Nagahama No. 1 Ramen     長浜No.1拉麵  

I used to really like Nagahama No.1. Their broth is meant to be slightly less rich as a tonkotsu pork based soup by default. Also when compared to the nearby 熊本 Kumamoto which uses black garlic oil.

.

Came for dinner with a half-full/half-empty stomach, after just having had tea an hour or so ago. But it was still good. If I came with an empty stomach it would've been um. Very good.

Environment:Cosy, tight space. Low ceiling at the back but higher ceiling at the shop front (iirc). The kitchen is an open kitchen and you can see the chefs but...you can't see what they're doing behind the counter at all. No fun. But they sometimes yell.

Service:
Friendly and helpful.

Food:
The essential tonkotsu ramen $72The ramen is offered 5 ways - in varying degrees of 'hardness'. You can choose whether or not to add garlic, sweet oil or onion (no additional charge). You can also throw in a soft drink for an additional charge.First things first: try broth. Visual inspection: no oil (as specified on ordering form), check. Opacity: high, check. Milky: check. Temp - hot, but does not scald; taste: mm. a small sip of decadence in a bowl. I have no idea how many ingredients went into this broth nor how long they cooked it but that doesn't really matter does it when it tastes so amazing hehee. I chose the hard ramen as G suggested because I didn't want it to get soggy when soaked in broth for too long. I eat slow. The ramen, as you can see, is white. Not sure how it differs from yellow ramen in terms of flavour but I enjoyed what I had.

The pieces of grilled pork were extremely fatty and it was a pity because I prefer lean pork. I had to discard most of the round because it had...too much fat. The slightly charred outer layer was delicious though, and the meat that wasn't pure fat was extremely tender and melted in my mouth.

Cutlet cheesy fishballNot impressed. It's the type of cheese-filled fishball-like thing you get at hotpots. There is really nothing spectacular about this cutlet. The cheese was oozy but this thing wasn't worth my calories.

Conclusion:
I will definitely be back; Nagahama ranks #1 in my list right now. Too bad MIST closed down I can't revisit it but! I heard it's opened in CWB under another name! Have yet to try.

This restaurant is located in the famous Kau U Fong, which is a place full of surprises; I have yet to try a rubbish restaurant in the area. The restaurant is small, it always full of people waiting, but it is reasonable, for the quality of food.

Cuisine: Japanese
Food rating: 4/10*
Service: 5/10
Ambiance: 5/10
Price: HK$80pax

* Food Rating: 6/10 is equivalent to 1 Michelin star, 8/10 to two Michelin stars, and 9/10 or 10/10 to three Michelin stars

辛味噌拉麵 (4/10)
The chef puts a lot of effort into the ramen, the broth is cooked properly (standard), perhaps stronger miso flavour would be preferable. Personally, I believe is lacked some sweet and freshness, if compare with Mist. The ramen is al dente and the pork was slightly not tender enough. I believe for a quick lunch/dinner this little restaurant would do the job, but if you looking for some top top quality ramen, MIST is always the top pick (shame that is close temporary).

Give me a thumbs up if you like it!

I arrived at around 1pm on Saturday. The restaurant was busy but a few seats were available, and thankfully no queue.

There is a basic choice of around eight ramen. The menu is only available in Chinese, however the order form has both English and Chinese (though there is little to explain the difference between the dishes). The sub-choices are not extensive (hardness of noodles, sweet oil, spring onions etc.) plus you can order extra mushrooms, egg etc. The broth is not too thick or salty. The pork is flavoursome. The portion is about right and the ingredients balanced. Condiments include sesame seeds, picked ginger and a spicy looking pickle (not sure what as I didn't try it). Chilled water is available on the tables, plus some (chilli?) oil.

The only question is the price. I had the Nagahama No.1 (I assume their signature deluxe ramen) for $98. Although good I would say it is slightly over priced, certainly compared to the competition/portion/ingredients. The service was friendly (which should not be sniffed at). The interior a little cramped but clean and modern.

Over all, worth a trip for lunch if your in the area.

應是全港第二間"長浜系"拉麵!
辣味噌有辣勁!
九州麵質算彈牙。
配料一般但不妨一試!

Good Hakata noodles;
Karamiso is better than most in Hong Kong
Not cheap but authentic. Good Service, Decent Decor;
Worth a try!

>>>>>>

Talk about dedication to food - I've written the draft of this review before my trip to Japan. I just returned and I can't wait to share my little discovery about Nagahama style ramen.

Nagahama style is a bit - not wildly - but just a bit, different from Hakata style ramen.



...

Between ButaO and Ippudo?

