The new outlet at Clarke Quay Central is Ramen Champion's first full-service restaurant and the only one to offer a free-flow salad bar. For a top up of $4 for every main course ordered, diners can enjoy a spread of over 20 dishes, from fresh greens to pasta, salads and the unanimous favourite mentaiko potato salad. Those with a sweet tooth would be pleased to know that the salad bar also includes desserts such as almond pudding with mango and houjicha pudding with matcha.
The newly minted outlet introduced the Ramen Ikkuyu series, which includes its signature White (original tonkotsu ramen), Red (spicy tonkotsu ramen), Black (garlic tonkotsu ramen), Green (Spinach Tonkotsu ramen)and Pink (beetroot and blueberries infused tonkotsu ramen). Much to our surprise, we had the opportunity to try the rarified Special Tonkotsu Pink Ramen ($15.80). It was a surreal experience seeing ramen noodles steeped in bright pink soup. Needless to say, I harboured suspicious initially; unable to fathom how the fusion of blueberries and beetroot together with pork bone broth would taste like. As I took a careful sip of the soup, it turned out to be a lot more flavourful than the regular tonkotsu base. Despite it's jarring appearance, the flavour of the soup took precedence. The thin noodles were coked perfection while tender char siew slices and ajitama egg took on the role of side kicks.
We also had the Salmon Tower Maki ($21.80). As an avid sashimi lover, it was extremely thrilling witnessing the tower of sashimi coming my way. While it was initially disappointing when I came to realise that the outer layers were salmon slices and the inside of the tower was composed of Californian maki, the combination of the two went down well, though nothing out of the ordinary.
Posing something a little different is the Fishermen Don ($21.80). Quite an uncommon dish in Singapore, the fishermen don originated from Ishikawa-ken in Japan and showcases fresh sashimi cubes perched atop warm Japanese rice. It might seem similar to a poke bowl, the only difference being that diners get a choice of blended sauce with their sashimi cubes. Choose from miso, sesame, wasabi and soy sauce, sauce mixes which you can add at your own liberty to your bowl. Certain procedures are advised to be adhered to when consuming this dish - When you're done with half the bowl, add in hot dashi soup (of bonito and kombu) and slurp away.
Last but not least, we made space for the Magma Ramen ($14.80), thick flat noodles doused in chicken broth and topped with an ajitama egg, mixed vegetables and minced meat. But that's not all, diners can choose a spiciness level from 1 to 20, 1 being the mildest (zero spice) and 20 being sweat-inducing spicy. The spice mixture composed of capsicum peppers, Japanese black pepper, chili padi, chili oil and Korean and Japanese chili flakes not for the faint hearted. I love that it's unequivocally suited for those looking to challenge friends and family. I took on a level 5 version and admittedly was turned off after just one slurp. The burning broth scorching the palate with unrequited love. That aside, I did enjoy the flat noodles as compared to the usual thin, curly ramen noodles.
Ramen Champion
Clarke Quay Central
6 Eu Tong Sen Street
#03-97/98
S(059817)
Operating Hours:
Daily: 11am - 10 30pm
Words and photos by Belinda Yong who wishes that every time of the day is food o' clock. She loves trying new cuisines and creations, and prays hard for a higher metabolism.
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