A trip to the Shin Sen Gumi Yakitori in Gardena seemed simple enough. We'd all meet up, have some grilled items on skewers, imbibe some beer and sake, and laugh the night away. And so when Rameniac mentioned that Asa Ramen was across the street, all of those plans had to make room for a new thought: "Hey, so do you guys want to get ramen after this?"

We crowded around the table in the tatami room and ordered items in that weird combination of gusto and moderation. I mean, sure, we wanted to nosh on some tasty chicken and veggies, but the thought of ramen afterwards loomed overhead like a savory sword.

But that moment of temperance wouldn't last long. When it came time to order, too many things sounded too good to pass up, like the braised beef tendon or the garlic. The beef tongue were better than any lengua taco I've ever had, and the star dish was definitely the chicken thigh.

True to our word, after we paid our bill, we ambled across the street to find a hole-in-the-wall ramen shop. In addition to the kotteri ramen, we also got a small pinch of salted plum, and a few servings of takoyaki (octopus croquettes). The croquettes were stuffed with minced octopus as well as a mysterious root vegetable we had trouble identifying. (Our guess was taro, but in the end, it's probably imported from Japan and lacks an English name.)

The salted plum also served to help cut through the richness of the ramen.

And boy, did it ever need it. Flecks of marrow floated throughout the broth, providing the ramen with an intense depth of flavor. The thin noodles paired well with the soup, as I've often thought that Santouka's noodles were a little much on the chewy side, if only by a small amount.

All told, not a bad haul for the evening. I was actually feeling okay walking out of SSGY, but Asa's rich broth finally did me in. I walked out of the ramen shop to greet the long, quiet evening, and I punched in my GPS to try and find the closest treadmill.