Kanada-Ya and Ippudo Ramen, London

It’s easy to come across geeky when discussing ramen - I could witter on for ages about the different types of broth or the processes and length of boiling time involved in producing the perfect ‘tonkotsu’. The desired thickness, consistency and springiness of the noodle is another point up for a potentially lengthy debate… after that, I could get started on the toppings!

To avoid coming across as a bigger food geek than I already do, I’ll simply describe ramen as ‘noodles and stuff in a broth’.

What noodles, what stuff, and what broth is, of course, entirely down to choice. My preferences are: a thick, creamy tonkotsu (but not too thick or creamy), which needs to be served blisteringly hot; a firm springy noodle and I will always add egg if not included.

Over the last couple of years the availability of good ramen in London has increased considerably – two of the newest and best places to have opened are Ippudo and Kanada-Ya – conveniently located opposite each other on Saint Giles High Street.

As well as topping over 80 stores in its native Japan, Ippudo is a rapidly expanding international chain. I have visited branches in New York, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore but this is their first opening in Europe. Don’t let the fact it’s “a chain” put you off… they serve good stuff!

Also authentically hailing from Japan, Kanada-Ya is a smaller operation; both in terms of the number of branches and their set up - one thing about Kanada-Ya is big… the queues! These seemingly perpetual queues from opening to closing are partly made by only having 24 tightly packed covers but also by the quality of the ramen on offer.

At Ippudo I ordered the Shiromaru Kakata Classic, which consists of a Tonkotsu pork ramen broth with noodles, pork loin chashu, sesame kikurage mushrooms, bean sprouts and spring onions. I also upgraded to the pork belly chashu and added a seasoned boiled egg.

A portion of chicken and vegetable Gyoza with a soy and vinegar dipping sauce and a couple of pork filled ‘Hirata Buns’ completed my lunch.

Arriving at Kanada-Ya just before they opened I joined a queue of about a dozen or so people (this soon got way longer). As such, I made the first sitting as they opened the doors.

Orders promptly taken, I was soon tucking into a piping hot bowl of their Original Ramen – this consists of an 18 hour pork bone broth, pork belly chashu, wood ear fungus, nori and spring onion. Of course, I also added the seasoned boiled egg (hanjuku egg). One thing I particularly like about Kanada-Ya is the option to choose to have the noodles cooked  “soft, regular, firm or extra firm”. I ordered firm and was happy with the texture.  

I will joyfully visit both again when next visiting London but, if you’re wondering, I prefer the experience and ramen in Kanada-Ya.

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One Leicester Street, Spuntino & Ramen Sasuke

In London for one night, we finally got to stay in One Leicester Street – I had wanted to stay in the hotel when it was Fergus Henderson’s St John Hotel but it was always fully booked on the dates we were travelling. 

Now renamed One Leicester Street, the hotel and Michelin starred restaurant of the same name are part of the Unlisted Collection – a group I know well from my travels to Singapore owned by “the man with the golden touch”, Dublin born, University of Sheffield and LSE educated, Loh Lik Peng.

In Singapore we have stayed in his Wanderlust and New Majestic Hotels and eaten at a few of the restaurants he has there – most notably André with Andre Chiang (recently voted 37 on the World’s Top 50 Restaurants) and one of his many join ventures with Jason Atherton, the excellent Esquina.

Sadly, our stay did not completely live up to expectations. After some teething problems over being issued with the wrong keys (cards) and a generally incompetent receptionist, we eventually made it into the room.

My wife wasn’t too happy about the bath and basin being so open and close to the bed – bad ‘feng shui’ she said. I made a mental note to check this when booking rooms in the future. Aside from this the room was good.

It was small but that is usual for such a central London location without paying many hundreds per night. The towels, toiletries, linen and mattress were all good quality and we had a great night’s sleep. The mini bar had a small but good, quality selection.

After checking in we popped out for a stroll. One Leicester Street is bang central for much of the usual touristy things. Leicester Square is less than 100 yards away and Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden, SoHo, Regent Street, Carnaby Street and Oxford Street are all just a few minutes walk away.

However, we made out way (via Gerry’s on Old Compton St to stock up on miniatures) to Great Windmill Street and Sasuke Japanese Ramen Bar.

Having only opened a month or so before, Sasuke had been given the thumbs up by The Skinny Bib, which is good enough for me.

