Hokkaido Ramen Santouka @ Pavilion KL

The ramen craze continues :)....

It does feel like there have been a lot of new (porky) ramen restaurants opening in KL lately, don't you think so?

One such place is Santouko, professing their own unique blend of Hokkaido ramen**. It's not too hard to find - just go up to the 6th floor of Pavilion and look for the (new) giant, red neon lit Japan Street section - its filled with little shops and restaurants, but its not a large area:
(** Apparently the Santouko ramen chain is pretty famous/established in Japan)
Mostly food/restaurants, with some shops and a big Daiso at the end....
It's comfortable inside, but pretty much just like any other above average Japanese casual restaurant:
Modern, casual Japanese restaurant setting....
We tried both the classic, Shoyu Ramen (Medium) (RM 25+), and the not quite so classic, Kara Miso Ramen (Medium) (RM 27+):
The classic Shoyu Ramen....
The Kara Miso Ramen - Looked oily but tasted good....
The ingredients that make up a Shoyu Ramen soup (mixture of pork broth and soy sauce) is not exactly groundbreaking but the key difference is in the execution - here, the broth is fragrant, slightly "heavy" (in a good way) from all the melted porky goodness but without being overpowering or too salty. The noodles were also a good texture - bouncey enough although just slightly over al dente, and the slices of pork cha shu were tender and tasty.
(Seems a bit expensive though, if you consider the small serving size, but its surprisingly filling)

Still, I preferred the spicy Kara Miso Ramen, if for no other reason than the fact that I like spicy food. :)
(Similarly, the broth was thick and yummy, just with a little extra "kick")

Do note that the Green Tea (RM 4+) is not refillable here... They serve it in a rather large bottle though so I don't think it'll be a problem:
Some energizing green tea to (hopefully) melt all the fat away....
I had a wonderful night - especially as I had wonderful company and equally wonderful surprise company at the next table. :)
(What a small world - Ran into a dear old friend of mine from university days, and he was seated right at the next table! I just sat down, looked up and we were like "Oh! It's you!")

So it's: Modern casual Japanese ambience, fairly friendly service, a (supposedly) famous Japanese ramen chain BUT nothing really bad, just that the menu is limited/ focused and seems a bit small serving (although filling) for the price......

Restaurant Review
Summary Sheet:

Hokkaido Ramen Santouka @ Pavilion, KL

6.24.03, 6th Floor (Tokyo Street Section), Pavilion Shopping Mall, 168 Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur

Taste: 7
Ambience : 6
Service : 6
Price** : RM 40++ per person
Parking: OK

** Approximation - 3 course meal, excluding drinks
Telephone No.: 03-2143 8878
Opening Hours: 11am - 10pm
Official Website: Click here :)

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OTHER REVIEWS:
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- me and the world
- KY Eats
- Eat Drink KL
- Eat your heart out
- Sabashii Senshi Lonesome Warrior


TAGS: Food, Blog, Weblog, Malaysia, Restaurant Review, Hokkaido Ramen Santouka, Japanese, Pavilion Shopping Centre, KL, Kuala Lumpur