Monday, June 15, 2015

Hoi (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

麺屋 ほぃ
めんや ほぃ
Menya Hoi

Shoyu tori paitan: 17 / 20
(鶏白湯しょうゆらーめん)

Shio tori paitan: 16 / 20
(鶏塩白湯らーめん)

On this Tuesday evening, I met Ben to continue our Ra-Sai. This led us this time to Toyonaka at Hotarugaike station, an area I know well for having lived nearby during one year, and famous in the ramen world for the miso-ramen star Mitsukabozu. I had never noticed Hoi before though, and the ramen festival was the perfect occasion to fix this mistake. Hoi specialize in a tori paitan that they prepare in a shoyu version (that Ben ordered), and a shio one (that I took). Let’s compare.


Broth: My broth was very good, but Ben’s one was just excellent, as it had some additional fishy (niboshi and katsuo) essence in the tare – I did not recognize the niboshi, but it gave a delicious smokey twist.

Noodles: Thin and not too hard, this enhanced the general Kyoto-ramen feel of the bowl (although they were not as soft as Kyoto noodles).

Meat: OK, here those bowls go way over the top, with three meaty toppings. First, a delicious slice of peppery, smoked duck (with a thick layer of fat, in a French "magret" style). Second, a meatball with very pleasant gingery notes. Third, a nearly raw slice of chicken breast. I must say that I was less convinced by the last one (and it’s not because it was half raw - I loved chicken tataki at Junk Story, for example), although it was an interesting experience.

Toppings: My bowl had some smoked saba with aosa nori - was it a dream or did it somehow taste like parmesan? You also get some mizuna leaves for a fresh twist, and some pleasant notes of crunchy white onion. Finally, there are some very small hanakatsuobushi on the noodles, barely seeable.

In conclusion, an excellent ramen - but I recommend ordering the shoyu version.

More info on ramendb.

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