Thursday, July 20, 2017

TARO'S RAMEN ASCOT

1/145 Racecourse Rd, Ascot QLD 4007 
Open every day for Lunch 11:30am–3pm, Dinner 5:30–9pm 
Phone: (07) 3868 2833 
http://www.taros.com.au

What better way to commence post matter on this blog than with what I consider to be the grand daddy of Brisbane Ramen- Taro's at Racecourse Road, Ascot. For two years I have been frequenting this Ramen-Ya and I don't think that I have ever been disappointed. This was the restaurant that essentially introduced me to a good Tonkatsu soup and is my benchmark for any restaurant attempting the style in Brisbane. 

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Main size selections are the Tonkatsu broth as standard, or with either a medium chilli paste or hot chilli paste added, a veg and chicken based broth with either shio, shoyu or miso seasoning, a single or double portion in tsukamen style, and a couple of vegetarian noodle dishes. Plenty of other sides are also available, including various gyoza, kaarage chicken, a couple of Japanese curry dishes, some tofu variations, takoyaki, various cold salads and a few other things. The drinks menu is extensive with a range of authentic imported bottle and can beers as well as a tapped Suntory number. There are also various sake and plum wine options and non alcoholic soft drinks. There's also a chilled water dispenser which is essential if you're not buying any drinks. No booze for me today though as I am on a lunch break from work.
With the aim to present as even an account of my visit as I can, today I opted to order the most basic option that they present- simple Tonkatsu Ramen with no additions, though I did change some aspects at no extra cost. I opted for 'harder' noodles (I like 'em chewy) and 'extra salt' (I like it salty). Anyone who has visited the Racecourse Road store should know that they offer a great range of optional soup extras at further cost including menma, extra egg, extra noodle in the bowl, larger overall portions, extra noodles on the side etc. I'd like to see the option of narutomaki (the only thing missing if you ask me). You can also opt for other things (at no cost) like softer noodles, harder cooked egg etc. Everything is ordered through iPad's that are available at each table that send the orders directly back to the kitchen.  I popped in today for a quick lunch break and they weren't overly busy so the soup landed in front of me in timely manner (around 5 mins).

What is plopped down is an attractive little presentation. I can more or less see a part of everything that is in the bowl. Inclusions are broth, noodle, a lovely soft piece of rolled chashu pork shoulder, one half egg, blackened garlic oil, a good portion of sliced spring onion, a square of nori and toasted sesame.
What I love in a good bowl of Tonkatsu is a pale, milky smooth, thick, fatty broth. Another word I like to use in my head which may not translate well is 'clean'. To me Taro's broth is very clean in that it's a pure, smooth pork flavoured broth, seasoned liberally with just salt from what I can tell, and not a lot else. The soup is reduced to near perfection, it's sticky and it clings to the lips just like an accomplished broth should. Made in house on a daily basis, the noodles are immaculately chewy and springy, arguably the best in the city. The pork shoulder is of the very traditional style, a braised Japanese chashu rolled pork shoulder, sliced quite thinly, and most likely re heated in the broth itself as it doesn't show any signs of caramelisation that might happen when grilled or torched. If I were to complain about anything, it might be that the pork portion is a little bit lacking compared to other Ramen joints in Brisbane, but it's hardly an issue for me. Of note is the fact that they use Bagalow pork here, it's super soft and falls apart in the mouth with not a lot of work. Possibly the softest in Brisbane. The egg is cooked to the correct standard, hard white, liquid yolk. I'd love to see it marinated for a little longer perhaps, but it's on par with just about every high end Ramen shop that I have experienced. Also included is a pretty mild blackened garlic oil. Not every place includes this as standard but they do here. While it's very dark, the flavour is not over powering like I have experienced at other shops, the portion is appropriate and adds just that proper amount of bitterness. Every single bowl of Ramen should be garnished with sliced spring onion and there's more than enough included here, along with a sprinkle of whole toasted sesame seeds.

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It's all served in a perfect noodle bowl that is very easily sipped from at the end of the meal. The chopsticks are the wooden disposable kind and work very well when attempting to pick up chunky portions of noodles. The soup spoon is a heavy, deep ceramic number. There's also an entire table inside devoted to various seasoning and condiments including chilli paste, sesame oil, mirin, soy etc, though it's hardly required with such a perfect soup.

I have read some people complain about the cost of this place, though today's bowl only cost me $15 which is on par with any other quality shop in Brisbane so I don't know where that's coming from. Maybe the issue lies in just how easy it is to make additions via the iPad which in turn is bound to blow out the cost. I have spent much more cash here before because of that alone. The base level bowl though has everything that you may get at any other shop, and the portion sizes are very comparable.

