THE HUNGRY HOURS

Why does everyone hit Sawtelle for ramen in LA? | The Sawtelle Japantown map

I wrote in the book: 'Sawtelle: waiting 2 hours for ramen is a spiritual practice.' But before it was ramen row, this was home to Japanese American gardeners. Starting with a bowl of tsukemen, a walk through the whole street's ramen, izakayas, groceries and desserts.

Translated from Jasmine’s original Chinese. The illustrated slides are on the interactive reader.

Full text

1. 01 | Whose Japantown is Sawtelle?

   In the early 1900s, Japanese gardeners who tended gardens in Beverly Hills and Bel Air lived here; in 1942 the whole community was sent to Manzanar, and came back after the war; in 2015 the city council officially named it Sawtelle Japantown.

2. 02 | The ramen menu, translated

   Tonkotsu (pork bone), tsukemen (dipping noodles), mazemen (brothless, like Taiwanese dry noodles), katamen (firm noodles), kaedama (a noodle refill). When you finish the tsukemen, ask the staff to add broth so you can drink the dipping sauce.

3. 03 | Tsujita: bringing tsukemen to LA

   The first US location, opened in 2011, with pork bone and seafood broth simmered 60 hours, and a line for over a decade. The Annex opened across the street in 2013, so line up wherever's shorter.

4. 04｜Killer Noodle

   Dan dan noodles from the Tsujita group: three broths and six spice levels, with sansho in the broth, so it's numbing as well as hot. 'Pick your level. Then pick one lower.'

5. 05 | The Olympic end: two bowls of chicken paitan

   Torisoba Sumiya adds charcoal-grilled chicken, and $6 more gets you a mini rice bowl; Ramen Chikumo simmers its chicken paitan 8 hours and also has a vegan ramen with a cashew broth.

6. 06 | When you don't want to wait for Tsujita

   Curry ramen at Menya Tigre, mazemen at Wadaya, Daikokuya Sawtelle open till 1 a.m., and Tatsu Ramen, where you order on an iPad.

7. 07｜Hide Sushi

   A family sushi spot open since 1979, older than ramen row. Cash only, no reservations, and sashimi or nigiri platters are all under $30. 'Cash only, since 1979.'

8. 08 | Izakayas, yakitori, okonomiyaki

   You'll order round after round of Furaibo's Nagoya chicken wings; Nanbankan has two yakitori grills, so sit at the counter; Chinchikurin does Hiroshima okonomiyaki with an ice-cold Sapporo.

9. 09 | A day off from ramen

   Self-serve udon at Marugame Udon, organic soba at Kaz, curry sets at Anzu down the alley, and Kojima, a kappo spot with just eight seats.

10. 10 | New in 2026

    Yakitori omakase at YAKUN, Osaka gyoza at Ohsho, the Korean pub The Mulberry, Sichuan noodles at Mian, and Emporium Thai from Jitlada's family. On this Japanese street, more and more flavors from other countries.

11. 11｜Giant Robot

    From a magazine about Asian pop culture to Sawtelle's cultural living room; the store opened in 2001, and a new gallery opened next door in April 2026.

12. 12 | 2130 Sawtelle: one building with all the Japanese flavors

    Bento and house-brand miso at Nijiya Market, plus Daiso, and kappo spot Kojima is in the same building; there's an underground parking garage.

13. 13 | After ramen, something sweet and something to sip

    B Sweet's salted caramel bread pudding, Wanderlust's ube ice cream, Volcano Tea's milk tea with popcorn chicken, and Chicha San Chen. 'Ramen plus boba: the Sawtelle combo for a Taiwanese stomach.'

14. 14 | Parking + routes

    Street parking is hard to find and garage rules may have changed, so go by the posted signs. Ramen day route: Tsujita → Giant Robot → snacks at Nijiya → Volcano Tea.

15. 15｜Sawtelle vs Little Tokyo

    Little Tokyo is downtown's old Japantown: the original Daikokuya, handmade udon at Marugame Monzo, and Fugetsu-Do from 1903, all reachable by Metro. 'Little Tokyo feels like the family home; Sawtelle feels like the dorm.'

16. 16 | The ones that are gone

    Yakitoriya has permanently closed, Plan Check's old spot is now The Mulberry, Dong Ting Noodle became Mian, and Sawtelle Kitchen closed too.

17. 17 | Two-city mirror

    Taipei's Japanese flavors are in the alleys of Zhongshan and Linsen North Road; LA's are in the long lines on Sawtelle's sidewalks. 'In Taipei, Japanese food is down an alley; in LA, Japanese food means a line.'

Places in this story

• Chicha San Chen

In this series

• The LA brunch map | An LA weekend starts with brunch
• The LA Taiwanese breakfast map | How far do you drive for shaobing youtiao in LA?
• The LA coffee map | Which kind of LA coffee do you want?
• The LA bakery map | Why do you have to get up early for bread in LA?
• When did LA bagels get this good? | The LA bagel map 2026
• The LA juice & smoothie map | Why does one smoothie cost that much in LA?
• The LA taco map | In LA, the taco is the real national dish
• Why does everyone's first meal in LA have to be In-N-Out? | The LA burger map 2026
• Why do people line up for seventy years for one pastrami sandwich? | The LA old-school deli map
• In LA, dessert is a mood | The LA ice cream & dessert map 2026
• The LA farmers market map 2026 | Which day, where, and which stall first
• Why drive to the San Gabriel Valley for dim sum in LA? | The SGV dim sum map
• The biggest Thai community outside Thailand, right next to Hollywood? | The LA Thai Town map

Read it with the slides →

An original JSLALALAND field guide by Jasmine Chang (@jslalaland).