Mazesoba at Menya Kokoro

I found this unfinished article about the lunch we had at Menya Kokoro at the Podium in Ortigas Center. Their main dish is mazesoba, which is a brothless (soupless) noodle dish. The noodles are soba and not ramen. I haven't eaten this since the 1990s when I think I last had it at our university canteen (shokudo) in Yokohama.

Unagi mazesoba

Closeup of the noodles of this very satisfying dish

It's always nice to get reacquainted with the food I tried many, many years ago when I was a student in Japan. In this case, the mazesoba was a welcome departure from the ramen we usually enjoy. The unagi (eel) was a bonus that I readily opted for when I saw it on the menu. I wouldn't mind eating there again soon. But the serving is generous so I have to be a bit hungry to finish the food.

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Kuro Ramen at Ippudo

Last weekend, we had lunch at Ippudo to satisfy our ramen craving. We usually have our ramen at Ramen Nagi and occasionally Ippudo, Hokkaido Ramen, and Ramen Kuroda, in that order as their branches are most accessible to us. Our daughter also loves ramen so its not difficult to decide to have ramen for lunch or dinner.

Ippudo's Kuro Ramen 

The ramen was really good and I wouldn't mind having this regularly for the richness of the taste including the torched chashu. I still think Ramen Nagi's tamago is better though so if Ippudo can match that then this ramen will be close to perfection for me. I thought though that the taste may not be for everyone especially those who like the lighter ramen in terms of broth and ingredients. Baka nakaka-umay for others. Perhaps it's still better to have different ramen from time to time while remembering the "go to" or favorites from each ramen shop/restaurant.

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Scallop King from Ramen Nagi

We sort of had a lot of ramen last January. It was the birthday month of the wife and daughter so we took advantage of the birthday promo at Ramen Nagi to enjoy their ramen. A basic rule is to have two companions pay regular on their order of ramen. Proof of the birth date is requested from the celebrant so be sure to bring a valid ID to avail of the promo. In one of those dinners at the restaurant, I ordered this special ramen that was on limited offer. I wanted to try something new and different from the usual Butao I order for my meal.

Scallop King featured a lot of scallops and a broth thick with what looked like powdered nori.

I remember the shots they usually took of food in Japanese TV programs to show how delicious the food would look like. This was an attempt to do something like that. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to include the smoke from the ramen as I lifted the noodles for the photo.

This is one of the best ramen's I've had. My only 'complaint' if I can call it that is that the soup or broth is quite thick that you get quite full even before finishing the bowl. So a recommendation to those trying this ramen to eat your noodles and scallop first before indulging in the broth.

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Ippudo's Zero Ramen

We had a nice lunch at Ippudo a couple of weeks ago and the staff offered their Zero Ramen as an option as we were browsing their menu. This tuned out to be one of best ramen we've had.

A bowl of Ippudo's Zero Ramen was just perfect and satisfying for lunch.

The wife and I got one bowl each (bowls 6 and 7 of 20 they prepared).

The card reads: 

"A year before opening Ippudo in 1985, founder and "Ramen King" Shigami Kawahara crafted this rare ramen in Fukuoka, Japan.

Zero features our signature tonkotsu broth; authentic Hakata-style noodles; tender, slow-cooked salted chashu; green onions; ajikijurage; and sesame seeds. Experience the origins of Ippudo's #WorldFamousRamen with this flavor-packed bowl. 

Loud slurps encouraged."

As this is a limited edition ramen, I'm not sure we'll be able to enjoy this again soon. I hope they serve this again at least during their anniversaries.

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Hakata Ikkousha, Cebu City

In a recent trip to Cebu, I found this Japanese restaurant at one of the major malls located in the North reclamation area. I extended my stay in Cebu for a couple of nights in order to catch up on work as well as to serve as a panel member in a webinar organized by our center.

Menu cover

Restaurant interior including visuals for the food they serve

They seem to have a bar for individual customers though it also looks like something for a salad bar.

I ordered tonkotsu ramen and gyoza. These are items I thought restaurants should not be wrong on if they included these in their menu.

Close up of the ramen, which I thought was good considering I had no expectations.

The gyoza was also good and on the crunchy side.

