Portions of Pi #2: Ramen
Hi again, it’s Hayley! I’m back this week with another review - and this time, it’s ramen!
Ramen originated in a Chinatown in Yokohama, and was popularised after WWII rice shortages. There are a lot of regional differences in preparation and taste, but the typical bowl of ramen has a rich, creamy, and umami taste, with long noodles, pork chashu, a marinated ramen egg, and occasionally bamboo shoots, seaweed, and black fungus.
One of my initial concerns with coming to London as an Asian student was that I wouldn’t be able to find quality ramen in London - and I really didn’t know how I was going to survive these three years without a comforting bowl of broth every now and then! Thankfully, I’ve found a really good spot (and it’s near campus too). Read on to find out where it is…
Bone Daddies Soho
But let’s start with the spots that aren’t worth the spend! After seeing Bone Daddies recommended on TikTok, I decided I had to give it a try - but was sorely disappointed. I got the Spicy Miso Tonkotsu (on the right). £15.70 gets you a large bowl of QQ ramen noodles, half a ramen egg (stingy!), a large cut of pork chashu, marinated pork mince, and a heaping scoop of black garlic chilli oil. For those with a poor spice tolerance, don’t fret! The promised spice was so minimal you could barely register it. Despite the sizable portions, my gripe with this restaurant was that it tasted completely inauthentic. The broth was intensely salty, it made you feel like your arteries were clogging up with every sip. Meanwhile, the chashu - in my opinion the key determinant of a quality ramen - was so thick and dry, I could well have been chewing on cardboard and not noticed the difference.
For these reasons, I’d only rate Bone Daddies a 3/10.
Tonkotsu Stratford
Next up, I tried Tonkotsu. It’s a large chain with a number of outlets, so you don’t have to travel all the way to Stratford like I did (unless you’re desperate to catch a glimpse of UCL East!). I ordered their Tokyo ramen for £14.95, which came with noodles, half a ramen egg (is egg-frugality a standard for London?), a few slices of marinated pork belly, and a couple of bamboo shoots. I personally really liked the bamboo shoots - I don’t see them very often in London, and they give a nice soft bite that breaks up the monotony of the noodles. Broth-wise, I found the chicken-shiobase a lot more light and refreshing than a typical tonkotsu broth, so I’d recommend this ramen if you aren’t super hungry or cold.
The star of the show for me was the marinated pork belly. I found it to be different from the regular chashu: this pork belly had a sweet glaze on the skin that melted into the succulent fattiness of the belly cut.
Less impressive, however, was the portion size - it was by far the smallest when compared to the other restaurants’ offerings. Despite this, I’d give it a stronger 6.5/10.
Ramen Moto
And now for the best place I’ve found so far: Ramen Moto along Charlotte Street! I ordered their Miso Ramen for £17.99, making this the priciest bowl on the list. It came with springy noodles, chicken breast, pork chashu, a scoop of corn, black fungus, and a full two halves (!!) of a ramen egg. The addition of the chicken breast seemed strange to me at first, but it wasn’t dry in the slightest and actually served as a nice contrast to the chashu (which could’ve been softer in my opinion). In fact, Ramen Moto specialises in chicken broth instead of the usual pork broth, putting their own twist on Sapporo-style ramen. Interestingly enough, I still got rich and creamy notes from the broth, making this the perfect warming dish for a cold early-spring day.
Out of all the places I’ve listed, Ramen Moto is the only one I’ve been actively anticipating returning to. Its proximity to campus and wide menu range (I recommend Shio Yuzu Ramen for something more refreshing; one of their many different types of onigiri if you’re not too hungry) has cemented it as a solid 8.5/10.
Bonus: Marugame Udon
While Marugame isn’t exclusively a ramen place, I’ve included it on this list because of its popularity! If chewy noodles are more your style, I’d say Marugame is a good place to head to, because of their udon specialty. I got a regular Tantan Chicken Udon for £13.25 and added on a Pumpkin Korokke (croquette) for £1.65. Marugame is very student budget friendly - besides their lower prices, you can sign up for their loyalty programme, which guarantees you rewards the more you dine with them.
Taste-wise, I enjoyed my meal quite a bit: the tantan broth was a bit too salty for me, but it compensated with bonito flakes which gave it a good smoky aftertaste. It came with udon noodles, a handful of vegetables, and a nicely-poached egg. The Pumpkin Korokke was exactly as expected: sweet on the inside and crispy on the outside. Get it if you’re craving croquettes (like I was!). Otherwise - I’d leave it; the price was a bit too much for the size.
As a whole, I’d rate the meal a 7/10.
Final Thoughts
I hope this review has put some places on your culinary map next time you’re debating where to eat. Spring has thankfully arrived, but there’s still plenty of time to enjoy a steaming, comforting bowl of ramen before temperatures start rising again.