Singapore Beat

Looking for the best delicious authentic ramen in Singapore? Then you cannot go wrong with Ramen Santouka, a Japanese ramen franchise located in The Central. Those who have eaten ramen in Japan will know the scarcity of such fare in Singapore, surprising considering the country never fails to boast of itself being the gastronomical paradise in Asia. But thanks to the availability of a handful of places, albeit not that widely known, ramen lovers in Singapore searching for something ramen heavenly close to Japan can now enjoy them at reasonable prices.

Ramen Santouka is one such ramen joint, and they hail from Hokkaido, Japan. They are a common sight in Japan itself, and have also been cooking up a storm in California, USA. Not bad, considering that they are what you would call a franchise. Fortunately, the quality of the ramen is high, and in Singapore, Ramen Santouka can easily be considered one of the best, if not the best, ramen shop that can be found here.

You can find Ramen Santouka in The Central, and contrary to what some may claim, they can be easily found on the second floor, in the left corner at the front portion of the building. The joint is pretty small, but that contributes to the authenticity of the place, together with the decor. They have a solid view of Clarke Quay if you are sat by the window, especially at night. Outside the shop, you can find the standard plastic displays of what they offer on the menu – good enough previews in case you are a ramen newbie.

Creating their reputation of having the best and most delicious ramen in Singapore, Ramen Santouka have their prized dish of the Tokusen Toroniku Ramen, which is basically Pork Cheek Ramen. What is so special about this? First of all, if you want to get a taste of Ramen Santouka’s Tokusen Toroniku Ramen, you had better arrive at the shop early. The pork cheeks come in limited supply, enough for about 60 servings a day. This prized meat cut is so soft and tender that they literally melt in your mouth when consumed. The pork is also marinated in shoyu and is just heavenly. If you were to mix it with the ramen broth, it also brings out more flavour that might have been hidden for less discerning tastebuds.

There have also been comments that the various broths (especially the shio and shoyu) offered with your choice of ramen at Santouka can be rather salty. If you want authentic Japanese ramen in Singapore, and tasty to boot, then this is exactly what you will get if you were in Japan itself. The fat or grease level in their broths are also moderate, and again, you will get the same experience if you were to have ramen in Japan. Afterall, the Japanese live longer than a Singaporean on average, so health concerns here are taken to extreme levels. If you want healthy ramen, try making it at home. For authentic and absolutely lip-smacking, noodle slurping, broth guzzling quality Japanese ramen to be had here in Singapore, try Ramen Santouka.

Service at Ramen Santouka is also quite adequate. Staff are polite and not overdone, unlike at other wanna be Japanese restaurants in Singapore. They provide a full jug of cold water at each table, no doubt for those who cannot stomach the saltiness of Japanese food. So, service-wise, they are definitely better than what you get from other local eating joints, which are basically not excluded from the poor service standards that are pervasive throughout Singapore.

Ramen Santouka’s Tokusen Toroniku Ramen was the first on the menu I tried. I will be going back for more, needless to say, and the quality of the other types of ramen they offer will be recorded here with time. But for the excellent dish that it already is, it would be a worthwhile trip to Ramen Santouka for some pork cheek ramen! They also have Sapporo beer and sake on the menu, handy to be had with your ramen. Unfortunately, the effect would have been better if Singapore had some cold weather. Of their other menu items, others have spoken highly of their gyoza, so they will be next on my must try list.

Ramen Santouka
#02-76, The Central

Categories: Food
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