"Silverlake Ramen with Sierra Katow" is Episode 452 of Doughboys, hosted by Nick Wiger and Mike Mitchell. "Silverlake Ramen with Sierra Katow" was released on June 27, 2024.
Synopsis[]
Sierra Katow (@sierrakatow, Funt) joins the 'boys to talk soup, Boston eats, and drinking water before a review of Silverlake Ramen. Plus, a special edition of Slop Quiz.
Nick's intro[]
The Black Cat Tavern
California Historical Landmark #1063: This is the marker on the commemorative plaque outside The Black Cat Tavern in Los Angeles’s Silver Lake neighborhood, where, on February 11, 1967, activists held one of the first gay rights demonstrations in the nation — two years before New York City’s historic Stonewall Riots. The protest came in response to the actions of the LAPD, brutal and useless then as now, who raided the gay bar and arrested patrons for same-sex kissing — consequently forcing some of the convicted to register as sex offenders. Demonstrators then organized and assembled, holding signs reading, “No more abuse of our rights and dignity,” “Abolish arbitrary arrests,” and in some instances, simply, “peace in Silver Lake.”
For much of its history as a defined neighborhood, Silver Lake was known as an enclave for gay artists and the Latino working class. But by the 2000s, as housing prices pushed gentrification from LA’s west coast ever eastward, Silver Lake rapidly transitioned into its current state as a hotbed for hipster doofuses. By 2012, when former fine-dining chefs Thomas Aono and Jitaek founded a ramen restaurant named for the neighborhood, the conversion was complete.
But despite its surrounding area’s reputation for self-parody, the noodle shop developed a reputation for authenticity — Aono was raised in Japan and studied under a master ramen chef before perfecting his recipe stateside. And as the label Silver Lake has become shorthand for “cool” and “trendy,” the owners chose to keep the name as the concept grew citywide and eventually into a nationwide chain.
With 30-plus locations in states coast to coast, the growth of ramen’s popularity in the U.S. can at least partially be traced through this Silver Lake slurp shop.
Today, the Black Cat Tavern is still open — though it now shares a wall with a Shake Shack and is steps away from a Salt & Straw and a sweetgreen — not to mention the headquarters of a fucking podcast studio, if you can believe that shit. And just down the street is the original location of that ramen chain, named for the neighborhood where, over fifty years ago, gay rights activists made their brave and historic stand.
This week on Doughboys… Silverlake Ramen.
Fork rating[]
Gemi and Veggie Ramen
| guest / host | ordered | rating |
|---|---|---|
| Nick "Mr. Soup" Wiger |
|
4 forks |
| Mike Mitchell |
|
4 forks |
| Sierra Katow |
|
4 forks |
Emma also offered Silverlake Ramen a 4 forks score, and goes to it regularly. Casey and Amelia also offer 4 fork ratings.
With these scores, Silverlake Ramen joins the Golden Plate Club!
Slop Quiz: Extreme Close-Up edition[]
In Slop Quiz, Nick presents a food-related exam (pop quiz) and Mitch and the guest compete for superiority.
For this episode, they are shown a close-up photograph of a food and guess what it is.
| picture | Mitch's guess | Sierra's guess | zoomed out picture | score (MM - SK) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (zoomed in) | hamburger patty | Impossible burger | 0 - 0 | |
| (zoomed in) | cucumber | popsicle | 0 - 0 | |
| (zoomed in) | pizza | lasagna | 1 - 0 | |
| (zoomed in) | peach | peach | 2 - 1 | |
| (zoomed in) | fried chicken | fried chicken | 3 - 2 | |
| (zoomed in) | raspberry | raspberry | 4 - 3 | |
| (zoomed in) | turnip | red onion | 4 - 4 | |
| (zoomed in) | cherry tomato | pickle | 4 - 4 | |
| (zoomed in) | chili pepper | red pepper | 4 - 4 | |
| (zoomed in) | cheesy pasta | cheesy pasta | 5 - 5 | |
| (zoomed in) | mushroom | walnut | 5 - 6 |
Sierra wins!
Soup Rankings[]
| Mitch's soup rankings | Nick's soup rankings |
|---|---|
|
|
Roasts Spoonman[]
Stilgar
| “ | Nissan altima Gaib | ” |
–Jeremy in Nashville | ||
| “ | Baron Vladimir Harkkonen's before picture Shy Hog Hulud |
” |
–(some alts) | ||
Quotes[]
| “ | I thought of a nursery rhyme thing today, but I forgot what it was. | ” |
–Mike Mitchell | ||
| “ | No, you cannot jerk yourself with my dog. | ” |
–a warning from Emma | ||
| “ | What if peaches are conscious? What if they're sentient? What if they have souls? | ” |
–Nick Wiger | ||
| “ | Mitch: Who had the biggest hog of the [Teenage Mutant Ninja] Turtles? Nick, immediately: Donatello. |
” |
–TNMT | ||
The Feedbag[]
| “ | Each year the Calgary Stampede has odd, delicious, and out-of-this-world food ideas. Which items have your attention? | ” |
–Cody H. | ||
The Doughboys take a look a the Calgary Stampede menu, which you can read here.
They more or less would eat anything on there though really.
Drops and Plugs[]
| reference | notes |
|---|---|
| Scott Joplin "Maple Leaf Rag" | in Mitch's drop (by Chris B.) |
|
Sierra's plugs |
Related Episodes[]
| Sierra Katow episodes |
|---|
|
Photos[]
