Someone suggested this place in a comment this morning (thank you!), so I popped on down here on my way home tonight, especially when I realized that this was the ramen shop from Hokkaido that has been creating so much buzz in Southern California lately. This branch in Singapore (The Central #02-76, 6224-0668) was so new that only half of the menu was available today. Fortunately, the item that they seemed to be most proud of, the tokusen toroniku ramen, was available.
What was so special about it? The pork, which arrived separately from the soup. And what wonderfully tender slices they were...I literally stopped eating to say, "Wow." Mind you, this was completely separate from the tonkotsu broth, which was so rich that it was almost like drinking milk. Indeed, some might argue that there was so much flavor that it was overwhelming. I wished there were more of those little red pickles to help cut through all of the grease.
And that, unfortunately, will probably keep me from being a regular here, as the flavors were a bit too intense for me. (Then again, maybe it was because I just ate a full meal about one hour ago, so go ahead and call me a fat pig.) Well, my preference is still for Marutama upstairs, but I will try coming back here on an empty stomach next time (and hopefully when more of the menu is available) to give it a another run.
11 comments:
Yah.. you fat pig.. muahhhaha!! joking..! yup.. try with an empty stomach.. maybe it will be different the eh.. :)
I went back tonight, and it turned out pretty much as I expected it to. The super rich broth and firm noodles were much more welcome when you're hungry, while the pork remained the best part of the meal with its salty yet mildly smoky aroma.
But I have to admit that such heavy flavors still grew tiresome on me before I could finish the bowl. This place is definitely a stand-out and worth a visit, but my personal preference is for a lighter tasting broth.
Any chance you'll be making some trips up to Malaysia for your food ventures ? :)
Oh this looks so good.
You have a great blog with beautiful photos!
Well done!
Alexander
Alex's World! - http://www.kakinan.com/alex
We have one of these in Kyoto as well, and I find it a bit too strong also. It get's very very tiring on the palate after I am halfway through. Another one which made me a bit ill was Sumire! There was a layer of oil/fat floating about the soup, about maybe 3cm thick.
Thanks for the recommendation. The pork was simply orgasmic! Love the broth but I still prefer Marutama for its portions and cooriander 5 nut ramen.
I went the day it opened, the special pork is very nice, but other than that I didn't find it that impressive. The noodles were only ok and the broth, well no big deal.
I had the same reaction as Dracoholic. I still prefer Manya Shinchan and Miharu overall.
I tried this and marutama, and still prefers ichran and ippuudou. Drooling now even thinking of the flavours..!
Any idea what's the price range of the food sold? I'm on tight budget :)
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