I have also read many people complain about the bad customer service here. Today was a quiet day so I can hardly complain about what service was offered during my stop. The meal arrived fast and was presented to me in a polite and cordial manner, the payment process was efficient and succinct. I have been here on insanely busy nights too, and I have no qualms with the service offered at those times (more or less the same as today). I think it's a bit rich to complain about these kinds of things when you're paying $15 for a bowl of noodles.

In terms of the overall vibe, I will say that this shop is just about the least atmospheric in all of Brisbane. It's a cold room with very little going on except for a wall of large sake bottles. Outside is no better, an alfresco setting, situated under an old weathered tarpaulin style cover, boxed in by retractable plastic wind shields. Again, hardly worth dwelling over when paying so little for a meal. I can't get a view of the kitchen from the dining room so I cannot comment on the cleanliness, but the the dining room seems very clean so I would hope the same of the back area. Parking is non existent so you may need to park around the block or down the street and walk up. Payment options include cash, card or pay pass via one of those Commonwealth bank tablets.

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I don't think that I need to go into detail when summarising this place. Despite a few of it's negatives as listed previously, it's my favourite in Brisbane if you couldn't already tell. The soup is pure and clean, the noodles are ideal, the options are many and overall if all you want is a quick, affordable, hearty bowl of Ramen, this is the place to go.
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RAMEN-YA!

I am a Brisbane, Queensland, Australia born, raised and residing thirty-something ex-chef with an affinity for quality and authentic Japanese Ramen. With the growing popularity of the dish in my home town and further beyond, I thought that it was about time that someone local began the task of chronicling the various venues that are popping up in the area at an ever increasing rate. I am not any kind of a professional writer by any means, so bear with me as I attempt to convey my opinion of the many great venues in Brisbane and beyond. While the focus on this blog will primarily be to write about the numerous Ramen-Ya's in Brisbane, it will be more than likely that I will also document any venues that I hit up interstate or abroad. The basis of most of my posts will likely stick with the following criteria (though they probably won't be in bullet form when I post about them):

