Local nightlife is alive and well along Lion-Dori, one of Takamatsu's famous shotengai.
When darkness falls and the small retail shops close, the izakaya and restaurants fling open
their doors. It's one long pub street where people stop at one bar for a drink and an
otsumami (beer food) before moving on the next destination -- usually just a few doors away.
We were in Lion-dori for a late dinner and since Jay does not drink, we were hoping to find a
quiet place to eat. And so we found Chuukatenshin Saryou.
The door was closed but we could see lights and people inside. The banners hanging over the
door clearly showed that this was a ramen place.
Most of the tables were occupied and the owner/chef waved us over to the counter.
He handed us a plastic laminated menu that had definitely seen better days. No english menu
here in this very local place but the universal language of food photos was more than enough.
Saryou had a few variants of ramen including the spicy tanmen but we opted for the safer
chashu men, always a reliable bet.
From our end of the counter, we had ringside seats to the action that would soon be taking place in the kitchen. The other customers were enjoying their drinks but we were here to eat.
Well yes, one of us was also here to drink. The nama beer came in ice cold frosty mug --
kudos to Saryou for keeping their beer at below zero temperature.
While waiting for the food, I peered around and saw a steaming steel pot at the other end of
the room -- oden!!!
Different types floated around in the broth and the chef told me to just pick what I wanted.
Oden is one of my favourite Japanese dishes. It's nothing more than many simple ingredients
simmered together in a delicious broth. Normally served during the colder months, I am
always happy to have it at any time of the year.
Oden goes perfectly well with beer so I chose carefully and well -- top to bottom, yuba or tofu
skin, beef innards and my all time favourite, konnyaku, made from a type of yam.
The pot had konnyaku cubes and konnyaku noodles. I was in konnyaku kloud 9.
I always enjoy sitting at the restaurant counter -- you get to see how the food is meticulously
and expertly prepared by the chef. It's cooking as an art form and a labour of love.
While waiting for our ramen, we ordered extra chashu and got six thick slices of roast pork smothered under chopped green onions. The pork was tender -- meat, fat and skin all blended together to create a velvety smooth mouthfeel. You hardly needed to chew!
Calories and cholesterol be damned -- we ate it all. The green onions assuaged some of the
guilt, we pretended we were eating our RDA of vegetables.
If you think we were all chashu-ed out after that opening number, well I guess you don't know
us at all. We certainly did justice to this deep bowl of chashu ramen.
The broth was a deep dark brown. Its aroma and rich, pork-y taste reminded me a lot of
Tokushima style ramen.
More chopped green onions topped the noodles and surprisingly, there were fresh bean sprouts
that added a bit of crunch. An ajitama egg and a few thin slivers of menma or bamboo shoots completed the bowl.
Does this close up of this luxurious slab of chashu in my ramen make you hungry?
The sides were caramelised and slightly seared adding an extra umami kick.
While not lean, there was just the right amount of fat spread throughout.
There was no way to avoid eating that meltingly yummy fat. I closed my eyes, apologised
to my arteries and slid the entire piece in my mouth.
Saiko desu!
P.S.
P.S.
Saryou also sells steamed pork dumplings and steamed buns -- a savoury and a sweet kind.
They start selling in the mid afternoon, way before the ramen restaurant opens. A few of these
make a satisfying snack! But be prepared to wait, the lines can be long particularly after 5 p.m.
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