We heard that a new ramen place opened up in Palms so, like moths to a flame, we drove to Palms Ramen Yumeya. Ramen Yumeya has the dubious pleasure of sharing a parking lot with a Trader Joe’s and CVS, which means that the parking lot is usually full. On the positive side, there’s lots of turnover so parking can be found if you’re patient.

Housed in the former flagship Beard Papa, which had taken over a  Mexican restaurant, Ramen Yumeya still looked like a Mexican restaurant, right down to the brick archways.

According to Yelp reviews, Ramen Yumeya had terrible table service and long waits. We got there on the early side so we didn’t have to wait and the waitstaff was very eager to get our order. It almost seemed like they must have seen those Yelp reviews because they were constantly checking in on us to make sure everything was fine.

My daughter and I ordered the Tonkotsu Ramen. I liked the thin noodles, which made for an easy slurp into my mouth, and the chashu.

Since there was no vegetarian broth option, my husband got the Tonkotsu Tsukeman, dipping noodles with a rich fish flavored broth. The broth was as advertised, but the dish didn’t quite work as a dipping noodle as the broth wasn’t fatty enough to cling to the ramen.

Of course, I polished off my entire bowl and was rewarded by a nice little message  – “Thank You & Much Appreciation.”

If you are a vegetarian/vegan, the offerings seems pretty limited to the sides like tofu, vegetables and rice. They don’t have gluten-free noodles, but they do have rice bowls and sushi.

One thing I saw that looked amazing was the Chicken Tartar bowl. Pieces of fried chicken sat on top of rice that also had a big glob of what must be some sort of tartar sauce. Eating it would probably sending one into a food coma or a cause a heart attack.  My kind of food! I was too embarrassed to ask the person sitting next to us if I could take a picture of it. He wolfed it down too so it must have been good. It’s something for me to consider the next time I come here.

By the way, they also offer smiles for free!  We didn’t order any, but we got some nevertheless free of charge.

Location – 11127 Palms Blvd., Los Angeles 90034
Website
Kid-Friendly – Yes
Kid’s Menu – No
Pesco-Vegetarian Friendly – Yes
Vegan/Vegetarian Friendly – Yes
Gluten-Free Options – Yes