Miyata Menji Opens on Sawtelle + Clusi Batusi Coming Soon

Upon entry to the newest ramen shop on Sawtelle Boulevard, you're welcomed with shouts of “Hello, thank you for coming” in Japanese. Miyata Menji opened less than one week ago, taking over the shuttered GR/eats space. With its flagship location in Osaka, Japan, Miyata offers a simple menu with just two offerings: tonkotsu ramen with pork broth, teriyaki beef, shallots and fried tomatoes; and tsukemen with steamed noodles, anchovy cabbage, grated cheese, minced pork, vegetable potage, tomato and croutons.

Owner and “famous comedian” Menji Miyata wants to spread his food to the world, explains vice president of operations Akihiro Kanda. The 26-seat, cash-only restaurant, which opened on March 23, has yet to make any public announcements of its debut and is relying heavily on word of mouth and foot traffic for customers. “The ramen business is blowing up,” says Kanda. On a recent rainy Sunday afternoon, the place was packed with families and solo ramenites.

Across the street, signage is posted for Clusi Batusi, a pizza joint opening this summer. More details to come.

Owner Menji Miyata; Credit: C. Soudry

Tonkotsu ramen; Credit: C. Soudry

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