The Find: Yama Sushi, off-the-radar ramen you need to know about

<em>As I ate my way through the menus of three off-the-radar restaurants recently, it became clear why I waited for a table or service at all three. Despite their bare bones appearance and low brow locations, each attracts a loyal crowd and an army of regular customers. These are not fancy places. They don’t take reservations. The interior lighting is the same as you’d find in a laundromat. And the music? Whatever the cooks want it to be.

Because you can’t eat fancy every day, we’re profiling three places that won’t make you empty your wallet or valet your car.

We’ve already told you about Dicks’ Succulent Chicken and Fork in the Road. Here’s the third.

Yama Sushi, the reincarnated version of Sushi Yama, serves one hell of a good bowl of ramen. The chef, Shigeikazu Tateno, says he spends more than 24 hours simmering his ramen broth into a creamy, savory, umami-rich alchemy with a terrific balance of salt and acidity.  Hard to beat a $9 bowl of piping hot, well-crafted ramen, even in the summer.

You’ll hate the tiny space, the strip mall location and the  sparse decor, but you will return for the $3 sushi rolls, the impeccably fresh fish and Shigi-san’s ramen.

8989 Forest Lane (west of Greenville), Dallas; 972-234-3474.