we went to check out daikaya, a ramen and izakaya joint, last time we were in town. daikaya is located right next to the verizon center in DC and right in or on the border of chinatown. daikaya consists of 2 floors: ramen on the 1st floor and izakaya on the more intimate 2nd floor.
unfortunately the izakaya section doesnt open on sundays so we could only try out their ramen. they serve sapporo style ramen which is distinguished by its chintan stock. according to their website, their clear soup base is made out of chicken, beef, and pork which requires 16+ hours of prepping.
we sat at the bar.
the place wasnt packed on a sunday
DC Brau
gyoza – fresh, nicely fried
shio ramen with their chintan stock, topped with roast pork, bean sprouts, oinions, ground pork, garlic, nori, scallions, nitamago, menma (bamboos), seaweed. corns.
i asked for a million toppings. i have to say this was the only a few times i got full from 1 bowl of ramen. maybe im just a pig or maybe the portion is pretty big esp with all that toppings. i loved the bean sprouts which had a smoky flavor! the broth was relatively light while remaining flavorful.
the guy stir frying the bean sprouts which gives a nice smoky flavor
shoyu ramen – dark rich soy sauce soup base with toasted garlic and slightly caramel tones.
barley miso ramen
i enjoyed my bowl of ramen at daikaya, maybe we ll return for their izakaya soon!
Daikaya
Category: Japanese
705 6th St NW
(at N G Pl)
Washington, DC 20001
http://daikaya.com/
BunnyandPorkBelly 
I enjoy a really good Ramen. If you’re ever in the Bay Area in California, try some ramen shops out here!
ive been to a few places in LA. love cali! cant wait to be back again
I enjoy Ramen and enjoy your photos even better. The wide angle view with a shallow depth of field make the images extraordinary. I love the shots of the cooks in the kitchen and the highlight on noodles. Thanks for sharing the wonderful photos.
thank you for stopping by! 🙂
Ya, your shots are amazing! What kind of camera do you use? I always love love LOVE ramen.
Lovely photos. Are the eggs just hard boiled? They look unusual.
I hope this doesn’t cause offense, but I’ve never seen a Japanese restaurant with non-asian chefs. They look like they got it handled well. 🙂
yea i think the eggs were marinated in soy sauce then boiled. its very normal to see non-asian chefs working in asian restaurants here in the states. it’s hard to find real japanese chefs working in japanese restaurants 😥
I wonder if the eggs are like Chinese tea eggs then?
I think that around here, the restaurants are staffed by Japanese or at least Asians partly because non-Asian chefs are not studying these cuisines. It is a shame because to do fusion well, which is VERY big here, I think it would be useful to have firsthand experience working in a range of cuisines.
Nicely done!
I’m so glad I found your blog. I’m from DC, but I currently live in Amsterdam, and I’m always on the hunt for new food spots to try when I go home. Will definitely try this one, and revisit your space 😀
nice! when you coming back to visit?
Late May for Memorial Day, gonna stuff my face left and right. I have a few spots I HAVE to go to, like pollo rico and ichiban sushi in mclean, va… but I’m always interested in keeping up with what’s going down 😀
Looks good! It’s lunch here in England, although there’s nowhere even half decent in Reddish, Manchester. Dodgy sandwiches it is!
I really enjoy your images. capturing the images in the kitchen really made me feel like I was there. I could almost smell the ramen!
Looks awesome! Great photos, too. Makes we want some ramen now!
As always, amazing photos that always leave me hungry and wanting to travel just to try the food. Nice work!
Everything looks so delicious! If I’m ever in D.C. I will try to stop by. Thanks for checking out Life Is Like A Dumpling!
Great post!
Your photographs are absolutely amazing! How do you get it so the lighting is spot on every time? Is it your camera and the camera settings? Or the places you go?
thanks, lol, its non of that, its all post processing
Bowls of ramen and dumplings never looked so good. This is either the best ramen shop EVER or you’re a damn good photographer … or you’re good with Photoshop. Will try soonest.