Tonkotsu

Just came back from Tonkotsu having paid £22 for a bowl of ramen, gyoza and a beer. I have to say after all the hype, I was quite disappointed. The stock in the ramen was lacklustre, not thick and creamy like tonkotsu should be and the noodles were almost vermicelli thickness, not bad, but not what you would expect in ramen. Gyoza were fine, nothing amazing. However, for £11 for a bowl of ramen, I was expecting something special and didn't get it. Really does pale in comparison to the ramen you can get in Japan.

Agree with the poster above. This is not a great bowl of ramen. Very greasy stock that lacked any real flavour. And the gyoza was a total disappointment as well.

Forgot to rate it.

Tonkotsu: broth way too bland, lacking in both fat and collagen. What appears milky white at first quickly shows itself to be very thin, underseasoned semi-clear liquid once on the spoon. Noodles are the wrong colour and texture altogether, and lacking in body, which means they are firm at the beginning of the meal and quickly overcook in the broth as one is eating them. Wavy and pasty white, as opposed to straight and light yellow as they should be. Makes you wonder if they use alkaline water in the recipe at all. Sorry to say, but you could NEVER sell ramen this bad in Kyushu, or anywhere else in Japan for that matter. It would be a push even in NYC or California, where they have much better tonkotsu ramen establishments (such as Ippudo). I doubt this place will have any Japanese repeat-customers, none of my Japanese friends had anything good to say about this place, whereas nearby Koya has tons or Japanese regulars for its excellent, genuine udon fare. Granted, ramen is harder to get right than udon, and tonkotsu ramen is the hardest of them all, but that is no excuse for serving such lousy food. Also, at 11 quid a bowl a no affordable kaedama (extra noodles), this place is way overpriced. Avoid.

Really yummy - I had the pork gyoza, which were so delicious it was a struggle not to order seconds. The Tokyo spicy ramen was true to its name, also very tasty although the noodles themselves were nothing special. I think I've been spoilt by Koya in that department! I must also give special mention to the friendly, attentive staff and the very tempting and comprehensive beer list (as I was having lunch on a work day I resisted).

I do not normally post a review, but I feel I have to for Tonkotsu after having paid £11 for the worst ramen I have ever tasted in my life! I quite like katsu sando in Tsuru and when I heard the same owners had opened a ramen restaurant in Soho, I was pretty excited. I was already disappointed when pork gyoza arrived almost cold. Ok, these things do happen and the polite waiter brought a hot replacement pretty quickly. Ordinary gyoza, but harmless. However, the real problems started when ramen arrived. The broth was like water and noodles were like those out of pot noodles! I honestly do not understand how they can charge £11 for this rubbish. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.

****** Great articles keep up the good work.