WHAT WE ATE
- Spicy Tsukemen – 70/100, Yuzawa
- Miso Ramen – 60/100, Yuzawa
Featuring their prideful homemade Tsurumochi noodles, Shimadaya’s culinary artisans masterfully employ the esteemed Sanuki udon manufacturing method, marrying tongue-smoothness with robust thickness. Their medium-thick noodles, generously hydrated, offer a seamless fusion of silky texture and satisfying firmness.
By infusing “Niigata Koshihikari rice flour” into the kneading process, their “homemade original noodles” achieve a delightful chewiness that’s reminiscent of Udon.
The pièce de résistance, their “creamy Tonkotsu Soup” tsukemen, showcases a luxurious, velvety pork bone soup meticulously prepared at 136 degrees Celsius under precise pressure control. Paired with their thick noodles, this culinary masterpiece guarantees a memorable dining experience.
Spicy Tsukemen – 70/100
Noodle: 25/35
The medium-thick, rounded noodles of the Tsukemen offer a delightfully chewy texture reminiscent of Udon. Served with the option of hot or cold noodles, opting for the cold variation ensures prolonged chewiness. While the noodles boast a pleasant wheat flour flavor, a distinctive watery Kansui taste emerges, likely attributed to the cold treatment.
Soup: 25/35
The soup, a rich and salty broth meant for noodle dipping, delivers a fiery spicy kick followed by lingering savoriness. Infused with a subtle nutty sesame aroma, the broth’s intense spiciness can quickly overwhelm the palate, building up with each bite – place yourself out!
Special sauces provided include:
- Special vinegar sauce: Adding a cautionary note about portion control, this sauce mellows the spiciness while introducing a savory sweetness that enhances the umami profile.
- Secret sauce: A dark, salty concoction reminiscent of Shoyu, intended to enrich the soup’s depth. While subtle in flavor, excessive addition results in heightened saltiness, necessitating conservative use.
Labels on the sauce literally says special and secret sauce. 😉
Meat: 15/20
The firm, borderline dry meat boasts a strong marination, exuding a savory-sweet taste reminiscent of “bakkwa” as it’s chewed. While the texture may lean towards dryness, the robust flavor compensates for any textural shortcomings.
Topping: 5/10
Thick and chunky bamboo shoots contribute a salty, savory element without any unpleasant aftertaste. An optional addition of flavored egg, served cold, fails to complement the Tsukemen well, feeling out of place and featuring a slightly dry yolk. Consider skipping this topping for a more harmonious dining experience.
Miso Ramen – 60/100
Noodle: 20/35
The noodles used are medium thin and clearly not the same noodles as it’s tsukemen. The bite is snappy but a little on the doughy side and doesn’t maintain its firmness well in the soup. It has a nice wheat taste.
Soup: 25/35
The soup is rich and thick. It has a sweet and savory head with faint spicy note from the chili flakes. It also has a subtle nutty and earthy undertone in it.
Meat: 10/20
The meat is different here as well. It’s firm yet tender, and is juicier than its dry counterpart in the tsukemen. However the marination is also thinner to compliment the lighter soup. The taste is average and nothing extraordinary or particularly memorable.
Topping: 5/10
The other toppings includes sweet corn, bean sprouts and Onions. The taste of the toppings are quite subtle here against the very rich broth. The same review of the optional egg topping applies here as well – served cold, dry yolks and skippable.
DISCLAIMER
One man’s meat is another man’s poison.
Find out more about our palettes and how we evaluate our ramen here. 😉
