The Ramen Chronicles - I
This post is the first in a series that will be continued throughout the trip.
Our first bowls of ramen in Japan came at a small ramen joint in Daikan-yama on the very first day. We were all tired from the long flight, and we wanted a quick on-the-go meal to satisfy our hunger. This particular place specialised in chicken ramen, with 3 basic bowls, each of which had a regular, extra egg, and “special” (all toppings) version.
As with quite a lot of ramen restaurants like this, just inside the door was a vending machine serving the little slips of paper that had your orders. You would put money in, press the button for what you wanted to order, and the little piece of paper would come out the bottom for you to hand to the waiter.
The restaurant was split into a bar (in front of the kitchen, where two chefs worked tirelessly to produce bowls of ramen), and a few tables. We sat at the closest table to the door and vending machine. The table had a small bottle of kelp vinegar and chilli oil as well as grinders of Japanese white pepper and regular black pepper.
The food came fast, and I mean fast. It was maybe 3 minutes between the server picking up the little slips of paper and him putting the piping hot bowls of soup down on our table.
It was good. I’m not entirely sure what I was expecting, but this was definitely past it. The soup was hearty and warm, while the noodles were filling and delicious. And the egg, it was just superb. No more needs to be said; it was delicious.