I thought the food was okay quality and quantity-wise and the prices translated to good value for money. Will I eat there again? Certainly, if I was craving for Japanese food and depending on the preference of company. When in Cebu, of course, there are many options and Japanese food is not a default.

 

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Ramen in Bangkok

Indulging in Thai food for most the time we were in Bangkok, we eventually opted for some more familiar food. There are many Japanese restaurants in Bangkok so it was easy to find one where we can have some good ramen. The food gallery at ICONSIAM had Baikohken Ramen, so we decided to go for it (our daughter's choice actually). The food gallery is actually part of the Takashimaya located at the mall so it's on the high end side of food courts.

Tonkotsu ramen

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Ramen Kuroda at SM Marikina

We've eaten at Ramen Kuroda before but I had not taken photos of previous meals there. I decided to take a few photos of our lunch to share these in this post. Here are three bowls we ordered for lunch and the additional tempura we had.

Shiro ramen

Kuro ramen

Aka ramen

Tempura

 

Ramen Kuroda serves good quality ramen at relatively more affordable prices than other ramen shops. This branch's facilities and service is straightforward and efficient. Nice for a quick, no frills meal to satisfy ramen or Japanese food cravings.

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Lunch at Tokyo Market, Ayala 30th

This is a very late post of a lunch I enjoyed many months ago. I thought I had written about this but apparently the draft was buried with others that I have started writing but never got to finish. Our daughter participated in a summer activity the venue of which was at the Ayala 30th Mall in Pasig City. As I usually picked her up (her Mom usually dropped her off en route to her office), there were times when I was early enough to have a late lunch there. One discovery was a shop that also served meals. I could not really call it a restaurant because their main business was as a shop selling Japanese products. I had a nice lunch there though and wouldn't mind eating there again sometime soon.

Japanese citrus (mikan) juice

Ramen lunch set - included 3 pieces of gyoza

I had a nice lunch at Tokyo Market and also purchased a few items there to consume at home including some snacks and sauces. They also had orange juice imported from Japan that were on sale at the time. I got a couple of bottles to sample and ended up getting a couple more in the next week. I don't frequent this mall as our preferred destination in that area is Estancia Mall. I probably will drop by one time to get some stuff from their shop.

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Sigekiya Ramen at Estancia Mall

While we have been to Estancia Mall quite a number of times, I did not realize there was an entire wing that we haven't explored. I was wondering, for example, where Randy's Donuts was at the mall. Apparently, what we thought to be the SM Department Store being the end of the mall was not. There were more shops and stores beyond SM. That's how we discovered Sigekiya Ramen, which was at the second level of the mall.

A bowl of their Gojira ramen

This was a set that came with 3 pieces of gyoza.

The brand on the bowl

Sigekiya is supposed to be from Yokohama, Japan, which is one of the main reasons I decided to eat there for lunch.  I was not aware of the ramen shop when I was residing there as there were many other ramen shops in the city including around the university where I studied and my apartment along the Sotetsu Railway Line. I found this review of the ramen shop in Yokohama. Personally, I enjoyed my Gojira ramen and I was also happy to see that they had a junior size serving since my daughter cannot finish the full bowl of ramen that's usually served in other ramen shops. The noodles are on the large side and the broth is thick and tasty. Maybe it's me but it is also not so salty. I will probably return to have a taste of their tsukemen next time.

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Hakata Ton-Ichi Ramen

We discovered another ramen shop while staying in Makati earlier this month. It was good as we wanted to eat something not so heavy but not so light in terms of a meal. It was also an easy choice for our daughter who also loves ramen.

Hakata ramen

Hamburger steak with curry

Cheesy gyoza

Their ramen is somewhat refreshing for me considering the relatively richer, heavy choices from the likes of Ramen Nagi and Hanamaruken. It was also not as expensive as the other ramen shops so it wasn't heavy on the pockets or wallets, too.

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Ramen Keisuke Tori King, BGC

Here is another late post. We ate dinner after watching a musical at BGC last December. The choices for us were basically a Thai restaurant and a ramen restaurant. Since our daughter didn't like spicy food, we opted for ramen. We didn't know about Ramen Keisuke Tori King as the wife and I had not encountered this resto before. So we decided to go for their specialty.

