Born and raised in Shanghai and originally trained as a sushi chef, Fiona Zhang’s path to eventually opening her own restaurant began in Montana in 2019. Starting as a cashier at a ramen house there, when the pandemic made staffing scarce, she became the general manager and learned how to run the entire business, including how to cook the food. Over the next two years, she helped open other franchise locations. When her husband got a job offer in the Bay Area, they moved to Santa Cruz and Zhang capitalized on her knowledge and experience to open Hokkaido Ramen House.
She describes the ambiance as clean, bright and spacious with a red/black color scheme and pronounced fortune-cat-themed décor. She says the menu is mainly Japanese cuisine with touches of Chinese influence and the recommended starter is chicken karaage, a deep-fried chicken thigh with Japanese mayo dipping sauce. Other faves are poke bowls and katsu curry rice. But the ramens headline, with 12 different types including pork bone broth garlic tonkotsu, chicken bone broth miso ramen and Chinese-inspired beef ramen. Boba tea highlights the beverage offerings and desserts include macha tiramisu and black sesame cheesecake.
What inspired your immigration?
FIONA ZHANG: The reason I moved to Montana from Shanghai at age 18 was to be more independent and create my own path in life. And I loved that Montana was a great place to enjoy nature and was totally the opposite of Shanghai, a very busy and crowded city. I targeted Santa Cruz when my husband and I relocated because it reminded me a lot of Montana, with a small-town setting where I could really get to know my customers.
How did your passion for ramen evolve?
During my student life in high school and college, I ate a lot of instant ramen. And when I first began cooking in Montana, I found that I really enjoyed it and was especially inspired by learning to create authentic and healthier ramen. Done this way, it is very nutritious and has so many healthful ingredients like bone broth, veggies, and meat and eggs for protein. Much of our menu is very traditional Asian cuisine, but we also adapt to local eating preferences and habits by offering gluten-free and vegan options.
1901 Mission St., Suite 102, Santa Cruz, 831-439-2021; hokkaidoramen.life
Of all the various ramen shops in our area, this one is by far at the lowest on my list; no thanks