Onsen Ramen in Essex Junction Reopens With Noodle Soups and Shave Ice 

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• Colleen Goodhue
• Shoyu chicken ramen

With the arrival of fall's cooler temperatures, I've found myself yearning for bowls of hot soup. Just in time, Onsen Ramen has reopened.

The Essex Junction ramen spot opened last December but closed for the summer due to staffing shortages. It reopened on October 18. Married co-owners Perry and Neil Farr, who also own the Scale poke bar in Williston, have decided that, going forward, Onsen will be open from fall through spring, for what I like to call "the cozy seasons."

When Perry was growing up, ramen was her comfort food during Connecticut winters. She has fond memories of seeing the windows fog up with steam wafting from bowls of ramen on cold nights.

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• Colleen Goodhue
• Neil and Perry Farr

When the Farrs first tested ramen noodles at the Scale in 2019, the fogged-up windows on busy nights were a sign of success. They soon decided that ramen warranted its own location.

On my most recent visit to Onsen, I ordered the shoyu chicken ramen ($18). When it arrived, I instinctively clasped the bowl with both hands, drawing it closer to me and taking in its warmth and comforting aroma.

The soup is the definition of cozy, with tender shredded dark and white chicken meat, crisp nuggets of corn, and a boiled egg so soft that even this nonexpert could slice it with her chopsticks. The noodles are sourced fresh from Hawaii. The broth, infused with the Japanese soy sauce called shoyu, is deeply flavored and restorative.

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• Colleen Goodhue
• Lia Washburn making shave ice

Neil had previously shown me a photo on his phone of a side-by-side comparison of two chicken broths he'd made. When building the menu, the Farrs concluded that local free-range chicken from Adams Turkey Farm in Westford really made a difference. Ramen can be deceiving in its apparent simplicity, so quality ingredients are critical. "There's nothing to hide behind," Perry said.

Onsen offers three other ramen options. The shio and miso come with pork belly, egg and wakame in chicken or miso broths, respectively. Spicy miso ramen features roasted pork, mushrooms, corn and egg. All can be made vegan and gluten-free.

Beyond ramen, Onsen serves the refreshing, light icy dessert known in Japan as kakigori and in Hawaii as shave ice.

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• Colleen Goodhue
• Shave ice

My server placed a block of ice in a machine that quickly shaved it into a fluffy pile; she then formed this into a ball. To top the ice, Onsen offers more than 50 syrups, from chocolate to fruit punch, and toppings such as mochi ice cream and adzuki bean. A small is $5 and a regular $7, with three syrups included.

For my first taste, Perry recommended "the most Hawaiian" combination: mango and pineapple syrups, condensed milk ($1), and li hing mui powder (50 cents) on top.

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• Colleen Goodhue
• Neil Farr making ramen

Li hing mui is a plum pickled with a variety of spices, dried, then ground into a powder. Perry said to expect a salty-sour flavor, but I thought it brought a grounding earthiness. The condensed milk created a creamy texture and flavor reminiscent of ice cream. It was like a snowball had crashed into a tropical island.

Perry said one family took a copy of the kakigori menu home so that they could methodically go through the list and try every flavor and topping. Sounds like a great idea to me.