Tori king ramen features chicken-based broth, tamago and fried chicken mixed in.

Menu posted on their window - its an easy reference for those curious about the items they serve.

I would say the ramen was delightful but it felt kind of unusual having chicken there in the bowl. I usually have something on the side whenever I ate ramen but I don't have it dipped in the bowl. I don't prefer soggy karaage or gyoza. I don't like my tempura soggy either (as it is served when you order it with soba). Still, I thought this was a good eat and wouldn't mind eating there or another branch of theirs if the opportunity presented itself.

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Ramen on a Sunday

The title of this post is actually an allusion to the "Ramen Sunday" I usually had over the course of 3 years in Yokohama. Once a month, really good ramen is served at the basement of Yamate Church for people to enjoy after the Sunday morning Mass. Last Sunday, we decided to have dinner out for a change and ended up at Ramen Nagi for our meals.

Special ramen for the wife

Butao for me and our daughter

Red king with spice level 8 for a niece

The Red King with Chashu on the side

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The other ramen shop at the mall - Ramen Daisho

We learned about a new ramen shop that opened at the nearby mall recently. It is located where Adobo Republic used to be (beside Shrimp Shack and near the ATMs) at the outdoor ground level of Robinsons Antipolo. It is not a familiar name to us considering we've tried so many of the more established ramen shops like Ippudo, Ikkoryu, Kuroda, Mendokoro, Nagi, Hokkaido, Hanamaruken, etc.

Their version of tonkotsu ramen was on the lighter side including the broth.

The egg was not the marinated version and the chashu was evidently not prepared and cooked the way it's supposed to be as you can experience it in the ramen restaurants I mentioned earlier. Still, overall the meal was satisfying (quality-wise) and the quantity was just right (you won't feel so full after eating a bowl of ramen). Their ramen still is better than many that claim to be ramen shops but are closer to the mami house types than the Japanese versions. The price also won't hurt or set you back so there is value for money here. The staff are also attentive and the food didn't take so much time to arrive at our table. Will we eat here again? Likely and especially we're in a hurry and there are seats available.

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Nippon Ramen at the Mactan Cebu Airport Terminal 2

We arrived early for our flight back to Manila and had time for a meal, lunch to be exact. We decided to go for some ramen at the Nippon Ramen branch inside Terminal 2. We ordered a couple of char siu ramen, which we just shared with our daughter. It was not a heavy meal as we also didn't want to have full stomachs while in transit.

Nippon Ramen frontage/counter where customers may order their food and drinks

Char siu ramen

The wife's char siu ramen

I've eaten at their branch just outside Terminal 1's arrival area and we (my friends and I) thought it was good enough though not really having the authentic taste you probably expect and find in the Ramen Nagis, Mendokoros or Kurodas or other ramen restaurants that are now scattered around major cities. While some people might be tempted to say their prices were exorbitant (presyong airport), I thought Nippon Ramen's was reasonable for the quantity and quality.

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Ramen Nagi in Antipolo

Finally, there is a very good ramen restaurant in Antipolo. Ramen Nagi formally opened last week after a few days of doing their version of a dress rehearsal. The long queue of customers show that there is a demand for Japanese themed restaurants in Antipolo proper. The city is practically a bed town to Metro Manila and many of its residents have to go to Metro Manila for their Japanese food fix. While there are Japanese themed restaurants in Antipolo, there are only a few I think that are noteworthy including Tamagoya near Masinag Junction and ABCT near the Rizal Capitol.

The restaurant currently has long lines that show the demand for these types of restaurants in Antipolo. Soon to open and just beside Ramen Nagi is a branch of Marugame Udon. Not in the photo but on the other side of Marugame is a future branch of Mama Lou's.

The menu is on the paper place mat. They give you an order sheet on which you're supposed to tick off your orders.

Wonder Chashu King

We are already looking forwards to more restaurants to open at Robinsons Antipolo. Aside from the restaurants I mentioned earlier, there is also a Mary Grace and Peri-peri Chicken restaurant that will open soon. And did I mention Viking's? Hopefully, these will open in the next few weeks leading up to December and Christmas.

