Afuri Kara Kurenai Downtown Portland

There are certain restaurants that have so many locations in the world, you won't have a problem finding an outpost in a major city.  We all know that Greater Vancouver (the one in BC) has 2 locations of Afuri Ramen, one in Richmond and one in Vancouver proper.  I've had differing experiences with the Vancouver one being better in my opinion.  Now, I got the chance to compare with the one of the locations in Portland (the spicy Afuri Kara Kurenai), right next to the original Voodoo Donuts (yes, we did get some of those too, although Bluestar is better!).

Just like the last time I was in the Vancouver location, we tried the Buta Gyoza.  These dumplings were prepared textbook-style with a crispy and browned bottom.  As you can see in the picture, there was a uniformly crispy skirt which was nutty and aromatic.  The dumpling skin itself was thin and had bouncy elasticity.  Inside, the pork and leek filling was tender and juicy.  It was also nicely seasoned being sweet and savoury.

Before we got to the ramen, we had 2 rice bowls including the Purutoro Chashu Meshi and the Spicy Karaage Don.  For the chashu don, it was a collection of components that created a flavor explosion.  Beyond the buttery tender pork belly, we found the crunch and tang from the pickled veg and the brightness of the green onions.  This was further enhanced by the addition of tangy yuzu and umaminess from the nori.  As for the chicken karaage, it was plentiful with a crunchy exterior and juicy meat.  The spicy mayo and chili sauce was medium in heat and added plenty of flavoring for the rice.  Add in the pickled ginger, nori and green onions and we had some of tang, brightness and umami to complete dish.

Onto the ramen, a visit to Afuri wouldn't be complete without ordering their signature Yuzu Shiro Shoyu Ramen.  If you've read my previous posts about this bowl of ramen, you know it isn't my personal favorite.  But after all these times, it has started to grow on me.  This time around, the chicken broth was super light and fragrant with the brightness of yuzu.  Was it any different than before?  Probably not, but for those who don't want a heavy tonkotsu broth, this is the way to go.  The thin noodles had a good chewiness and elasticity even while sitting in the hot broth.  There was some super moist sous-vide chicken breast chashu as well as a perfect custardy egg.

Moving from light and mild, we went to the Yuzu Kara Kurenai Ramen in also a chicken broth, but with the addition of yuzu spiced miso, chili powder and spicy menma.  We weren't in the mood to have our tastebuds being scorched, so we went for medium hot for this.  That was actually perfect as the spice level was noticeable, but at the same time, we could taste the richness of the miso and even some background brightness from the yuzu.

Now my favorite bowl here at Afuri is hands-down, the vegan Hazelnut Tantanmen.  Yes, that is not a misprint.  Despite being vegan, this bowl of noodles has all the texture and flavors to make up for the lack of meat products.  Beyond the chewy thicker noodles, the spicy miso tare added salty and sweet depth.  Tying it altogether was the hazelnut broth that gave each strand of noodle a delicious nutty and aromatic hug.  But wait, there was more!  The miso cashews only amped the nuttiness and umaminess of the dish and let's not forget the spice too as it also had some kick.  This was not lacking in impact.

We had one last bowl of noodles and this was the Kara Kurenai Tsukemen.  Also known as "dipping noodles" this dry ramen came with a spicy shoyu tsuyu.  As you can see in the picture, this sauce meant business.  We chose medium hot again, but this time, due to the concentrated nature of the dip and the amount coating each noodle, there was some real tongue-numbing instances.  This had most of the same components as the soup version except with thick noodles for dipping.

At Afuri, they also have a selection of Cocktails and we tried Yuzu Limeade, Ube Colada, Housemade Ginger Ale and Mai Thai on Fire.  Naturally, I gravitated to the non-alcoholic and refreshing drinks more.  They did a good job in cooling down my mouth from the spiciness.  I did enjoy the Ube Colada.  It was light and sweet from the pineapple juice. The Mai Thai on Fire was exactly that with serrano pepper infused rum.  It also had some orange liqueur and lime juice for balance.  Overall, this experience at Afuri was quite good.  In addition to some of their classics, they spiced it up figuratively and literally.  If you want so heat in your ramen and drinks, this is the place to be.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- If you want it spicy, it can be really spicy

- Spacious room

- Solid eats

The Bad:

- Seating is quite communal, so if that isn't your thing...