#Xmasgram

It's the last post of the year. It's also time to wish all my readers a Merry Christmas! See you all in the New Year for more half-arsed ramblings about food.

Shoryu Ramen - The Listening Restaurant

In a world where some in the restaurant industry use social media really badly, it's refreshing to see Shoryu Ramen use it so effectively. For instance, when some old grumpy-bollocks (that's me by the way) had a whinge on twitter about the thick noodles Shoryu used during the soft opening, not only did they introduce a new, thinner noodle but I also received a tweet from @shoryuramen to let me know about it. Other punters lamented the nitamago egg had to be ordered separately. Again, Shoryu listened, and half an egg was introduced as standard in the noodle bowls. I know listening to feedback is the whole point of a soft opening, but it doesn't always pan out that way.

Thick noodles aside, I enjoyed my bowl of yuzu tonkotsu ramen, but as a rule I don't judge anywhere solely on a soft opening, so I made plans to return when the food was being sold at full price. It seemed I wasn't the only one with that idea, as the restaurant was nearly full at 11.45am the Saturday morning I went.

I ordered the basic Hakata tonkotsu ramen (£8) to see how it stacked-up against rival tonkotsu. The first thing that struck me was the broth; it was milky white, there was lots of it and it was steaming hot - all good. It was thinner than the tonkotsu broth found at some rival London joints, but it retained sufficient porkiness and also had a pleasing smoky quality about it. On the minus side, the chashu bbq pork and the half a nitamago egg were somewhat pedestrian. I liked the other toppings of red ginger, kikurage (wood ear fungus), nori, beansprouts, spring onion and sesame, but it would've been good to see some menma (fermented bamboo shoots) in the bowl.

The thinner hosomen ramen noodles are an improvement on those used during the soft opening. These had a nice 'bite' to them, and I ordered an extra portion (£1.50) to soak up the broth. I was pretty full after this and got me thinking that Shoryu probably offers the best value tonkotsu ramen in London.

Shoryu also probably offers the most options for tonkotsu ramen in London, with no less than seven different tonkotsu-based dishes including the likes of wasabi and piri-piri (incidentally, non-tonkotsu fans can plump for miso and shoyu-based soup noodles). On my most recent visit, I went for the top-of-the-range yuzu tonkotsu ramen (£10.40) - a bowl of the Hakata tonkotsu ramen topped with a dollop of yuzu jam and some chilli. I was glad that, with the exception of the thinner noodles, it hadn't changed since the soft opening. I like this particular combo, as the tart citrusy notes of the yuzu jam and the spiciness of the chilli lift the smoky porky tonkotsu soup-base, without overpowering it.

I also ordered some gyoza (6pcs/£5); these were OK without being outstanding. Perhaps these humble pork dumplings should be the next dish to get some love and attention in London. After all, when was the last time you could say you had really top class gyoza in the capital? Having said that, I'm probably being a bit harsh; these dumplings were better than say those at Tonkotsu or Ittenbari. On the non-food front, the service is good although the dining room is a bit clinical for my liking.

So what's the overall verdict? I like Shoryu a lot, but it isn't quite the definitive ramen bar that London is screaming out for. For instance, both Bone Daddies and Tonkotsu serve better quality pork and egg in their dishes. However, I prefer the way the broth is served at Shoryu i.e. plenty of it, steaming hot. In terms of a favourite, I can't really split Shoryu and Bone Daddies; I like them in different ways with the former being more traditional, the latter more radical.

There is, however, one winner: London. There is now a genuine ramen rivalry in the capital, not only between my current favourites but also with other 2012 openings such as Tonkotsu and Ittenbari as well as old stagers like Cocoro and Nagomi. I'm hoping that this competition, with maybe some more contenders in 2013, will further raise standards.

One last thing! Shoryu sell fresh hosomen ramen noodles (£1.50 for 125g) to take home. These are pretty good, but if you do buy them I recommend an extra step in the cooking instructions: rinse after cooking before adding to the soup. This is to remove the alkali soapy taste from the noodles.



Shoryu Ramen, 9 Regent St, London SW1Y 4LR
Nearest tube: Piccadilly Circus

Bergene Melk - Norwegian Chocolate

Having bought my train ticket to Oslo airport, I was left with NOK 30 change to spend. So it was with a degree of serendipity that I saw a sign advertising a two-for-NOK 30 offer on chocolate bars. I was on it in a flash, and before long I was the proud owner of two bars of Bergene Melk. To be honest, I only went for this particular brand because the packaging looked nice. But the gods of fortune were on my side again; it turned out I had bought milk chocolate studded with cashews and pecans with a touch of sea salt. It was bloody delicious. While there are posh chocolatiers that make a superior product, I'm hard pushed to think of a mainstream British chocolate bar that tastes as good as this. So if you do find yourself in Norway, get some Bergene Melk. Given the prices there, it could well be the only thing you can afford to eat.

Ittenbari Ramen (A Tonkotsu-Free Zone)

London's recent embrace of ramen has concentrated mainly on soup noodle dishes served with tonkotsu, a pork bone-based broth. However, there is one exception: Ittenbari, a utilitarian Japanese joint in Soho. According to the menu, its eponymous signature dish, Ittenbari ramen, is served with 'a clear soup made with chicken and vegetable blended with a very rich seafood extract (mussels, scallops, shrimps and bonito)'.

In some ways I wish they hadn't built up my expectations. I was looking forward to a rich broth packed full of flavour. It wasn't. It was quite clean tasting, but it didn't leave much of an impression. Of the toppings, the pork slices were very high quality. So it was a bit of a shame the eggs were just bog-standard rather than the nitamago eggs found in the other ramen shops. And nor was I impressed by the bamboo shoots; they weren't the fermented ones known as menma, just normal bamboo shoots. Like the soup, I can't remember much about the noodles, so I guess they must have been decent enough.