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Sachi Ramen, SM Seaside Cebu

We were back in Cebu after about 2.5 years. My last travel prior to the lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic was to Consolacion in January 2020. Our first meal back was not the typical to expect as we had our daughter with us and the first thing she spotted and fancied was a ramen restaurant. We decided to have lunch first at the SM Seaside mall before proceeding to the Cebu Ocean Park when she saw the restaurant as we emerged from the escalator.

Sachi Ramen menu

Restaurant interior

Their ramen is homemade. The noodles are not imported or sourced from another maker.

Tonkotsu ramen

Shoyu ramen

We were pleasantly surprised about the quality of the ramen here. They made the own noodles and the ingredients were the right taste and texture especially the eggs. The chashu was also of high quality (not too fatty like in other ramen restos that do not have a Japanese pedigree). The price was also just right for a generous bowl of ramen.

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Hanamaruken ramen delivery for lunch

With the easing of alert levels and the corresponding restrictions last year, we were back at the office (at least for a few days every week). As we usually ordered our lunch and one time we had a craving for Japanese food wondered if it were possible to get good ramen delivered. Fortunately for us, we had a few choices for our ramen either from UP Town Center, SM North EDSA or Trinoma. We ended up ordering from Hanamaruken Ramen at Trinoma.

Hanamaruken's pot belly ramen

The bowl contained the ingredients including the noodles and broth that were securely wrapped to prevent spillage.

After mixing them up, I couldn't recreate the nice, photogenic presentation.

Ramen cravings satisfied, we promised to ourselves we would order ramen again soon. Unfortunately though, with the current surge in Covid-19 cases in the metro, we would have to wait for things to calm down a bit. We won't be back at the office for now to reduce travel and unnecessary contact or proximity with other people.

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Meals for rainy days - DIY ramen

It's been raining the past few days and someone said this might be one of those "siyam-siyam" referring to the duration of the heavy rains. "Siyam-siyam" directly translates into "nine-nine", and  I am not, however, going to dwell on the weather for this post. Rather, I will talk about what's good to eat during these times. Rainy days are also cooler days and what's really suitable for this weather is something that has soup in it. That would typically be nilaga, tinola or sinigang if you want some Filipino dish for your meals. We had some nilagang manok (literally boiled chicken, this is a clear broth usually with lettuce and potatoes) the previous day that we enjoyed for lunch and dinner. Some people would like some noodles and perhaps sotanghon or misua come to mind if you want something with soup. In our case, we love ramen so we crave for some during rainy days. While there's instant ramen (Nissin has some good ones), these are not as satisfying as the real deal. Fortunately, there's a middle ground...

DIY ramen from the ready made broth, noodles and chashu we usually buy from a Japanese grocery. I chanced upon a newly delivered salmon sashimi. Unfortunately, we didn't have other ingredients for the ramen except for nori (seaweed).

DIY tonkotsu ramen with chashu and nori - good enough for the rainy days!

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Ramen Sundays and missing an old friend

It's a post on a Sunday but we actually had the ramen yesterday, a Saturday. I was just reminiscing about Sundays in Yokohama and the mornings I spent at Yamate Catholic Church (Sacred Heart) or Yamate Katoriku Kyokai. It was a rainy daw yesterday and we had a craving for ramen. Fortunately, we had recently gone to check out a new Japanese grocery near our place so we had the ingredients for good ramen.

I have very fond memories of our community in Yokohama and how we got together on a Sunday for church and afterwards. Sometimes, if there were enough of us who had the free time, we went out for lunch at the nearby shopping street. But most of the time, we just ate a heavy snack or an early lunch at the church basement. Most Sundays were 'Ramen Sunday" as the late Fr. Alfred Burke announced just before giving the final blessing for the 10:00-11:00 AM English Mass. And he would usually join the community after post-Mass greetings at the church's main door to chat with us or perhaps have a bowl of ramen himself. I recall a couple of Japanese parishioners made good ramen almost every Sunday and people looked forward to it. I will write more about Fr. Burke in future posts. There is a lot about him that other people, especially Filipinos in Japan, don't know about that he did that I appreciate so much. Here's to a good bowl of ramen on a Sunday or any other day when you feel like having one. :)

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