Our very first taste of yuzu ramen was many many years ago at Afuri (阿夫利) in Roppongi Hills. It took us a while to find the small shop in the basement level, but our search was rewarded with an amazingly bowl of yuzu-scented broth, topped with semi-molted ajitama and a fatty piece of blowtorched chashu.
Whenever we find ourselves back in Tokyo, we always try to make a trip down to Roppongi Hills to remind ourselves how much we enjoy a simple but flavourful bowl of yuzu shio ramen.
When Afuri opened finally branched out in Singapore, we were naturally quite excited and trooped down to Funan Mall to relive our taste memories. Unfortunately, something got lost in translation and we left disappointed.
It just didn’t taste the same as the many bowls that we had in Roppongi, and we resigned ourselves to having the real deal only after Japan finally opens up to tourists. Which seems like it might take quite a while, to say the least.
So you can understand our joy when The Wife noticed a special promotion by Ippudo featuring not just one, but two (!) different flavours of yuzu ramen. As you know by now, The Wife has an incurable yuzu addiction, and immediately bought the coupon.
Armed with the digital coupon, we headed down to the Ippudo branch at the basement of Raffles City Shopping Mall. The ordering process had gone fully digital, like many restaurants nowadays, and we scanned our QR code to access the menu.
We were surprised that the two yuzu ramens were nowhere to be found on the menu, but a quick check with our waitress cleared up our confusion. They were unlisted and the only way to order them was via the Chope Deals coupon, which she had to manually key into the order entry system.
It felt like we were ordering off a secret menu, making them even more desirable. While waiting for our noodles, we ordered eihire (grilled sting ray fins) and gyoza.
The gyoza were smaller and less crispy than we remembered, and we probably wouldn’t order them again. The eihire was a welcome surprise as we don’t usually see it on the menus of Japanese eateries in Singapore. It was a bit too salty, though to be fair, it’s meant to be eaten as a snack with alcohol.
As we were munching on our appetisers, we had to consciously remind ourselves not to raise our expectations too high, given how badly Afuri at Funan Mall had let us down.
First to arrive was the Yuzu Shio Ramen, topped with sliced chicken breast, half an egg, some wakame seaweed, shredded leeks and slices of yuzu zest. The broth was mostly clear with small blobs of oil floating on top.
When eating ramen, the first step is to start with a spoonful of the broth, and it was love at first sip. It didn’t look particularly impressive, but the chicken stock had such depth and richness that it must have been simmering for ages.
Despite the intensity of the stock, it still managed to somehow retain a certain lightness and not seem cloying. The citrusy bitterness of the yuzu was also able to stand out, giving it an unmistakable Japanese character.
The slices of chicken breast were unbelievably tender, almost as if they were cooked sous vide. Maybe they were, because if not, I really don’t know how they could achieve that amazing texture.
It was the best bowl of yuzu ramen that we’ve ever had. Even better than the yuzu ramen from Afuri in Roppongi. Actually, come to think of it, it’s probably the best bowl of ramen that we’ve ever had. Period.
With such an impressive opening act, the Yuzu Tonkotsu Ramen was bound to pale in comparison. I usually prefer tonkotsu ramen over shio or shoyu ramen, but not this time.
If we had eaten the tonkotsu ramen first, we’d no doubt be impressed. Because the addition of yuzu to the pork broth helped cut through the heavy richness, and added a nice citrusy mouthfeel.
But when you have it just after the ethereal shio broth, it comes across as clumsy and heavy-handed. It also didn’t help that the chashu was not as soft and juicy as we’d expected. Perhaps it was too lean a cut, with not enough fat.
After we finished both bowls and drained the last drop of broth, we sat for a while to digest and sip on our tea. The huge sake fridge caught my attention and I walked over to check out their surprisingly large collection for a ramen shop.
I know where to go the next time we’re in the mood for a sake tasting session.
As we were leaving, we asked the cashier if the yuzu shio ramen would be put on their regular menu. She replied that there were no plans to do so, and that this was a special menu item to celebrate their 36th anniversary.
We told her that it was so much better than the equivalent at Afuri, even the one in Tokyo, and her eyes opened wide in surprise. She replied that she would definitely send our feedback to the kitchen.
That was back in December last year, and it looks like our positive feedback worked! Well, sort of.
I just saw their Facebook post below, announcing the extension of the yuzu ramen on their (not secret) menu until 31 January 2022. It’s not a permanent addition to their regular menu, but hey, it’s already a big win.
We’ll definitely be back to grab a few more bowls before they run out; and if you’re a yuzu ramen fan too, you might want to do the same.
