Hakata Gensuke (Russell Street)

Hakata Gensuke (Russell Street)

I NEVER thought that I could ever acquaint ramen broth like fine champagne but that’s exactly what came to mind when I first slurped the tonkotsu from Melbourne’s popular Hakata Gensuke in Russell Street. I ventured there with Ramen Girl and the “Commish” (a mate 

Ra Ra

Ra Ra

I ADMIRE non-Japanese learning the art of perfecting Japanese dishes. Take American Ivan Orkin for instance who set up two ramen-ya in Japan (which got a cult following), and then packed everything up and moved back to New York City to open back in the 

Ichibanboshi

Ichibanboshi

I CAN still remember where I had my first ramen. It was at Japanese noodle chain Ichibanboshi’s Sydney restaurant and it was its Tokyo-style ramen – a light soy- based and filling soup that introduced me to ramen. I’m pretty sure a lot of Sydney-siders 

Hakataya Ramen

Hakataya Ramen

DOWN a flight of stairs off Brisbane’s busy shopping district of Queen Street Mall lies a branch of Hakataya Ramen – a southern Japanese ramen-ya chain that has nine ramen-ya in Queensland spread from the Gold Coast up to Brisbane. Hakataya was one of the 

Taishoken in Higashi-Ikebukuro (東池袋大勝軒)

Taishoken in Higashi-Ikebukuro (東池袋大勝軒)

NO journey to Tokyo is complete for a ramen zealot without making the pilgrimage out to the suburb of Ikebukuro to pay homage to the home of tsukemen at Kazuo Yamagishi-san’s ramen-ya – Taishoken. This is the place in 1961 where Yamagishi-san added the now 

Mugi to Olive (むぎとオリーブ)

Mugi to Olive (むぎとオリーブ)

IT’S exciting to be in Japan at the height of the country’s ramen revolution where young and not so young ramen-ya chefs are being recognised for their innovation and cutting-edge bowls not only by long queues of zealots but also by renowned publications such as 

Red Dragon Ramen

Red Dragon Ramen

I WASN’T sure what to expect or if it was the right thing to do – having a bowl of steaming tonkotsu ramen in such a hot and humid place as the Indonesian island of Bali. Red Dragon Ramen prides itself on serving Yokohama-style ramen 

Shujinko

Shujinko

SHUJINKO fascinated me because this Melbourne 24-hour ramen-ya boasts as being able to continually serve ramen zealots bowls of ramen and tsukemen from dawn to dusk and throughout the night. I had aspirations to test whether Shujinko could deliver quality ramen at an insane early 

Gumshara

Gumshara

Like Japanese Anime and Manga, Gumshara, a hole-in-the-wall ramen-ya in Sydney Chinatown’s ‘Eating World’ hawker centre has a cult following. Gumshara only sells ramen (and only a small, niche variety – just under a dozen). Its cult following is due to the stock which Japanese 

Menya Noodle Bar

Menya Noodle Bar

Menya Noodle Bar is a place that I eat regularly when I get a ramen craving (which can be quite often as it’s a five minute walk from my office), and was the first “ramen-ya” I ever went to in Sydney. When you enter Menya