Ryo’s Noodles

My first stop after picking my bags from the luggage carousel in Adelaide was Ryo’s Noodles. Yep, not even kidding. Last time, Mum gave me massive order envy with her miso ramen, so that’s what we both picked this time. Ryo’s is unusual for a ramen restaurant in that you can request your serve to be salt reduced, which we both did. The star of this ramen is the broth – the miso flavour just adds a lovely richness to the already complex broth, which only tastes better the more you eat. I found myself wishing for a second stomach in order to have more! The pork is beautifully tender and not overly fatty, although I would have liked another slice. The spring onion and bamboo shoots are great textural elements, and the ramen noodles themselves have a great amount of bite, making them a real delight to eat. The bowl actually has a very generous serve of noodles, and I was very full by the end of my meal. We had cups of green tea with the food, which come with free refills – the tea was simple and a nice complement to the ramen. See you on my next visit, Ryo’s!

Ryo’s Noodles, 80 Gouger Street, Adelaide SA

Onomichi Ramen

There are quite a few restaurants around the Hamamatsucho JR station, but many of them are designed for quick churn (i.e. standing restaurants/izakayas). We were quite tired after a day of sightseeing so ended up picking Onomichi Ramen, as it had seats. Sure, the decor is nothing special, and it has a lingering smell of cigarette smoke, but once you’ve received your giant bowl of ramen those things fade into the background. I ordered the standard soy ramen and added on all the extras – pork and egg. They offer table service, and brought out edamame for us to start. The ramen didn’t take long (so a good spot if you’re really hungry!) and the broth looked rich and fatty. Research after the meal explained that Onomichi ramen is the local specialty of Onomichi, near Hiroshima, and uses a typical soy broth with added fish paste and melted lard. Whilst that may not sound appetising, I promise you, it was delicious, and if I’d had room to finish the bowl I would have. The pork was thick and tender, the egg gooey in the centre and the ramen had a great amount of bite. Yum, yum, yum.

Onomichi Ramen,  Chome-30-11, Hamamatsucho, Minato, Tokyo Japan

Ryo’s Noodles

I was very excited to see that Ryo’s Noodles had opened in Adelaide – the more ramen available the better, in my books! We ordered the lunch special, $19.90 for a bowl of ramen, a side (we chose gyoza) and a cup of green tea, either hot or cold. For my ramen, I chose number 6 – a Tokyo-style soy broth with roast pork and all the trimmings, while Mum picked the miso broth with roast pork. Dad opted for the karaage (spicy fried chicken) and tempura prawns,both of which were lovely and crisp, and we started with a bowl of edamame, served hot, to share. Our food didn’t take long to come out and it became clear very quickly that Mum had ordered the pick of the bunch – the miso broth (with reduced salt on request) was beautifully complex, with a rich, glossy flavour. Mmm. My Tokyo ramen broth tasted a bit weak in comparison, but if you prefer lighter broths then this is the one for you. The noodles had a great amount of bite and the roast pork was lovely and tender – as always, the tamago was the highlight. Oh yes, I will be back!

Ryo’s Noodles, 80 Gouger Street, Adelaide SA

Zu Zu Zu

Newtown is known for its Thai food, but sometimes you just want ramen. Zu Zu Zu appears to have opened recently and was there in time to meet my ramen craving. I was curious about their black sesame broth, something I haven’t tried before, so ordered that along with gyoza and edamame to share. The edamame were served hot and salted – we devoured them happily. The gyoza were excellent too – pan-fried with a herbed pork filling, although perhaps slightly on the small side. The ramen came out in a giant bowl and the broth had an interesting colour. On first sip, I was a bit surprised – yes, the black sesame flavour was there, but it lacked the complexity and depth of your usual ramen broth. I still enjoyed it, but would probably stick to the tonkotsu next time. Having said that, the teriyaki chicken inside was to die for – perfectly tender and slathered in an amazing teriyaki sauce. The ramen themselves were quite thin and didn’t seem housemade (please correct me if you know differently?), but the tamago was (as always) the best bit. I couldn’t finish my bowl, but I did enjoy the meal overall.

Zu Zu Zu, 191 King Street, Newtown NSW, no website

Little Ramen Bar

There really is nothing like a steaming hot noodle soup on a chilly night, and of all the noodle soups, ramen surely must be the most comforting. On an overnight visit to Melbourne I braved the cold to seek out ramen at one of Melbourne’s quaintest little establishments, Little Ramen Bar. I had about a 10 minute wait for a seat, but my order was taken while I waited so the food came out quickly once I was inside the cozy nook of a restaurant. I had the ‘most popular’ chashu tamago with a shoyu broth, and a glass of umeshu (plum wine) on the rocks. The ramen arrived quickly and was exactly what I felt like. The tamago (egg) was still gooey in the middle and the pork slices were tasty, although marbled with quite a bit of fat. The broth itself was fattier than I expected, but it wasn’t overly salty and I ended up drinking most of it as it had such a beautifully rich flavour. The noodles had just the right amount of bite and my craving was completely satisfied. Definitely a spot to come back to.

Little Ramen Bar, 346 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC                                 http://www.littleramenbar.com.au/

Gogyo

I remember my first meal at Gogyo very well – it was first time I really fell in love with ramen. Here wasn’t just an oily or fatty broth, here was broth with some serious flavour. Years later, it was just as good as I remembered. After exploring the Nishiki Market, we lined up to be the first in for dinner at Gogyo. The service is quite excellent – the staff are attentive to your every need and are really professional. Dining on a weekend, we received a starter for ¥300 and had a choice between ‘radish’ or ‘chicken’. I picked radish and enjoyed the warmed little dish with its mysterious sauce (whatever it was, was delicious). Next up was a plate of fresh cucumber with a spicy sesame seasoning – a nice contrast between the heat of the seasoning and the cool cucumber. Then the main game – the burnt soy ramen. Yep, bring on the black broth and its rich, salty flavour. The ramen themselves have plenty of bite and the pork was lovely and tender. I adore soft-boiled ramen eggs and this was one of the best. All the ingredients combined to make a really special ramen unlike any other I’ve ever eaten.

Gogyo, 452 Jumonjicho Takoyakushi Sagaru, Yanaginobamba-dori, Kyoto Japan http://www.ramendining-gogyo.com

Gumshara Ramen

My first visit to Gumshara was simply fantastic – I was amazed at how authentic the flavour of their tonkotsu ramen was, so on this visit I was keen to try one of their other broths. I picked the shoyu ramen, which is made with a light fish broth, with added soy sauce. Gumshara’s bowls are huge, but somehow always seem to be the right amount of food for dinner. Unlike many ramen places, here the noodles always have just the right amount of bite, and they’ve recently started offering thin noodles as an option. I picked the thick noodles and after a short wait sat down with my big bowl of happiness. The pork slices were lovely and thin and melted in your mouth, and the fresh spring onion added flavour and texture. There were plenty of noodles and the broth itself was light as promised, although that certainly didn’t mean watery – it just wasn’t as rich or fatty as the tonkotsu, which suited me fine. There’s no post-ramen-drink-three-litres-of-water saltiness, just incredible flavour. Whilst not the cheapest bowl of ramen in town (expect to pay around $13), I would have to say that this remains my favourite ramen in Australia.

Gumshara Ramen, Shop 211, 25-29 Dixon Street, Haymarket NSW, no website.