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2019-01-19
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I love ramen. So when a new one opens up (especially if I KNOW it originated from Japan), I'll make it a mission to give it a try. 一幻拉麵 (English name: Ebisoba Ichicgen) hails from Sapporo, Japan. Specializing in shrimp based broth, it garnered attention among other ramen fans as it is one of the top favorite ramen shops in Japan. When it first opened in Wanchai, there was a long queue. And then after about a month later? The shop was empty. Another branch opened in Tsim Sha Tsui. In a mall no l
一幻拉麵 (English name: Ebisoba Ichicgen) hails from Sapporo, Japan. Specializing in shrimp based broth, it garnered attention among other ramen fans as it is one of the top favorite ramen shops in Japan. When it first opened in Wanchai, there was a long queue. And then after about a month later? The shop was empty. Another branch opened in Tsim Sha Tsui. In a mall no less. Again there was no one in line. Usually when a new place opens with a lot of attention, the queues last for quite a while. But here? Not one month and it became quiet.
Why?
Boyfriend and I came to this branch to decide for ourselves.
Seating is extremely spacious with a very red based color scheme. They do have hook for your bag but wow ... it was deep inside as the table was deep. I practically had to crawl underneath to hang my purse. There is a water tap in in front of each seat that offers cold water. A plus!
Menu is in English, Chinese and Japanese. Price of the ramen is $88 and includes half an egg and two slices of char siu.
Ordering is in the form of a piece of paper you check off. You can choose the strength of the soup and if you want miso, salt or soy sauce. They also offer a half portion if you want a smaller portion. But WHY?? You can also add green onion and something called ginger tempura.
I chose the ebi soba with a mild soup and salt with a thick noodle. I also had green onion and the ginger tempura. It smelled fantastic when it arrived. A strong fragrant scent of shrimp wafted up my nose. Taking one sip of the soup? It lacked the taste of shrimp. No flavor of the shrimp came through. In fact, it was weak tasting. The noodles were chewy but it still had the bitter after taste of too much starch as it wasn't drained properly. The egg was also disappointing. The yolk wasn't runny and bit too over cooked. It wasn't marinated. The char siu was sadly the only redeeming feature. But even that I've had better char siu elsewhere.
This was sad and clearly disappointing. I've not had the one in Japan (as I've yet to go to Hokkaido) but I suspect this is a far cry from the original. Was it better when it opened? As sometimes I feel quality always decreases with time in Hong Kong. Whatever the case, I can see why the queues died down so quickly. Why the ramen fans weren't interested. This was not worthy of a repeat visit.
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