Satsuma in Bethesda, MD

Another ramen place but located in Bethesda, Maryland!

If it's not from a strong recommendation on top of indecisive dinner choices, I would not walk into this restaurant. The exterior does not look so inviting, indeed, the outside gives off the impression that there is something under-the-table going on. With the addition of 80s flashing "OPEN" neon lights, this place  walk straight out of some movie about mafias.

I would give a 1 out 10 for interior decorations since I immediately noticed the damp ceiling with marks of water leaks, worn out chairs, aluminum framed windows, and bad lighting. But since I am not being an interior design critic, I will move onto the dish of the day.

We both ordered the same dish -- spicy miso Ramen. I wanted to compare this with the ramen that I had a few days in Sakuramen. And I was very surprised, that a place with mediocre rating (3.5 stars) on Yelp can have very good ramen.





I guess it is unusual to incorporate corn into ramen soup, but having been to Sakuramen so many times, I have already adjusted to the idea of corn in ramen soup. This time, the noodle was bouncy and tender, much unlike the one I had in Sakuramen. I have no idea what they add to make this delicious broth other than miso. I guess you have to go there and try it for yourself to decide. I am usually not a big fan of sesame, but the addition of little sesame did not bother me at all. There was a thick cut of beef lying at the bottom of the bowl when I work midway into the ramen, it seems as an ingredient for the broth.




Our ratings for this dish was overall good. They have many other things on their list such as bibimbap, kuppa, sushi, bento, etc. Seems like a good variation of different asian goodies.