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| - Finally! A very good Ramen joint in Vegas. This place is much more the real Japanese ramen joint than the (now defunct) Togoshi Ramen.
Monta is in a small strip mall on Sprint Mountain Rd, just West of Decatur. It is very easy to miss as you go by. And the shop is very small, with only four 4 place table, 1 2 place table, and about 10 counter seats. They only accept cash so beware.
I recently learned of this place right here on yelp and had to give it a try. Like others on this forum, I grew up eating fantastic ramen all over Japan. And have long been searching... I was elated when Santouka came to the states and even more ecstatic when local joints like Orenchi (Cupertino, CA) that are very much like the ramen I used to know in Japan... started to pop up.
I'd like to preface this review with the fact that I like tonkotsu, thick chijirimen (wavy noodles) usually, so I am usually biased towards that. Monta has 4 basic types of ramen flavors: Tonkotsu, Shoyu, Miso, and new (at least it said new today) Tonkotsu Shoyu which is a combination of the Tonkotsu and Shoyu broths.
Tonkotsu, of course, is pork based broth. The Shoyu uses chicken broth (according to Monta), but I also detected some dashi (fish based) in there as well. Tonkotsu, and Tonkotsu Shoyu uses thin straight noodles. Shoyu and Miso uses the thick wavy noodles. Each ramen @ $6.95 comes with 2 slices of char shu, kikurage (woodear mushrooms), memma (seasoned bamboo shoots), and chopped green onions. There are other toppings available as mentioned in other reviews, along with kaedama (literally means "replacement ball") extra noodles.
Kaedama is usually ordered as you go, not in the beginning. This is because if get it at the same time as your ramen, then the noodles either go cold, or get overcooked. This is one of the reasons why I do not like places that have a "Large" size. By the time you're half way through, the noodles are too overcooked. I commend Monta for doing the kaedama the right way.
Anyway, I was @ Monta today, Thu, at 2 pm, and the place had a waiting list 8 deep! It took us abobut 20 minutes to get seated, and as we got seated, the wait line even got longer. OK... my expectations are way high... but be cautious... this, after all, is the only ramen only joint in Vegas....
I ordered the Tonkotsu Shoyu with nitamago and extra char shu. My wife had the Shoyu with nitamago. We also had gyoza. In the kitchen, there are basically 2 guys preparing the dishes. One guy that does the ramen, another that does the fried rice and others. And with the packed house, the service was slow.
But when the ramen finally came, I was not disappointed. Despite my doubts, the Tonkotsu Shoyu had a wonderful balance and marriage of pork and chicken broth. My wife's Shoyu, I believe due to the chicken stock, had a very mellow aspect to it which also gave the Tonkotsu a very mellow and non-overpowering flavor. I finished the broth to the last drop, including my wife's Shoyu/Chicken broth.
The noodles... My thin noodles were not overcooked, and about just right when my ramen came out. But because of its thinness, by the time I got half way through my ramen (and I'm a relatively quick ramen eater, beating my wife by a good 10 minutes :-)) was way overcooked and mushy soft. Next time, I will see if they will cook it less (katame, or as I do at Kyushu Jyangara in Tokyo, bari-kata... crispy as in ironed with starch). My wife's chijirimen was very good with good amount of al dente,a and the chewiness one expects in good ramen. If I can't get them to cook the thin noodles to super al dente, then my backup plan is to have them use the thick noodles in the Tonkotsu ramen.
The boiled egg is soft boiled, but the yolk does not run. I like my soft boiled egg a with a bit more runny yolk. But nevertheless it was still good. The Char shu was one the the better ones I had in the states. very tender, melts in your mouth, with good flavor... not too over powering, not too bland. The slices were on the thin side, but I got a total of 8 slices by ordering the extra char shu topping ($2.50).
In summary both the Tonkotsu Shoyu and Shoyu ramens were done very well, with a good balance of broth, noodles, and toppings in a dish that came together very very well. Too many times, I have been to ramen places in the states where the broth may be good, but noodles lack, or vice versa, or even where all the individual ingredients are good, but the finished product just doesn't cut it.
The gyoza, unlike one reviewer here, I though were also very good. I would beg to differ that this is not like store bought gyoza as it is stuffed with pork whereas the store bought ones are more heavy on the nappa cabbage and not stuffed. The flavor is also very good, however, I like my gyoza wet...that is with a bit more juice as you bite into them.
In the end though, I give Monta 5 stars even with the few deficiencies. Monta, in my book, share the top honors with Orenchi in Cupertino,
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