Ramen, from Japan to Manchester

Earlier this year I was lucky enough to visit the incredible country of Japan.

Japan is by far one of the most beautiful countries I have ever visited. I used to go to Tokyo a lot with work and instantly fell in love with the city, so to be able to come back as a tourist and with my husband was defo a pinch me moment!

We started our journey in the bustling and crazy city that is Tokyo, before heading up to the mountains to Hakuba to ski the world famous ‘pow’ that Japan has to offer.

One of the many reasons I love Japan is the food! In the city its super easy to get a great meal anywhere! You don’t have to pay the earth for good quality here, it's generally super fresh and tasty! We spent most of our time in Tokyo walking, eating and seeing some of the beautiful sites this city has to offer! We even managed to eat at the restaurant where they filmed some of Kill Bill, which was really ace!

Ramen is one of the most famous dishes originating from Japan - it is a traditional soup broth with meat, veg and noodles. Super simple, healthy and delicious! A traditional Ramen can take up to 100 hours to make, as the stock is cooked for such a long time to give the delicate flavour that makes a ramen so famous!

So for me, a huge foodie, eating ramen became I daily part of my routine in Japan!! Wow! It was sooooo delicious! So one of the main things I brought back from Japan was my new found obsession with Ramen!

Having tried to create my own at home, unsuccessfully! I started to research Japanese restaurants in Manchester to get my Ramen fix!!

I came across Shoyru - based up in Piccadilly gardens, this restaurant boasts some of the best ramen around - so would this live up to the authentic Ramen I had in Japan?

We started our evening with some cheeky little cocktails! Making the most of our date night, we went for a Pink Geisha and a Dirty Lychee, both super tasty, and also very pretty! And sipped on these as we perused the menu.

Well - firstly - can I just say wow! So in Japan, there were only a few types of Ramens available, all fairly simple, miso base or soya base. Shoyru is like Ramen, but better! There are lots of different choices of Ramen on the menu, so we both had a Ramen, (obvs!) I went for the Shoyru Ganso Tonkotsu Ramen, this is their signature Ramen dish which is based on a traditional recipe with added fried shallots! A beautiful added addition! John went for the Kotteri Hakata Tonkotsu, this is similar to the signature Ramen, but richer, and extra egg!

The next great thing - they ask how you would like your noodles cooked! Now I eat out a lot! And love food! I have never been asked this! But loved how they make it to your taste! I opted for ‘hard’ as I like mine with a little bite, similar to ‘al dente’ pasta.

We shared the best sharing platter of fried chicken, prawn tempura and broccoli! So delicious and tasty, a great one to share too as it came with a selection of dips, so fab to try everything whilst chatting and enjoying our cocktails!!

Once our plates were clear it wasn’t long before our steaming bowls of ramen arrived! And they did not disappoint!
The broth is slightly different to what I had in Japan, its a slightly milky colour as opposed to clear, and the taste was just so delicious! It's so flavoursome, but at the same time not overpowering! Beautifully presented with the traditional piece of seaweed on the side, this is food made with love!

I especially loved the addition of perfectly cooked noodles with a slight bite! These were just delicious and cooked to perfection! I also tried Johns too, which was equally tasty, definitely a stronger flavour, if you like bigger portions, I would go for that choice, the thicker sauce and extra ingredients make it really filling!

We were so stuffed at the end of the meal we could not manage any desserts at all, plus I am more of a starter, mains person, than dessert! We even had to take ourselves for a little walk around Manchester to digest!!! Oops!

Shoyru is not expensive to eat, but the quality of food was just amazing! The Ramen is definitely the best ramen I have ever tasted! Even better than the Ramen I ate in Japan! I was not expecting this at all! So if you are looking to try some authentic Japanese in Manchester defo give Shoyru a try! I will defiantly heading back to get my Ramen fix, and this time trying some of the other Ramens!

Would love to know if you have tried anything there and your thoughts!

Thanks for Reading

Danielle xxx