Kukan (Narara-ken, Nara-shi)

麺屋空間
めんやくうかん
Menya Kuukan

Mazemen: 16 / 20

This time, it was decided: I would go to Mitsuba! This famous ramen restaurant a few stations away from Nara, at Tomio, happened to be close last time I try to go there – but it was 2 pm, so that was understandable. As I drew near around 12:20, I was surprised not to see anyone queuing. Hmm, strange. Anyway, I enter the restaurant, get ready to pay my ticket at the machine when the waiter comes to ask me if I have a reservation ticket: all tickets for the day had already been sold out by 11:30, as he told me – unbelievable!

On the other side of the road, a huge queue of probably similarly disappointed Mitsuba-wannabe-eaters were queuing in front of Hanayama, which didn't looked bad either – but there was no way I would be waiting behind twenty-five people. Thus, I decided to turn to this well-kept secret I had found last time, Kukan, and use this opportunity to try their mazemen (be informed that they also offer tsukemen, tonkotsu shoyu ramen, tonkotsu shio ramen, chuka soba…).

Sauce: Quite good, it had a pronounced taste of sesame.

Noodles: Firm, whole grain and good quality

Meat: A few cold bits of firm chashu, with a nice macerated taste.

Egg: One raw egg to mix with the rest.

Toppings: Some excellent bits of fresh, warm bamboo (not menma, apparently), as well as the regular negi.

 

The whole mix was quite good, not too salty, and the egg gave a nice viscosity to it. You can also add some laiu and vinegar, but I don’t think that it brings much more to this bowl – it is already very good as it is.

I still have to eat a bad mazemen, and this was no exception to the rule. Kudos for the use of fresh bamboo!

More info on ramendb.

Other review: Philoramen (for the shio lemon ramen)

Amanojaku (Nara-ken, Nara-shi)

麺屋あまのじゃく(本店)
めんやあまのじゃく
Menya Amanojaku (Honten)

Shio-tonkotsu ramen: 18 / 20

Miso ramen: 17 / 20

When I was looking for lunch for an alternative to Mitsuba around (see my former post), I had noticed this restaurant with its remarkably high critics, but it was unfortunately closed for lunch. No problem at all: when I came back from Nara with my friend after Yamayaki, we decided to stop there and try their various tonkotsu dishes. After more than 30 minutes waiting (this restaurant is popular, and it was Saturday evening!), I ordered the shio tonkotsu, and my friend the miso tonkotsu.

Broth: Wow! An assari tonkotsu, intense in taste but light in texture, very milky – exactly the kind of tonkotsu I love. You know, someting from the Ippudo/Ishimanji family (rather than classical Hakata style) – but this one beat them! Seriously, it may be the best tonkotsu ramen of this style I ever had. I just regret it was slightly too salty.

Noodles: A bit too soft to my tatste.

Meat: A delicious slice of crumbly meat, braised and with the right amount of fat – again, the kind of chashu I love!

Toppings: A few menma, soft but with some hard fibers and a classical taste – not the best menma I’ve had, I must say, and kind of the letdown of this otherwise awesome bowl. You can also help yourself with some seasonings of all kinds - dried garlic flakes, ginger, different kind of sauce... there was more choice than in a good Hakata ramen shop!

The miso ramen of my friend had the same broth (although mine had a little bit of some juice sprinkled onto the broth – maybe the shio tare that for one would not be mixed in the soup?), and some added miso – it gave an interesting twist, which I would recommend to miso fan; but as for me, I preferred the tonkotsu-shio.

So, very briefly: this is the best tonkotsu broth I had in Kansai, and possibly anywhere else. A new favorite, too bad it is so much out of the way.

More info on ramendb.

Other reviews: The Semishigure

Kukan (Narara-ken, Nara-shi)

麺屋空間
めんやくうかん
Menya Kuukan

Lemon (shio) ramen: 15 / 20

It is difficult to screen good ramen restaurants in Nara prefecture, as few of them got many reviews on ramendb. There was however this place, Mitsuba, that stood up and was conveniently located near Tomio station, on the Kintetsu line from Osaka to Nara. Unfortunately, when I arrived there, it was already close (and as I would find out a couple of months later, the soup is usually already finished by 11:30 on week-ends! yes, you read right, 11:30) There were some other good options, but they were either already closed for lunch or offered only jiro style (and my stomach was begging me not to order a jiro), so I turned to the unkown at Kukan. Good surprise: on the second floor, it happened to be a very pleasant, spacious restaurant, with the atmosphere of an American diner, decorated with some comics figurine. They offer quite a diversity of dishes, and I was very tempted by their mazemen, but then I noticed they had a shio lemon ramen. What, lemon ramen?! I’ve never tried that, I have to!

Broth: As the name says, this is a shio ramen (made from torigara) flavored with lemon – a definitely interesting and refreshing twist. You even get a few slices of lemon in your broth that you can press for more zing, but I do not recommend doing so - the broth tastes enough lemony like that and it would become overpowering. A little bit too salty though.

Meat: Two slices of a firm, delicious chashu, with just the right amount of melting fat.

Toppings: Some long white negi and microgreens.

This simple but good lemon ramen was an excellent surprise; I definitely recommend this convivial place, especially if you are with friends.

More info on ramendb.