Katsu Ramen

When Katsu Ramen opened in early 2015 in Aurora, it was greeted by long lines of ramen lovers who were ready to taste what chef Shinsuke Hirao had learned from nearly two decades in ramen-yas in Japan. What they found was milky-white tonkotsu ramen, cloudy with pork bones boiled for the better part of a day; sweet, nutty miso ramen; lighter shoyu, with a soy-flavored blend of chicken and pork stock; spicy chicken ramen, with a slick of red-chile oil; and chilled ramen, with a pungent blend of sesame-seed paste and soy sauce. Ramen isn’t the only thing on the menu: Gingery gyoza, katsu curry (fried pork cutlets dipped in sweet brown curry), mirin-marinated beef over rice and green tea ice cream round out the roster. But it’s ramen that steals the show.