewy little pillars of mixed grain rice topped with a caramelized miso glaze and Asian-style slaw peppered with black sesame seeds. Everything thus far was delicious and we began to bloat contentedly after the hors d’oeuvres—our noodle feast still on the horizon.


Everything arrived to our table at a very steady pace, barely affording us time to properly relish one thing before we were forced to move along to the next. Our piping hot noodles were ferried over in asymmetrical bowls and harkened a Tampopo-esque perfection in their presentation. Tampopo is an iconic Japanese “Noodle Western” and also happens to be one of my favorite movies of all time. The movie explores the relevance of food in Japanese culture as a means to not only provide life, but also happiness, desire, and self-expression. The scene I was reminded of in particular was one in which an older gentleman waxes philosophical on the importance of perfect ramen: a clear, gently cloudy broth (mine was Shio- a soy/chicken/pork mixture- check), three tenderly fatty soft pieces of pork that melt in your mouth (check), two floral kamaboko (spongy fish cake- check), green onion (check), a piece of nori (seaweed-check), and bamboo shoots (check). All these elements combine with firm yet soft ramen noodles to create a perfectly balanced, harmonious meal. The aforementioned ideal is exactly what we received for our dinner. Conversation ceased and we both properly slurped (blowing whilst sucking to cool them down) our noodles, every so often setting down our chopsticks to embrace the bowl with both hands and drink the deliciously salty and robust broth.


We barely came up for air, such was the quality of our food. Either that or we were both starving. In any case, the evening continued to darken and I couldn’t help but feel über-chic being one of the very few couples dining. So dark was the night that I pretended we were guests of a private event at a Japanese noodle bar in Tokyo around midnight.

That enchanting feeling slowly dissipated into what I can only describe as a sodium coma. Brett drove us home and I reclined my seat to alleviate the discomfort of over-indulgence. Having been rendered useless for the remainder of the evening, I padded my way to the bedroom and acquiesced to the overwhelming feeling of gluttony. When I awoke the next morning, I felt even more dire. Despite the deliciousness and enjoyment our noodles were able to provide on Wednesday night, they left me askew on Thursday morning which only confirms that one can, in fact, enjoy too much of a good thing. Regardless of this fact, I’m most certain we’ll return in the near future.