Ramen. Ramen. Ramen.
That’s all what my social media accounts can share
as to meals in Japan. A friend of mine
even asked if I’ve tried other cuisine of Japan, as what they see are ramens of
varied vantage points and restaurants.
Ramen has gained popularity in the Philippines and
with the opening of Ippudo in Manila, how can I resist dining in a country
where this commercial establishment came from.
Ippudo Kyoto - when diners begin to line up after we were served |
“It takes a minimum of two
hours to be served at Ippudo New York City.” my travel buddy, a resident of New York City,
so declare. There’s no point of comparison for me as I have never been to
Ippudo Manila and so we heeded the call of our appetites and food culture
adventure (for lack of proper term).
My first Ippudo ramen experience was in Kyoto,
Japan. It only took 5 minutes for us to
be seated and a long line of queue is nowhere to be found. We were seated in a round table along with
other guests. No exclusivity I should
say and a good opportunity to converse with seatmates if congeniality strikes
you.
“Sumimasen. Akamaru special
and beer.” This is my usual lines when
placing an order at any Ippudo ramen shop in Japan. With the huge serving, a bowl of ramen would
suffice as a day’s meal (talking about budget travels). There are three (3) base ramens to choose
from, namely: shiromaru, karaka and akamaru.
Shiromaru |
Karaka is an improved version of Shiromaru. With shiromaru classic pork as its base,
Karaka introduces a spicy miso topping mixed with herbs and spices.
Akamaru is Ippudo’s original tonkotsu broth enhanced
with special blended miso paste and fragrant garlic oil, served with thin and
straight noodles, pork belly, bean sprouts, black fungus and spring
onions. This is the refined,
modern-style ramen.
Akamaru Special |
my favorite Hakata bite-sized dumplings |
Ippudo Tokyo at one of the stalls in a mall's food court |
Ippudo Osaka |
Ippudo Osaka interiors and diners |
A ramen for me would not be complete without a bottle/glass of beer. How about you?
Tokyo |
Osaka |
Kyoto |
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