About a half-mile away from Chik’n & Mi, in the heart of Clifton, the guys at Mirin get ramen right. I needn’t repeat my recent glowing review (Jan. 11, 2017), but news of lunch hours and an expanded menu drew me back for a revisit the other day. I still love it just as hard.

The noodles menu has expanded to six choices ($11 to $16), including two vegetarian options, one featuring Mirin’s remarkable fried tofu, a crack-like preparation that’s guaranteed to make tofu-lovers out of tofu-haters. The Veggie II ramen ($11) brings together three types of mushroom with roasted tomatoes, pea sprouts and bean sprouts in a remarkable umami-laden broth that calls you to lift the bowl in order to savor every last drop.

Tuna tataki ($10) is a bit like a large serving of sashimi. Thinly sliced, delicious sashimi grade tuna had been grilled on the outside but raw in the middle, its flavors kicked up with house-made seafood-based XO sauce and crisp, fine-chopped pickled daikon.

You could call Bao ($2), two-bite Asian tacos: Thick rounds of white steamed bun wrap around crispy tofu, chicken or pork and a shmear of creamy-herbal sakura cheese from Hokkaido, Japan.

A memorable lunch rang the bell at $26.50, plus a $6.95 tip.

Mirin
2013 Frankfort Ave.
742-8911
Facebook: bit.ly/mirin502
Robin Garr’s rating: 92 points