I went there during one hot lunchtime. Armed with my geographic knowledge of the area after visiting "Shugetsu", I was quite confident in being able to find the place.

This time it was relatively easy. It's at the end of the small street. Nice, quiet and sunny with trees on both side of the road. Some bouquets were placed outside the shop from afar so it was relatively easy to spot. There wasn't a long queue, just 4-5 ladies in front of me.

There was a seat for 1 right next to the entrance - perfect! That's one of the good things of dining alone.

A seat too far:Unfortunately, the serenity of the whole picture was disturbed by one of the ladies queuing in front of me.

She was arguing with the staff with all her might.

She was feverently and passionately pointing out to the staff, the apparent ridiculousness of allocating seats for 2 and seats for 1 first (allowing those customers to jump the queue) instead of clearing up a table for 4.

The lady and her companions were also blocking the small doorway as she was shouting at the staff - I couldn't get to the seat...

Perhaps the weather was very hot and she might have a point...... Anyway.... at the end of the day, it's a bowl of ramen. We hardworking Hong Kongers really need to find more ways to relax and chill out.

At this stage, I was seriously considering leaving this shop and to go for something random in the area. I eventually decided to stay.

It's quite a sad sight seeing the polite waitress being blasted for at least 5 minutes and still managed to keep her cool. She was able to resume serving other customers with a smile immediatly afterwards. That's strength of character. Keep up the good work!

After the lady got her table, I was just about to move towards the seat when another couple blocked the doorway...

They were peering into the small restaurant while blocking my way (I'd like to think that that was unintentional.)

After 2-3 minutes, I finally managed to slip in without stepping on other's toes (literally). I asked one of the Japanese waitress whether I could get the seat for one and I finally got it.

Phew...

[Note to restaurant: Sort out a proper queuing system please.]

Modern Decor

The place wasn't big. Just three seats facing the entrance with large paneled windows looking at the streets outside and about four to five tables (each for 4) inside the shop. The whole place was about 30% bigger than "Tatsuya" or "Tamashii".

Nice natural light. The shop was facing a garden and a three story building. Fairly relaxing. However, the tables placed further in the shop were more crowded. Tatsuya is more relaxing.

Menu:

They have 6 (or 7?) types of ramen so far. All those were tonkatsu based - Nagahama style:

1. Tonkotsu Ramen;

2. Tamago (Egg) Ramen;

3. Karashi Takana (spicy pickled mustard greens) Ramen;

4. Char Siu Ramen;

5. Kara Miso Ramen;

6. Special Tonkotsu Ramen (with every topping other than the spicy stuff);

7. (I didn't see it when I went there but it's now available)

Ranged between HK$75-85 if I remember correctly.Options:
You could choose:

1) The hardness of the noodle;
2) Garlic: Yes/No;
3) Chives: Yes/No;
4) "Special sauce": Yes/No
5) Spring onions.

I choose normal noodles with garlic, spring onions and special sauce without chives.
I also added an egg.

It arrived after about 5-6 minutes: Good presentation.

First a sip of the broth:

Broth: Tonkatsu based. A lot less oily than Ippudo but still very flavourful. It had a strong pork bone taste like the Shiromaru (the Original taste) Ippudo. Even if I've added garlic, it's still not as garlicky as David Ramen. I have to say it's very good. Those who find ButaO or even Ippudo too thick would appreciate the broth here. Very good quality! The pork bone broth itself was very similar to Tatsuya as well (I've recently discovered that both serve Nagahama style ramen - more about that later! )

My kara miso soup was quite hot! Nowhere near the "Hell Ramen" at Hinshou but at least 3-4 times hotter than Akamaru or New Akamaru at Ippudo. It's comparable to the "Red Dragon" (now known at the "Fire Dragon") at Tatsuya. However, the Red Dragon is kimchi based, whereas the kara miso here seemed to be toubanchang based. Both are very good! I'm very happy with the broth.

Noodles: They also serve the thin Hakata Style ramen as opposed to Chukka soba or Hokkaido style ramen.

I ordered "medium noodles". Those were just fine. The noodles weren't as soggy as David Ramen but not as hard at Tatsuya. Similar to the hard one I hard at Ippudo (Admiralty) - which wasn't that hard. If you like really hard, chewy, Hakata noodles, I suggest Tatsuya. Maru Tama at TST East is also very good.

As far as the texture of the noodles are concerned, I think Tatsuya is a little bit better than ButaO or Ippudo.

Egg: Unfortunately, the egg was very average. Not really runny but had some egg taste. Just a little bit better than what I had at "Rasupermen". I believe it was HK$15. Pricey. Not recommended.

Spring Onions (optional):

Decent. Not as fresh as those provided at Maru Tama the time I tried it (they seemed to specialize in it) but still very flavourful.

