Late last month, Nippon Gochiso Select (NGS) — a line of 40 premium artisanal Japanese products — broke into the Bay Area, inspiring a 10-hands pop-up dinner at Nico's in San Francisco, debuting on the menus of Craftsman and Wolves, B-Dama, and Hopscotch, and making its home on the shelves of Berkeley Bowl West (at least for the time being).
 
"Gochiso” has several meanings related to feasting, hospitality and gratitude. By my estimation, then, NGS (the brainchild of recipe developer and food educator, Ema Koeda) has something to do with celebrating and appreciating Japanese food. NGS is also, more specifically, a line of premium local food products — local to Japan, that is — that Koeda and her team hope to get into the homes of American cooks and consumers.

NGS products have been touted as more than just tasty.

"The ingredients are really top notch,” said Hopscotch's Kyle Itani. “I travel to Japan every year, and the quality of the food is so much higher than the Japanese food here in the states. For whatever reason, most imports to the U.S. are not that great of quality.” NGS begins to solve that problem, bridging the gap between the makers of boutique rice vinegar and the home cook like me.

Still, the question remains — how much is too much when it comes to the price of premium? Is a single package of organic ramen noodles really worth a whole $3 when I can get a 12-pack (yes, a 12-pack) of Top Ramen for the same amount or less? Let's evaluate.

Ease of preparation
Precious few foods are easier to prepare than a package of ramen (hence its popularity and praise amongst college students). When it comes to noodles and sauce, both NGS and Top Ramen provide the same basic strategy: bowl 2 cups of water, add package of noodles, rip open season pack and mix. The NGS recipe does, however, also call for steamed spinach and provides instructions for the preparation of a miso egg and beef soboro (a ground beef crumble topping), which requires additional shopping, chopping, and thinking ahead. Point: Top Ramen.

Aesthetic appeal
Nothing says "get well soon" like a steaming bowl of noodles or the bright orange plastic of a Top Ramen package. When it comes to authenticity, though, I'm more inclined to grab the brown paper pack decked out in Japanese characters. And whereas Top Ramen does have those cute curly cue noodles that break oh-so-easily in preparation, the NGS ramen noodles remain one long unbroken ribbon. NGS ramen broth also provides a richer, deeper color. And if you take time to add the extras, the "cup o' noodles" becomes a full meal. Point: NGS.


Convenience
NGS ramen currently requires a special trip to Berkeley Bowl West and the purchase of miso, mirin, and yuzu kosho, as well as the acquisition of fresh meat and vegetables if you're going to make the full recipe. Top Ramen is probably already in your pantry. Point: Top Ramen.

Healthiness
NGS ramen is organic and all natural. The seasoning pack is a condensed liquid soup concentrate. Top Ramen, not so much. Point: NGS


Flavor
If you're a comfort-seeker who has grown up eating Top Ramen no matter what ails you, nothing will substitute for the flavor of nostalgia. If you're anyone else, you'll probably prefer the spicy kick, full-flavored broth, and overall more substantial and satisfying NGS ramen. Point: NGS.

On the whole, NGS comes out ahead (3:2 in this particular throw down) as the better way to enjoy a bowl of ramen in house. But when convenience is key (as it so often is) few things are easier than a 10 cent pack of Top Ramen.