The place is much simpler, paired down and less trendy than the nearby Bone Daddies and I quite liked it for that – you don’t have to rely on funky décor if your product is good. 

I tried the Miso Chashu, which was served piping hot with good springy noodles - I opted for the ‘marutoku’ upgrade of egg and nori topping for £1, who wouldn’t?

My main criticism was the abundance of beansprouts that seemed to outnumber even the noodles! My pal Skinny Bib (who knows much better than me) criticised their pork, citing the outside of the pork as ‘unpleasantly gelatinous’ – personally, this is what I liked about it but what do I know?

Another plus point was the serving of house roasted sesame seeds with an authentic Japanese mortar and pestle style bowl and grinding stick called ‘suribachi’ and ‘surikogi’ respectively – much more enjoyable than the more practical and common plastic ‘gomasuri ki’. Interestingly, the phrase gomasuri is also used as a phrase to describe what westerners would call a ‘suck up’ or a ‘brown noser’.

Sides of Edamame and Homemade gyōza were good but not exceptional. A glass of Shochu and a Calpico finished our order.

Later in the evening, approaching 11pm if I recall, we ended up at Spuntino – another place just around the corner from the hotel. We initially popped in for just a drink but their licence only allows them to serve alcohol to people who are eating. No problem – we ordered a couple of dishes.

Due to the hour, the intention was to avoid heavy carbs so we ordered Candied bacon and a Steak tartare. Then we spotted the Clams, linguine, pancetta & wild garlic – all dishes were good enough to make us want to return at a more reasonable hour. The staff were friendly too so Spuntino is definitely on the list for a proper visit next time we are in town. 

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"The Best of Ramen" feat SoLiTa's "Ramen Burger"

I LOVE RAMEN. I can’t fully explain to you why I love ramen but I do know that when the best broths, noodles, bases and toppings are mixed together in the cauldron-like bowl, some kind of alchemy occurs and the result is magical.

Much to my on going annoyance, the sad fact is, it is nigh on impossible to get the “proper stuff” in the UK (places like Bone Daddies, Shoryu and Tonkotsu, all in London, may come close).

Bone Daddies Tonkotsu

Out of the capital, even the best I’ve had in Britain has been only slightly better than your average* Pot Noodle! (*Assuming there is such a thing as an “average” Pot Noodle?)

As a result, when travelling in Asia I try to slurp down as much of the stuff as my belly will allow… no mean feat as I usually arrange my ramen meals between mealtime, meals. I like to call this, “hearty snacking”.

On my last trip to Asia, I reckon I tucked away twenty or so bowls of soupy noodle goodness – each one consisting of almost identical ingredients, yet managing to be distinctly different.  Below I present the best of the ramen I tasted in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.

Singapore’s Best Raman: Keisuke Tonkotsu King (near Tangjong Pagar MRT)

The PR for this restaurant says how Keisuke Tonkotsu King is named after founder ‘Keisuke’ Takeda, who won the title “Ramen King” at the 2011, ‘Ramen Champion Series’ against 30,000 ramen chefs.

Keisuke Tonkotsu King - Tonkotsu Ramen

He may be a “king” but his small restaurant remains a homely, no frills ‘authentic Ramen house’ - where there are seemingly never ending queues! I had their classic Tonkotsu Ramen with its gloriously rich pork bone broth – you can also opt for ‘red spicy’ with chilli oil and ‘black spicy’ with pepper.

Keisuke Tonkotsu King - Tonkotsu Ramen

All ingredients were great quality including the pork ‘chasyu’, spring onion, black fungus, boiled egg and bean sprouts – what really made the soup stand out was the depth of flavour in the broth (served at the ‘correct’ piping hot temperature) and the perfect springiness in the noodles. The best bowl of ramen I have  ever had! Heaven in a bowl.

My runner up for the Best Ramen in Singapore: Nantsuttei Ramen (Millenia Walk).

Nantsuttei Ramen - Negi Ramen

Nantsuttei Ramen is another ramen chain whose founder, Mr. Furuya Ichiro, has also won a few ramen championship titles. I had their rich creamy tonkotsu Nantsuttei Negi Ramen achieved through crushing and boiling the pork bones for 24 hours.

Nantsuttei Ramen - Negi Ramen

The noodles are made fresh each day in house – the noodle chef tells how the day’s weather, humidity and temperature of the flour and water creates subtle noodle nuances. Their pork loin ‘chashu’ was a wonderfully moist, I’m guessing as a result of it having been simmered in their house shoyu. I also liked the generous serving of fresh shredded negi and their signature ‘black garlic oil’ (ma-yu). My one niggle being, a slightly overcooked ‘ajitsuke tamago’ (flavoured boiled egg).

