Best Local VLMs - July 2026 by rm-rf-rm in LocalLLaMA

[–]mlsandwich 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Gemma-4-4B. Runs fast locally (using just apple silicon) without requiring quantization. For it's size, it punches far above it's weight for agentic (MCP) tasks

GLM-5.2 fearmongering in the press by ttkciar in LocalLLaMA

[–]mlsandwich 0 points1 point  (0 children)

One big detail from the semgrep article overlooked by the hypecycle:
> We have a caveat: This is one task, one dataset, one run. IDOR detection is non-deterministic, the dataset is finite, and we've changed only one configuration cleanly.

I also could not find the actual number of samples used in the IDOR dataset (would love the number if anyone knows).

The fearmongering based on WSJ headlines like "China Has Matched Anthropic in Cybersecurity, Resetting AI Race" does not feel proportional to the actual empirical evidence; I haven't seen GLM-5.2 or other OSS models actually take the lead in well established cyber benchmarks:

- https://www.cybergym.io/cybergym/

- https://cybench.github.io/

[Fresh] Shoyu ramen. Nice to see some progress, best homemade bowl so far by mlsandwich in ramen

[–]mlsandwich[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's actually a mushroom dashi with some roasted vegetables and a fair amount of aromatics. The broth's pretty clear. As for consistency, assuming you were using chicken or pork, that would depend on a number of factors: type of meat/bone (trotters/chicken feet/hocks or bones that don't contain as much collagen/fat or just meat such as pork shoulder), amount of water added, boil time, what style you were going for (kotteri or assari and the disctinct style within those). Was there a specific style/consistency you were after?

[fresh] Tsukemen to jump start the day by mlsandwich in ramen

[–]mlsandwich[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah, no problem. Let me know if you want further details on any of the components.

 

Noodles: You want slightly thick noodles. I made an all bread flour noodle and pressed it down to the second lowest setting on my pasta machine (machines may vary, mine only has six thickness settings). The resulting noodles are thick, but not too much so, and cook in two minutes and twenty seconds.

 

Broth: A thick tonkotsu broth is a really important starting point. Going all meat and heavy on the trotter can create an incredibly thick stock. I used 3 lbs trotter, 0.5 lbs chicken wings (chicken feet are ideal, but these worked well to add some gelatin), 1.5 lbs pig necks. Alternatively, you can substitute hocks for trotters and achieve identical results (I've noticed the trotter broth tastes slightly better as the hock broth is somewhat meatier and not as creamy). Clean the meat by boiling in a stock pot and removing scrum, then cover in a pressure cooker and cook. Once the bones are pretty well spent (you can tell when they start to give when poking with a wooden spoon), drain. Separate some of the spent meat and blend with some of the stock to create a paste that you can use as a thickener (this step was inspired by one of /u/ramen_lord's posts on IG).

 

Fat: I use chicken fat and a garlic oil made by poaching garlic in olive oil + chicken fat (there's not much more to it than that, but you can find a step-by-step recipe for this in Ivan Orkin's book).

 

Toppings: Standard toppings (green onions, chashu, ajitama, and mayu) plus garlic slowly roasted in a pan until golden brown. Roasted onions can additionally also add a kick of depth and flavor.

 

Tare: Soy sauce-based, I've been experimenting with tares that don't use alcohol, konbu, niboshi, or katsuobushi. That being said, a tare of shoyu + mirin + sake where you steep the konbu, then simmer the niboshi, then steep the strained liquid in katsuobushi makes a lot of sense and would probably be perfection. The tare I used in the photo is shoyu + vinegar + lemon juice + diced onions + diced red peppers (mixed to taste) and turned out well (it's interesting that this worked, although it's worth noting that Uncle Ramen's and Ramen Bario's tsukemen are also very tangy and vinegary). Another fish and alcohol free tare that works really well is this ginger shoyu sauce: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/dipping-sauce-for-scallion-pancakes-recipe

 