Char Siu:

The char siu was slightly grilled. I think it's decent but nothing spectacular.

Ippudo's were better. Similar to Tatsuya's (also not their strength). Definitely better than "rasupermen" though. All in all, it's OK.Condiments:

Konbu Shoyu? Very interesting. I initially thought it might be vinegar but turned out to be shoyu instead. It had a very interesting taste ( a little bit like shoyu with a little bit of yuzu?) - I suppose it's for the pure tonkotsu broth. They have this at the small ramen shop "Yuketei" as well.

A small pot of bean sprouts was placed in front of each customer. The taste was fine. Shugetsu also provide a similar type of pickled bamboo shoots but those here tasted much lighter. It's chili powder with a bit of toubanchang. One for each customer.

There is also black pepper if you wish to use it. It's typical for tonkotsu broths in some regions of Japan too.

Nagahama style!?

The reason for the title. Tatsuya also serves "Nagahama" style ramen. This is the second shop that sells Nagahama style ramen, Tatsuya is No.1 chronoligically.

Nagaham and Hakata are cities in the Fukuoka prefecture with the Hakata tonkotsu ramen style being the more famous one. According to the internet and my own experience, Nagahama ramen broths are typically

(1) Texture: less thick than Hakata noodles, i.e. ButaO and Ippudo.

(2) Taste: The Nagahama style tonkotsu ramen taste is mellower and less oily than Hakata style

(3) Colour: as you could see from photos of their original tonkotsu broths (which I haven't trieD), the colour is a lot more opaque than ButaO or Ippudo.

Tatsuya have a "Nagahama" ramen eating method but not here. It means you have three separate types of condiments depending on which noodle you ordered but the two fixed condiments were sesame and pickled vegetables (karashi takano). The restaurant suggested that you eat 20% of the ramen without adding anything, then add the sesame and have another 20% and finally the pickled vegetables for the last 20%.

You might know this already. But this Nagahama style is quite a revelation to me!

Good service:

Like I mentioned above, they have friendly waiters and waitresses who could remain calm under intense fire.

One of the waitress was Japanese. The other two waitresses were from Hong Kong. All were very polite.

The chefs were mostly Japanese, which adds to the authenticity.

They have a very polite waiter who offered to switch my seat from near the entrance (hot) to a relatively cooler seat at the corner.

Conclusion:

- Good service, small but not too crowded (but a bit noisy.)

- A bit pricier than Ippudo, similar to Tatsuya.

- Good Karamiso

- Remember it's "Nagahama" style: that means a mellower and less oily version than the Hakata style! The pork bone broth (toots) is whitish in colour. Don't be too shocked about it. It's more similar to it's Chinese origin (pork bone soup)

The Hong Kong ramen scene is getting more and more diverse!

Worth a try!



總評：

環境：　在【周月】附近。不難找。不算太多位。3個靠窗位。店內約有20個位。不算太寬敞，比【舞心】窄一點．樓底不太高．整體一般但有天然光。

湯底: 六(七?)款。全以長浜式的豬骨湯作湯底。比【一風堂】及【豚王】的清很多。較小油。但亦有鮮味。不錯!

配料:
蛋－ 幾乎全熟。
叉燒－ 不算太軟熟。只屬一般。
蔥－新鮮。
紫菜－有烘焙過的像．有鮮的鹽味。

麵條：　博多的直身，幼的拉麵。點了〔中度〕．比舞心硬身一點。提議點最硬的。滿意。

辣味: 用了辣味噌。有辣勁! 比【一風堂】及【豚王】辣。但不像【來】那樣死辣。挺令人上癮有點甜味的辣。 同是長濱系的【龍也】則靠泡菜及韭菜帶起辣味。我覺得【龍也】有多一點特色但【No.1】的仍相當不錯！

服務: 相當有禮。但好像沒有人專責編位。有打尖及暴動的可能性。

價錢: HK$70-$90(?)。配料一般所以不算特別抵食。

但辣味噌拉麵可以一試！

長浜系拉麵?

長浜及博多都在九州。兩個城市都用豬骨湯底及直身，幼的拉麵。

近日才知道原來長浜系拉麵是獨特一派的拉麵!!

長浜系拉麵的特色是:

1. 質感: 比博多系拉麵的少油很多及沒有那麼杰。

2. 食味: 質感很不同但仍很有鮮甜味。多數都有辛子高菜．

3. 顏色: 比博多系拉麵的清一點．有點透。

【龍也】應是香港第一間長浜系拉麵，有獨特的長浜拉麵食法提供（這裡沒有）所以本店是No.2!