New York, San Francisco, Wichita: Food Network ranks a local eatery among nation’s best

For the second time this year, Wichita’s Yokohama Ramen Joint at 613 W. Douglas has made a national “best-of” list.

The restaurant, which Jack Fukuda opened in Delano in 2016, has been included on Food Network’s list of “Where to Slurp Great Ramen from Coast to Coast.”

This list is a extra special for the restaurant because it doesn’t include just one entry from every state like the USA Today list published in January did. In that case, you might assume that a Kansas ramen restaurant gets the title because it has very little competition. The Food Network list, though, is just a straight roll call of great ramen restaurants and includes several from big states like New York and California.

The entry on Yokohama points to a few of Fukuda’s ramen creatiosn specifically: “The B.T.T.M., or spicy beef tongue tantanmen, is his newest offering, a combination of a spicy miso base mix with a secret savory broth. The beef tongue is cooked for four hours and marinated with the chef’s special sauce overnight, and the bowl includes local farm-to-table micro sprouts and homemade pickled radish. The shop also offers habanero garlic ramen, black garlic ramen and great vegan options,” the entry read.

The list arrives at an already exciting time for Fukuda, who is in the midst of planning another restaurant. He said he hopes to announce in two weeks where on Wichita’s east side he will open his new Yokohama Ramen Izakaya, a restaurant that will offer the ramen soup that’s made him famous plus appetizers and alcoholic beverages.

This story was originally published October 29, 2018 at 8:53 AM.