The Geeky Momm: Ramen Nagi | Universal Ramen

Ramen girl strikes again. This time, I'm taking my next ramen adventure in Makati where I was treated for lunch. Hunting for a place to eat in Greenbelt is not easy. There are myriad of food choices to choose from and being a foodie, you don't know where to start. But seeing this huge red wall emblazoned with four kinds of larger than life bowls of ramen made us decide that this place is it.

History of Ramen Nagi

In September 2004, a small ramen shop opened its doors in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Initially open only on Tuesdays and offering a different limited ramen flavor every week, Ramen Nagi soon began to see long queues and quickly became one of the most talked-about spots in the area.

Founder and chef, Ikuta Satoshi, devoted all his time in his ramen creations, with the ambitious goal of bridging Japanese culture with the rest of the world through Ramen Nagi. He believed Nagi was not only ramen, but also a medium to share his sense of warmth to his customers as each bowl reflected his sincere love for ramen and commitment to quality,

Ramen Nagi's first official store launched later in June 2006 in Shibuya, Tokyo. Here, Ikuta continued to display immense creativity and introduced his revolutionary “365 Days, 365 Flavors” campaign. Finally coming to an end in March 2009, over a thousand ramen flavors were created during this time frame.

Ramen Nagi Universal Noodle now operates 7 stores in Tokyo, 4 stores in Taiwan, and 1 store in both Indonesia and the Philippines while continuing to expand overseas.

Ramen Nagi Key Milestones

2006

Rookie of the Year Award by TOKYO*1 Week Magazine

Ramen King Award by Tokyo Walker Magazine

2007

Champion - TOKYO*1 Week Magazine Annual Tonkotsu Ramen Competition

2010 & 2011

Voted Best Japanese Eatery for two consecutive years - Hong Kong Open Rice Website

2011

Voted 7th Best Ramen in Japan by TOKYO*1 Week Magazine

2013

Voted Best Ramen and CHAMPION for Tokyo Ramen of the Year Award

Source: http://www.n-nagi.com.tw/EN/History.aspx

As you can see, Ramen Nagi is one of the popular award winning ramen chain in Japan. And it's no surprise that fellow "ramenatics" can be found inside slurping their way to their hearts content. Their menu simply consists of four basic types of ramen:

http://www.n-nagi.com.tw/EN/Product.aspx

Original King (Butao)

Luscious signature tonkotsu pork-broth.
Award-winning tonkotsu pork-broth prepared in the traditional method, mouth-wateringly rich, fresh, and aromatic; special handcrafted noodles and classic Nagi pork chashu.

http://www.n-nagi.com.tw/EN/Product.aspx

Red King (Akao)

The ultimate in savory spiciness.
A striking blend of garlic, chili oil, and cayenne pepper in a velvety broth; topped by a tempting ball of miso-infused minced pork and select Nagi cayenne, with tender chashu.

http://www.n-nagi.com.tw/EN/Product.aspx

Black King (Kuroo)

Sumptuous jet-black aroma and flavor.
Fragrant blackened garlic and calamari ink in a silky broth with succulent chashu; finished with a ball of minced pork, black sesame, and Nagi spices that is irresistibly complex.

http://www.n-nagi.com.tw/EN/Product.aspx

Green King (Midorio)

Nagi's fusion of gourmet cultures.
A marriage of fresh basil and olive oil with delectable tonkotsu broth in a truly unique combination lavishly garnished with grated parmesan cheese and richly marbled chashu.

The waitress gave us an Omototenashi Sheet for us to customize our order. It's like a test paper with multiple choice answers. Exciting. Since we were a big fan go black garlic, we decided to get the Black King (Kuroo) with all the chef's recommendations in normal preparation except for the seasoning. It had to be light since I take my sodium in small amounts.

We were given a paper bib with this dish so our pristine white shirts didn't get any black spots from slurping the broth.

You will be reminded that they have this no take-out policy since ramen tastes good when it's freshly prepared from the kitchen. Bringing it home affect the noodle quality. And indeed it's true. This ramen has lots of things going on inside. It has my favorite black garlic, squid ink, chashu, ball of minced pork, black sesame, and I believe it was some calamari rings. It has a complex taste yet it melds together perfectly. The ink provided a bit of sweetness that we use to describe when eating adobong pusit. And for P410.00 you get a huge bowl good for two. Three if you have some gohan and other side dishes ordered.

For the side dishes, we got our staple ramen partner, the Gyoza. It's delicately seasoned, cooked just right. But I find the filling rather too solid or firm for my taste. I like my Gyoza to have a balance of the meat-bokchoy-green onions mixture. This one has too much meat. But it's good though. I still like the Gyoza at Naruto Tukumen Ramen back in Cebu.

This one is my new favorite, the Curry Spring Roll. It's a mild curry seasoned crunchy spring roll with ground pork, squash and vermicelli. A must try.

Condiments include some fresh garlic (you will need to use a garlic press), chili powder, sesame seed mill, vinegar, pepper and seasoned chili bean sprouts (not in photo).