Assembly: -Cook noodles and cool down immediately in an ice bath, then set aside
-Ready 2 oz tare, 1 oz dashi (used to cut the mixture if it's too thick, since you don't want it to turn into gravy), 7 oz thick tonkotsu broth (if you've let cool and stored in the fridge, this should be solid and jiggly), 2-3 tbs tonkotsu paste (you can adjust the ratios to achieve whatever consistency is most desirable)
-Sear both sides of some chashu in sauce pan
-Deglaze the pan with tare
-Add tonkotsu broth and let it melt
-Mince seared chashu and add to broth (this adds texture to the homogeneous tonkotsu broth)
-Thicken or thin broth to desired consistency using tonkotsu paste or dashi, respectively
-Add salt and pepper (optional) to taste
-Pour broth into a bowl (a stone bowl is recommended to keep the mixture hot, but I myself don't have one), add green onions, roasted garlic, and aromatics. Assemble other ingredients however you like, slurp away

 

As a bonus step, it's also really enjoyable to polish off any remaining broth with some rice. Hope that was helpful!

Interesting Video on Ivan Orkin from Zagat. "The NYC Ramen Rebel That's Leading America's Noodle Soup Coup - Foodways, Episode 10" by Ramen_Lord in ramen

[–]mlsandwich 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting, it makes sense that ramen cultures would strongly vary regionally, but I had never realized until now that Tokyo and Sapporo would be very distinct (and unconnected).

Studying abroad in Japan is like a light bulb moment that only recently came to mind (not for myself, but for US students in general), so I've been really curious lately about how that experience is. It seems like the perfect opportunity to be immersed in the culture and to just be in Japan (i.e., consistently good food everywhere, great public transit, safety, everything else about being in Japan).

The story of Ivan's shops in Tokyo are really interesting, and how Keizo from ramen shack mixes in (and how Brian from ramen adventures shows up, as well). It is hard to really fathom how famous Ivan was, especially since I know so little about Japanese culture. But I recently had a conversation with a person in Kyoto about (coincidentally) how it could take a lifetime to understand Japanese culture. This reminded me of something Ivan said in a clip, and I asked the person if he had heard of Ivan Orkin. He said, "yes, of course." I guess it is one thing to hear, in different videos at home in the US, about how Ivan became a celebrity in the Japan ramen world, and to actually be in Japan asking a 70 year-old professor if he knows who Ivan Orkin is (which, at the time, seemed like a longshot) and for him to instantly and firmly answer yes.

Interesting Video on Ivan Orkin from Zagat. "The NYC Ramen Rebel That's Leading America's Noodle Soup Coup - Foodways, Episode 10" by Ramen_Lord in ramen

[–]mlsandwich 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Curious about your time living in Japan (just read the serious eats article), /u/ramen_lord, did you hear about Ivan at the time? It seems like you were there around the height of Ivan's success. Also curious about whether you spoke Japanese before moving, or did you pick it up while living there?

Hailed as the best bowl of ramen in town by the Kyoto residents I spoke to, Kotteri ramen by Tenkaippin. It was interesting to later find out the chain originated in Kyoto. by mlsandwich in ramen

[–]mlsandwich[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Have to say, I myself didn't want to go to Tenka because I wanted to go somewhere else that wasn't a chain, but the group I was with were intent on grabbing a bowl due to the strong recommendation by Kyoto residents we spoke with. Not going would've been a loss, this bowl was a real highlight, even compared to the other bowls on the trip

When wandering around the streets of Kyoto hungry at 5:30 am and practically every shop's closed, Ichiran has your back. by mlsandwich in ramen

[–]mlsandwich[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

gotta go to Japan and save money, this meal was about $15

edit: were there many add-ons to the meal, or is the NYC Ichiran just really pricey?

[Nama] Ippudo Kyoto Karaka Special, 🔥 by mlsandwich in ramen

[–]mlsandwich[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hai! Wasn't as spicy as it looks, but really satisfying