GOMBEI

Comedian Lynne Koplitz has a joke about udon noodles being the favorite food of Manhattanite children. She jests, "Try chicken nuggets, you little freak, like the rest of the country!" My childhood was far from the spoiled city life that Lynne alludes to, however, my favorite food as a kid just so happened to be udon noodles. Specifically, udon from Gombei Japanese Restaurant in San Jose's historic Japan Town.
I distinctly remember sitting in Gombei with my mom before Girl Scouts and sharing a seemingly bottomless bowl of the plump noodles in steaming hot dashi, a mild but flavorful broth. Fast forward, twenty (or so) years later and I am sitting at the very same table with my three year-old daughter. We've ordered kitsune udon, featuring deep fried tofu puffs. My little one calls her favorite food "Spongebob Noodle Soup" because the tofu is yellowish and, well, spongy.
Perhaps our food preferences are freakish but the fact that Gombei has a loyal following of aficionados that continue to clamor for one of the restaurant's tiny, packed tables during the lunch and dinner rush would suggest otherwise. At Gombei, I am always guaranteed something filling and delicious whether it is a big bowl of udon, domburi, or my favorite: the Gombei combination fish -- charbroiled mackerel, panko breaded pork cutlet and potato croquet, rice, salad with miso dressing, and miso soup (also available: Gombei combination chicken -- substitute the makerel for teriyaki chicken). Good food must be consistent and in my decades as a patron, Gombei has unwavered.

Gombei has multiple locations: Menlo Park (on El Camino), Santa Clara (on Homestead), and Gombei Bento in Sunnyvale (on Maude Ave.)
My favorite Gombei location, and the location featured in this installment of I LOVE to eat San Jose, is in San Jose's historic Japan Town (on E. Jackson St.).