First Bite: Ramen Kuroda

It is so interesting how Manila became so crazy with ramen. You could tell with the spurt of ramen shops here and there. But one shop worth noticing is this quiet player which recently opened in Eastwood Cyber and Fashion Mall.

Hello, Ramen Kuroda!

This ramen shop first opened in the foodie hotspot Aguirre Street in BF Homes. But with the demand for this shop’s pocket friendly yet mouthwatering ramen bowls, they branched out and now has seven branches serving foodies in the north and south!

We got to the small shop around 5 pm and the place was rather packed with diners. We instantly got a table for our party of three though thanks to the friendly staff who were quick on their toes and put together the two small tables outside to accommodate us. 

Love at First Bite: Ippudo

I have been planning to visit Ippudo since it opened but the line was so discouraging. I could never wait for over an hour just for a bowl of ramen while my tummy’s staging World War 3. I figured that in a month or two, the line wouldn’t be as crazy. WRONG. But last Friday, which happens to be a pay day Friday the 13^th, there was no line at all. (Okay, it was 4 p.m. then.)

Finally!!! Hello, Ippudo!

First thing I noticed was the bar table perfect for solo diners. I think I just found my new favorite hangout place.

I was famished when we got there as I haven’t had lunch yet. So I decided to go for Shiromaru Motoaji Special (PHP480), Ippudo Pork Bun (PHP100), Ippudo Chicken Bun (PHP100) and Ippudo Hakata-Style Gyoza (PHP195).

First served was the gyoza.

It was served hot and it was juicy with a slight crunch on the fried parts. Yummy though it was more expensive compared to the gyoza of other ramen shops.