A media invite in my mailbox?
In normal circumstances, i would have nicely replied to say that i am uninterested and wish the establishment all the best in their new venture / offerings.
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However, a friend got wind of this Ramen Champion invitation and persuaded me to bring her along! I wasn't very willing but eventually relented. p.s. to that person, you owe me big big!
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Anyway, the purpose was for a food-tasting session attended by invited bloggers at Ramen Champion's newest outlet at Great World City, where four competitors would also enter the arena to trash it out in order to win the coveted championship in 2013!
Without further ado, I would start with the food now:
Bishamon Zero
Sapporo Miso Special Ramen
An existing competitor in this heated contest, Bishamon Zero offered Sapporo style ramen that had a broth cooked for a minimum of seven hours daily.
I didn't find anything exceptional about the broth (a tad too much spring onions though) although i must admit i am a great fan of thin noodles! The one thing i particularly enjoyed was its chashu; texture was incredibly soft with a sinful juiciness that any cardiologist would frown upon!
Tonkotsu Itto
Special Tonkotsu Ramen
Featuring Hakata style ramen (not that the style matters to me as i am not really one to go for authenticity), it was started by a Chef Sakamoto who has helmed a ramen stall that was ranked number one in the Japanese capital after merely three years.
The noodles were even better this time round even though you might wish to note that Hakata ramen is known for their rich and savoury pork broth! I, for one, didn't like the strong porky taste.
Miyamoto
Pork and Vegetable Ramen
A new entrant to the competition, the media write up i received only mentioned it originated from Tokyo and had received awards like 2012 Gurutto Chiba Most Impressive Ramen!
Similar to the thick ban mian noodles locals are accustomed to, this did not sit well with me. For a person who is forever trying to lose weight, the entire bowl looked too carbohydrate-heavy and i disliked it when the chashu was shredded into bits that greatly reduced the satisfaction of eating it whole!
Having said that, the broth was the healthiest-tasting and i actually quite liked the inter-mingling textures of soft noodles and the generous serving of crunchy beansprouts!
Butaou
Another new competitor; Butaou differentiates itself by introducing a sukiyaki ramen! Sukiyaki lovers should try this and decide for themselves if this is better than the traditionally savoury broth in authentic ramen.
Spicy Chicken
To be honest, there were other sides placed on our tables but i didn't take any pictures! My bad. Anyway, with regards to these spicy chicken wings, the texture was not as crispy as you would expect it to be from the pictures. I would go with 4fingers anytime although my friend absolutely adored its spicy yet flavourful juiciness!
Special Sukiyaki Ramen
Among the four ramen i tried that day, this was the best of the lot. Yes, it wasn't your orthodox kind of ramen and boasted a soup that was obviously more sukiyaki rather than pork-bone rich flavoured.
Nonetheless, the mee was damn nice due to its immersion in the broth's sweetness! There's one other item that caught me by surprise; the addition of fattening, thinly sliced pork that was comparatively better than Chashu as far as taste was concerned!
On second thought, wouldn't it be more worth my money to order a typical sukiyaki set from Japanese restaurants?
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Location
1, Kim Seng Promenade,
#01-22, Great World City
Map
As above
Opening Hours
11.30am to 10.30pm [Daily]
Pricing
Sapporo Miso Special Ramen - S$14.80
Special Tonkotsu Ramen - S$16.50
Pork and Vegetable Ramen - S$16.00
Spicy Chicken - S$5 (3 pieces)
Special Sukiyaki Ramen - S$16.00
[Subject to GST, i think]
Additional Information
Despite my resistance to attending media invited events, there are definitely some benefits in addition to the complimentary food tasting; for example, i got the above card-sized thumbdrive!
And i didn't have to feel embarrassed for holding other people up as everyone would be taking pictures for their own blog! But ask me to attend another media event and the chance is i would still turn down the invitation.
I honestly feel that i am socially awkward when it comes to such stuff!