  • Presentation: certainly not the most important aspect of the typical Ramen dining experience, but obviously the first thing to be taken into consideration when that bowl is plonked down in front of the diner is how the presented dish looks. I am a typical Australian chef by trade and a good chunk of my formal training has always centred around how the particular dish is plated/presented, so I am always fascinated by a good looking plate-up. I understand that there is only really so much that one can do with a bowl of soup and some noodles, but it's easy to see when the chef has just thrown it all into the bowl in a rush, and when they've taken the time and care to make it look good. There's a big difference. 
  • The flavour of the broth: above all, to me anyway, the most important thing about any Ramen is how the broth itself tastes. I am a self confessed Tonkatsu Ramen fiend so most of my reviews initially will focus on this Kyushu style broth. I would argue that this style also has the most potential to vary wildly in the flavour profile and there's simply no other cuisine anywhere in the world that beats a properly seasoned Tonkatsu Ramen. I've tasted heaven in Tonkatsu and I've also been let down a number of times. I will attempt to go into depth on this subject as there are so many factors to take into account.
18 hour Tonkatsu Ramen broth by Me.
  • Noodle texture: the third most important aspect of any quality Ramen (and I'd be surprised if anyone disagreed with me on this) is the quality of the noodle. There aren't many wholesale producers making their own noodles in this country, though there are a handful of restaurants making their own in house. Some connoisseurs will argue that the only good noodle is one made and then cooked fresh. I will admit that I've never had a bad noodle when handled in this manner, but in a hospitality environment where the luxury of being able to purchase a fresh noodle from a producer (like in Japan where it's obviously a lot more common) is a lot more scarce, I have zero gripes with a restaurant that knows how to properly cook a dry packet noodle. There are some absolutely horrible dry packet brands in the market that are easily identifiable (there's also some horrendous frozen fresh brands available too for arguments sake), though there are a couple of makers that produce a brilliant dry noodle with only wheat, salt and water. Extra points to restaurants that offer multiple noodle options (curly, straight, harder, softer etc) on their menus.
  • Inclusions in the Ramen: pretty self explanatory really- what else besides the basics are included in the soup as a menu standard? I would expect every single quality Tonkatsu Ramen to come standard with at least the broth, noodles, a hunk of pork, at least two types of vegetation, and at least one half egg. While on that subject...
  • Egg quality: I don't think that it's very hard to produce at least a moderately good Ajitsuke Tamago. I've done it myself many times. Cook it properly, to the correct timing, cool it quickly, and marinate it for long enough to impart those flavours. Arguably an iconic inclusion in any quality soup, it blows my mind when any restaurant that wants to present itself as a proper Ramen-Ya cannot produce a proper Ramen egg. Big points deductions for a shop that cannot complete this relatively simple task properly.
  • Value for money: in my experience so far, I don't think that I've ever been in a situation where I thought that the Ramen that I'd just eaten wasn't total value for money. Though in a mainstream Brisbane dining environment (and economy for that matter) where money is tighter than ever and many restaurants are charging a lot more for a lot less, this is a point that must be taken into account. I will list prices on my posts whenever possible.
  • Optional extras: what extras are available to have added to the soup itself? Extra egg? Extra meat? Extra narutomaki? etc etc.
  • Meat quality and cut: what type of meat are they using? What cut of that meat are they using? What is the quality of their chosen cut like and how do they treat it before presentation? Is it grilled? Or torched? Or blanched in the broth to re heat it? etc etc.
  • Range of broth types on the menu: as stated previously, I am a Tonkatsu Ramen man, and initially (on the first round of visits anyway) I will likely opt to post about this style exclusively, but as this blog progresses, I would like to start writing about Shio, Shoyu, Miso etc. With each post I will be mentioning how many styles are on the menu and in what manner they list them. 
  • Side dishes available: at the end of the day, we are really only here to talk about one thing- Ramen! And realistically, I don't really care if any particular shop doesn't offer anything else other than this. It is nice to be able to grab some dumplings, or edamame alongside my soup if I want to though.
  • Drinks available: I better be able to order a beer in a glass stein that has a handle to wash down my noodle soup.
  • Utensils used: It may sound silly, but what kind of bowl and chopsticks are used is really important to me. I'm a straight-from-the-bowl sipper and there are some bowls out there with odd shapes that just do not allow for this to happen in a clean manner. Points will go to soups serviced in bowls with full sipability. It's a similar story for chopsticks and soup spoons. I want wooden chopsticks that grip the noodles, no slippery plastic garbage, and I want to be able to sip from the spoon in a less than awkward manner.
  • Customer service: I am by no means any kind of critic when it comes to this. I don't need much from the staff when I am out for my dinner. Just take my order and let me eat. I will try and note anything out of the ordinary/unreasonable in what service is offered.
  • The shop layout and vibe itself: This one is both important to me, but then again not really. If I am dining in this country, it is really nice when the owner of the shop seems to have gone to a little bit of trouble to make his or her shop feel like a proper Japanese Ramen-Ya. Benches for the diners positioned around the central open kitchen, all facing in. Loren (flags) hanging in the doors, a classic Ramen ordering and payment ticket machine (haven't seen one is Aus yet though). With that said, as long as the food is good, the vibe of the shop is very secondary to me.
  • Cleanliness of the shop/kitchen: pretty obvious and important I think. I want to know that my meal was produced in a clean environment, just like anyone else would I hope.
  • Payment options: Maybe this seems petty, and at the end of the day I will not be rating shops based on this, but it can be a little frustrating sometimes when you find out after lining up for 10 minutes that the restaurant that you're in only accepts cash and you've only got your card. It's happened to me a couple of times before. A simple note of payment options will be made.

And with that, another Ramen blog is born. A few things to note before we get into this; Admittedly there are a limited number of venues to post about here in Brisbane. Realistically I could have it all covered within about 10-15 posts I think. The idea of this blog is just to build an accurate database of what is out there. So don't get too hopeful (initially anyway) for really frequent posting. As stated previously though, I will attempt to cover whatever I can when out of town also.
With that previous point, my fiancee has suggested that I cover content beyond just Ramen. I am still playing with this idea in my mind, but it is entirely a possibility that I will consider this down the track. If I decide on this idea though, extra content will likely still be devoted to Japanese cuisine (aka the best cuisine in the world). 
And finally, with the limited number of options in my home town, I will openly admit that apart from five dining experiences in Tokyo last year, the grand scope of my own personal Ramen eating experience does not extend beyond five or six shops here in Brisbane. Though with that said, those experiences are capped by what is arguably the best Ramen restaurant in Australia, coupled with two years of study, practice and reading that borders on obsessive.
If you're still here, and still interested in an Australian take on a Japanese icon, make the effort to follow this blog. Thanks.