Wednesday 8 April 2020

Ramen Nagi – Original or Butao [MEDIA INVITE]

Red King Ramen @ Ramen Nagi

Ramen Nagi is an award-winning Ramen Restaurant by Chef Ikuta from Fukuoka, Japan that made his name as the first restaurant by serving different type of ramen every day for a year. A true testament to Chef Ikuta’s talents, he holds Tokyo Ramen Champion title for three consecutive years.

Ramen Nagi @ Ion Orchard

Recently Ramen Nagi released its very own Nagi Chilli Oil, a special blend of Nagi Spice that is specially flown in from Japan and made from scratch. We got the privilege to be the first few who tried it in Singapore.

The Menu

How to Order

As there are two of us, each one of us ordered different Ramen. I ordered the Original King ($13.90) with award-winning tonkotsu broth. For the toppings, I choose Kakuni (pork belly), green onion plus thick and hard ramen.

Chubby Botak Koala Order Slip
Original King, Tomago and Nagi Chilli Oil (on the left)

The first sip of the broth, my first reaction is OISHI!! The milky broth is robust, packs of punch and filled with pork collagen. The noodle is round, thick, chewy, yet easy to slurp and infused with the flavour of the broth. I like my green onion on my ramen, as it gives the extra crunchy flavour and a bit of spark in the dish.

The Ramen

The top two layers of the kakuni are delicious and you can taste the mirin and soy sauce infused into the pork belly. Unfortunately, I got the very lean part at the bottom of the pork belly. The meat is not enjoyable and hard to chew. Though I enjoy the fatty part on top, I find the kakuni seasoning overpower the tonkotsu broth of the ramen.

Kakuni

LD choose the Red King ($15.90) with tonkotsu soup base. Toppings are chashu (sliced pork loin), level 3 Butao (homemade fire sauce – spicy) plus thin and extra hard noodle. She also ordered tamago ($2) and kikurage / wood ear mushroom ($1.50) on the side.

Little Devil's Order

Red King

LD says the broth is robust but the level 3 Butao is not spicy for her. Next time she will double up her level to level 6. She also tried the Nagi Chilli Oil, which is fragrant and appetizing. The thin ramen is cooked to al-dente, allowing it to showcase the bounciness of the noodles. Not a fan of ramen chashu, she passed the chashu to me.

Thin Ramen

I like the chashu better compare to the kakuni. It is juicy, succulent and almost melts in your mouth. The flavour is not as strong as the kakuni and it complements the ramen nicely. If you like your eggs, I suggest you order the tamago as well. Tasty with a moist yolk, not the onsen type.

The Chashu

Kikurage and Tamago

Tamago

After we ordered our meal, we saw the service staff delivering the Chicken Karaage ($9, 5pcs). It looks so appetizing; we quickly order some for ourselves. It is about the size of Chinese Baoding Balls. Crispy externally and juicy, succulent internally. You can taste the marinate infused in the chicken and externally it is coated with honey. There are two dipping sauce, pesto and egg mayo that unique and enhance the flavour of the chicken karaage. Yummy!!

Chicken Karaage

The décor of the restaurant is an authentic Ramen House experience that you can find in Japan. Service is friendly and efficient.

The Decor

Overall, the tonkotsu broth, thick noodle and chicken karaage are the three ingredients that you must not miss here. Chilli lovers should try their butao and Nagi Chilli Oil. Worth a visit for those who like the bold flavours ramen. Kanpai!! Cheers!!

Thank you very much, Protegie Group and Ramen Nagi team for the invite and hosting us.

Food & Drinks: 7.5/10
Value: 7/10
Service: N/A (Media Tasting)
Ambiance: 8/10
Budget per Person: $11 - $25

Ramen Nagi
2 Orchard Turn
#B4-54, Ion Orchard
Singapore 238801
(Opposite Food Opera)

T: +65 8163 2185
IG: @Ramennagisingapore
OH: Daily 11.00 – 22.00 (LO 21.30)

No comments:

Post a Comment

Our Popular Reviews: