Chinatown’s Ramen Champ Returns for Surprise Third Stint at Far East Plaza

Ramen Champ returns, again

There’s been another turn in the developments at Ramen Champ, the on-and-off upstairs eatery at Chinatown’s Far East Plaza. Originally opened as a noodle concept by chef Alvin Cailan, the place then changed hands (and modified concepts) for a while before shuttering completely. Now there’s a new team on site once again, led by chef Yuji Matsumoto.

The menu is in some ways the same as ever before (they are named after their noodle bowls, after all), with tonkotsu and shoyu bowls, plus loads of sides like gyoza and takoyaki. You can find the full (re)opening menu below, with hours running Monday through Sunday (closed Tuesdays) for both lunch and dinner.

Verlaine’s best room

There’s some hidden dining tucked into the new Verlaine, it seems. Architectural Digest shows off the private new dining space for the modern Mexican restaurant, which (back in the Dominick’s days) once played home to the likes of Frank Sinatra. Now it’s a space for celebs and cool kids, plus the occasional full room buyout.

The USC dining experience

Did you know there’s an entire collection of quiet Chinese street food vendors working the streets around USC? Owing to a large assortment of Chinese and Chinese-American students, LA Weekly says, these food trucks are doing little-seen dishes and fan favorites alike.

Ice cream galore

There’s another (yep, another) new ice cream name coming to Los Angeles, this time landing at 2nd and Pedro in Downtown. It’s a rolled ice cream option called 10Below that has four outlets in New York City already.

More and more and more Italian

Get ready for even more pasta in Downtown, as Brigham Yen says the long-in-talks Vic’s restaurant is finally coming to fruition. The work of owner/actor Vic Stagliano, the two-floor restaurant lands on the already bustling 7th Street corridor.

Salt’s Cure does tastings

There’s a new DIY tasting menu option at Salt’s Cure starting this month, with chef/owners Chris Phelps and Zak Walters coasting guests through a four-course prix fixe situation that costs $59 a head. You’ll be able to pick through a few options at each stop along the coursed out meal, from starters to dessert, based on what’s been pulled from the farmers market.

Taste of the Eastside

Food festival season is heating up, with one of the next big names to arrive being Taste of the Eastside. The annual charity event will feature a slew of great restaurant names from Go Get ‘Em Tiger to Green Bar Distillery to Tsubaki, all coalescing at the LA River Center and Gardens on April 30.