I don’t know about you, but food makes me happy! There is an art to good food, a certain type of magic when you take a bite of something that leaves you speechless yet your taste buds are dancing with joy. This year I pledge to myself to make my belly happier with even more amazing VEGAN delicacies.
So let’s get to it shall we. I started this wonderful new year of 2025 at my FAVORITE ramen restaurant in Fountain Valley, California. It’s called Kin Craft Ramen & Izakaya. I know, it’s not something new, but I just thought I should tell you about it. I literally come to this restaurant once a week. IT’S THAT GOOD! It is not a full vegan restaurant, in fact, the vegan selection is pretty small, but don’t let that change your mind.
I originally found this restaurant randomly one night searching Google and Yelp. The reviews were good and they had 1 vegan ramen option, so I thought, “Let’s give it a try!” Boy oh boy I am so happy I did.
Okay, let’s get to the fun part. THE FOOD! Like I said before, it’s not a vegan restaurant so if that’s not your thing then I hope you live what you order. However if you are here for that sweet vegan goodness, I’ve got you covered!
Appetizers! Let’s start off with some simple EDEMANE. Their EDEMANE is steamed perfectly. Not too soft, not too hard, and topped with nice chunks of shaved salt. Every single piece you pick up somehow looks perfect. I rarely ever see any imperfections on any of the little pods. Maybe they have a magical leprechaun in the back sorting out the less than perfect pieces, but whatever it is, they are fabulous.
Next up we have the FURIKAKE FRIES. Why are these fries so good!? They have sesame seeds and seaweed bits on top. I know traditional furikake can contain fish, but I have been told that these fries and their furikake bestie does not have any fish ingredients. They also come with a spicy mayo dipping sauce which contains dairy and eggs so I do not use this sauce. Behold, the photos!
Simply delicious !
Now for the main course, yep you guessed it, THE VEGAN RAMEN.
The vegan ramen is made from a vegetable broth with Mostly to make it a little bit creamer. No bland water based broth here! Inside this big bowl you will find yourself munching on ramen noodles, 2 large pieces of tofu, bean sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, menma or bamboo shoots, green onions, and napa cabbage. Did I mention RAMEN NOODLES? Silly me, of course I did, but I didn’t mention that the ramen noodles are unlimited. That’s right, slurp up those delicious noodles, save some broth, and ask for a refill.
Now here’s the spicy part. If you are like me, you like it HOT! You like your mouth burning, nose running, gripping onto that glass of water for support kind of spicy. If you too are as spice crazy as me, you are a reader of my own heart. Ask for the SPICY CHILI PASTE.
They will bring you a small pouring bowl that you can adjust your spice level to your own preference. I like the burn so I pour the whole thing inside that sweet bowl of warm veggie bliss.
Now grab those chip sticks and spoon, slurp it up, and enjoy! If you visit KIN I’d love to hear your thoughts on their food and drinks!
HAPPY NEW YEAR and happy eating
Lisa Pinelli 