Kuala Lumpur’s Best Raman: Ippudo Ramen (Pavillion Mall)

In Japan, Ippudo’s 40-odd outlets serve upwards of 20,000 discerning customers every day (they also have outlets in Singapore, Sydney and NY as well as across Asia). ‘Chain restaurants’ of this type are not seen with the same distain as UK or American franchises – quality is always maintained. Their ramen often wins various ‘ramen championships’ and after being crowned ‘Ramen King’ for three consecutive years, founder Shigemi Kawahara earned his place in the ‘Ramen Hall of Fame’ - it’s all taken quite seriously.

Ippudo Ramen - Akamaru Ramen

I opted for their Akamaru Ramen a classic ‘Hakata-style’ ramen with a creamy tonkotsu broth enriched by an ‘umami-dama’ miso paste. The noodles were thin but had a great chewiness to them. Good quality, flavoursome belly chashu, bean sprouts, kikurage & spring onion competed a close to perfect dish.

Ippudo Ramen - Akamaru Ramen

The buzzy, welcoming atmosphere at Ippudo is another good reason to go – as are the Steamed buns with braised pork and the Calpis with soda.

My runner up for the Best Ramen in Kuala Lumpur: Menya Musashi (Jalan P Ramlee)

Menya Musashi- Kanzan Ramen

Despite the fact that their ‘theme park’ Samurai décor puts me off a little, Menya Musashi (another highly rated Japanese chain with branches throughout Asia) knock out bowl after bowl of the good stuff (greedier customers come for the multiple free noodle refills). 

Menya Musashi- Kanzan Ramen 

I opted for Kanzan Ramen with two pieces of moist roasted pork, ajitama, spring onion and black fungus. Another place that favours the thinner noodles, these too retained a springy bite and sat in a rich, creamy, deep porky, piping hot broth. The Choregi Salad however, was pants!

For the sake of including something different, to attract Muslim customers or those that simply prefer a ‘lighter dish’ many Ramen places in KL make a version with chicken broth. Kyo-ei Ramen (in the Pavillioin mall) specialise in this style, I opted for the Kyo-Chan Ramen, which despite having a chicken base comes with a pork topping.

Kyo-ei Ramen

Like most of the decent places they also make their noodles onsite – theirs are quite thick (more akin to the Chinese ‘pan mee’ style) and lacked the al dente texture that myself and many ramen fans seek. I read one amusing comment on a blog post or review site where someone had said, ‘they look like they have been made by cats’. ‘Strange’ broth and noodles aside, everything from the pork, egg, bamboo shoots and narutomaki seemed sub-standard compared to other places in Asia.

SoLiTa's Ramen Burger

As you can see, I like to think I am something of a ramen aficionado (a ‘ramen geek’) – so when I saw that one of my favourite local restaurants, SoLiTa, In Manchester’s Northern Quarter, were launching a ‘Ramen Burger’ – my interest was more than a little piqued!

Ramen Burger - Noodle Bun

For those that don’t know the ‘Ramen Burger’ is the recent brainchild of ramen obsessed ‘ramen blogger’ turned ramen chef, turned ramen burger inventor, Keizo Shimamoto (@GoRamen on twitter) – in his hometown of Brooklyn queues of hundreds of people have been going crazy for this latest food craze!

Wanting to be the first in the UK, SoLiTa’s own “Dr. Burgenstein” Franco Sotgiu, seems to have cracked the secrets to perfecting the ‘ramen bun’.

SoLiTa's Ramen Burger

The SoLiTa version of the Ramen Burger features one of their standard 6oz chuck steak & bone marrow patties with shredded spring onions and a spicy Sriracha, mirin and soy sauce. I had my doubts but after tasting, this is no gimmick.

6oz Chuck Steak & Bone Marrow Patty

I can honestly say I love the noodle bun more than the typical bread buns – it was great how the meat juices soaked into the noodles to give that meaty noodley combination of regular ramen.

For a more ‘authentic’ ramen experience, I’d perhaps like the some experimentation to replace the spicy sauce with one that has more of a miso taste… but, on reflection, that could be a bad idea because I could see myself becoming seriously addicted and that would not do my diet any good!  

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