The toppings were quite generous but that's only because I went deluxe, which cost £10.90 compared to £8.90 for the regular (the difference between the two being an extra couple of pork slices and an extra half egg). Come to think of it, with a single slice of pork and half an egg, the regular is a bit of a piss take. Being a growing lad, I also ordered some gyoza (6 pcs/£5). These dumplings were a tad greasy, and didn't seem to be freshly made. That said, I've had worse and they were generously filled.

Now you might be thinking that I'm not a massive fan of Ittenbari, but for all its faults I see myself returning. Why? The ambience is the best of the various ramen bars that have opened in London in the past year. I can't quite put my finger on why I like it so much, but I think it's because it actually reminds me of Japan. So while much more has been spent on the design of Bone Daddies and Tonkotsu, neither of them has quite the same atmosphere Ittenbari has. Mind you, the next time I'll give the noodles a miss and go for some sushi or a chicken katsu curry, instead.



Ittenbari, 84 Brewer Street, London, W1F 9UB (Tel: 020-7287-1318)
Nearest tube: Piccadilly Circus

Rock 'N' Roll Ramen @ Bone Daddies

It'd be fair to say my first impressions of Bone Daddies weren't great. The background music had become foreground music, and was being played at a volume usually only heard when the CIA are trying to force a Latin American dictator to surrender. If anything my predicament was worse than General Noriega's, as the playlist was largely cock rock. This, to someone who's more Stone Roses than Guns 'N' Roses, felt like hell on earth.

The thing about music, though, is that it's even more divisive than food. I had some twitter exchanges with @BoneDaddiesRBar about his choice of tunes. We agreed to disagree, and it was left with an invite to me to say hi the next time I popped in so that he could outline what he wanted to do with Bone Daddies, and how the music fitted in with his vision. More on that later, as this is a food blog, not a music blog!

The food was mercifully better than the music. On my first visit I just had to order the tonkotsu ramen (£11) that I pimped up with a fat pipette and some nori. I was impressed. The toppings of chashu pork, menma, beansprouts, fried garlic and egg were good quality and, compared to its rivals, also generous of portion. However, the broth wasn't quite there for a tonkotsu although the pipette of fat gave it extra porkiness. And in my opinion, it could've done with a lot more broth. I also checked out the fried chicken (£5). This also showed promise, but it needed some Kewpie mayo on the side. (Memo to all Japanese places in London, serve your kara-age fried chicken with Kewpie mayo on the side, please!)

I returned later that week for a second visit. This time it was for lunch, so thankfully the music wasn't quite as loud. Moreover, there were a few tunes from The Clash and The Doors, which was more agreeable to my picky discerning ears. Onto the food, and I wanted to explore the menu a bit more so I went for the T22 ramen (£9) with a side of Yellowtail sashimi (£9). The latter was top quality, and I'm glad they went with a superior fish for their sashimi offering rather than boring old salmon. I also enjoyed the flavoursome chicken broth-based T22 soy ramen with its strands of moist pulled chicken. But what really made this dish was the topping of cock scratchings that gave it that extra filth factor. After all, what's not to love about bits of fried chicken skin!

After the meal, I asked to say hi to @BoneDaddiesRBar, who turned to be Ross Shonhan, the guy behind Bone Daddies. We carried on our chat about music, and he explained how the music is an important part of what Bone Daddies is all about. To that end, he'd put together a playlist of 'classic rock' with no tunes from after 1992. Regarding the playlist, I think there could be a bit more flexibility (i.e. he really ought to slap on bands I like on there) but at the end of the day, it's his gaff, not mine.

After chatting about the music, we moved on to a more important matter: the food. By his own admission, Ross wasn't too happy with some of the early versions of the tonkotsu broth, but he was excited about the new one. So much so, he invited me into the kitchen to show me. I didn't taste it, but just by the look of it, I knew it was an improvement. That's because this tonkotsu was, in common with the upper echelons of the Tory party, rich and thick with a milky complexion. A mental note was made to check it out.

And so on to my most recent visit, when I tried the latest version of the tonkotsu ramen. I purposefully ordered it as it was i.e. with no pimpage, and I have to say it's quite possibly one of the best bowls of ramen I've had in London. The broth was rich and had a nice porky depth. I haven't really spoken of the actual noodles thus far in this review, and that's because they have been, on all my visits, of decent quality, and not overcooked. And I was also pleased to see a slight increase in the volume of broth in the bowl, although it could still have done with more.

Bone Daddies is a worthy addition to the fast-evolving London ramen scene. While I need to properly check out Shoryu Ramen as well as revisit other contenders, for now, I reckon Bone Daddies offers the most complete bowl of tonkotsu ramen in London. Whether it's as good as the noodles in Tokyo is another matter, but it's a moot point given Soho is closer to home than Shinjuku. There are some caveats, though. If, like me, you're an irascible old git with strong views on music, it may be better to go for lunch, not dinner!

I'm going to end this review how I started it, with a few words about music. At the end of the day, my upbringing in the north west of England is far removed from Ross Shonhan's in Queensland. So it'd be fair to say we might not have the same taste in music. Having said that, I think there can be a bit more imagination in the playlist. In short, it needs a bit of Manchester. And on that note, here's a tune I think would go down a storm at Bone Daddies: I Am The Resurrection by The Stone Roses. And Ross, if you're reading this, check out the guitar solo from 3m 40s in – it's the equal of anything Jimmy Page has ever done.



Bone Daddies, 31 Peter Street, London W1F 0AR, (Tel: 020-7287-8581)
Nearest stations: Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus