The Success of Menya Rui: Expressing The Soul Of Ramen In St. Louis

Japan Eats!

Our guest is Steven Pursley, the chef/owner of Menya Rui in St. Louis, Missouri. Menya Rui opened in 2022, and since, Steven has received numerous accolades for his job at the ramen shop, such as Food & Wine magazine’s Best New Chef in 2023.

Steven has the right reasons to be recognized as a great ramen chef. He grew up both in Japan and the U.S. as a child under his American and Japanese parents, so he has lots of fond memories of Japanese food and in particular, ramen.

His soul search led him to study ramen in Japan, and his 24-seat ramen shop Menya Rui represents who he is now. For example, he makes everything from scratch, including noodles, which is highly challenging for even an experienced ramen chef in Japan.

In this episode, we will discuss why Steven decided to pursue a career in ramen, what he learned in his three-year intensive training at ramen shops in Japan, his unique philosophy of ramen, his advice to future ramen chefs, and much, much more!

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