Ramen houses across Los Angeles have recently been attracting longer and longer lines. While strolling through The Americana at Brand, my husband and I decided to see what the excitement was about at the shopping complex’s very own ramen restaurant, The Tsujita.

Enjoying dipping ramen and rice bowls topped with pork or salmon at The Tsujita. (photo by Jill Weinlein)

Since we were newbies to ramen, I asked our server to educate us. I learned that there are four different types of ramen soup flavors: miso, shio, shoya and tonkotsu. “Shio” means “salty” in Japanese and is the most traditional ramen soup. Shoyu is a soy sauce-based ramen soup, and tonkotsu is a rich and slightly fatty soup broth made with pork and other ingredients. It simmers for several hours and is usually topped with sliced pork belly.

At The Tsujita, they also offer a dipping ramen called tsukemen. In the 1960s, restauranteur Kazuo Yamagishi created this dish at his restaurant in Tokyo by dipping cold soba noodles in another bowl of rich tonkotsu broth with chopsticks. It quickly became a hit in Japan. The concept arrived in Los Angeles several years ago through Takehiro Tsujita, a Tokyo native who opened his first noodle shop on Sawtelle Boulevard. Finding success, he established a few more locations around the city, before opening The Tsujita Artisan Noodle at The Americana on Brand last year.

The restaurant is large and modern with an elegant white interior, long communal tables with low back chairs, and gray booths that can easily sit six to eight guests. A Japanese-style curtain with a large black peace sign serves as the entrance into the kitchen.

In the back, ramen chefs slowly simmer tonkotsu soup for 60 hours, adding a seafood paste for sweetness and to thicken it, almost like a gravy. They leave the tsukemen noodles thick for dipping.

Upon ordering the dish, one bowl arrived with slices of barbecued pork, and another topped with a seasoned soft-boiled egg. Our server urged us to squeeze fresh limes over the noodles to give them a citrus tang and to cut the fatty broth.

Once diners have dipped the chewier ramen noodles into the soup and the gravy-like broth is about one-third gone, the server will take your bowl to the kitchen and add a complimentary pour of soup wari. That will thin out the soup, making it perfect for sipping.

We also enjoyed the negi ramen that arrived in a large bowl filled with green onion medallions and slices of pork. The ramen noodles in this dish were thinner and softer than the al dente tsukemen ramen.

Ramen lovers can customize their bowls to their own preferences with a variety of toppings. On the table is a shaker of sesame seeds to add earthy flavors, as well as small containers of pickled red ginger and spicy takana and bottles of soy sauce and ramen sauce.

To pair with the ramen, the restaurant offers Japanese craft beers and icy Asahi on tap. They also serve hot and cold sakes. Those seeking a non-alcoholic beverage can indulge in drinking thick matcha green tea, either iced or hot. The restaurant also offers a variety of sodas and oolong tea.

Beyond ramen, you can also order small bowls of steamed white rice topped with roasted pork, salmon or spicy tuna.

The Tsujita is open for lunch and dinner starting at 11 a.m. Walk-ins are welcomed. $$ 769 Americana Way, Glendale, (818)553-3822 and 2057 Sawtelle Blvd., (310)231-7373.