This is it! I went to Ramen Yushoken!

I know, I know, Ramen Yushoken is not a new restaurant. But I waited this long to go here so I can have the best, if not perfect, experience.

Ramen Yushoken is a small ramen restaurant located at Molito Mall, Alabang. I is dubbed as the best ramen place in the South and one of the best ramen places in the country. The good thing about this place is that it's not a chain restaurant so if you really wanted to go to Yushoken, you have to travel here. They have been trained by a ramen master so we can be assured that this is as authentic as it gets (of course, nothing beats eating ramen in Japan).

It was a rather impromptu dinner idea. I was gloomy so I invited my friends if we could hang out. Coincidentally, some of us weren't feeling that well, plus the sky looked like it was going to rain any minute. One thing my dad taught me was that a noodle soup dish would perk up the soul. So ramen it is! It was a Saturday night so we expected it to be very busy, but it didn't faze us.

We got there around 8:30 PM but had to wait a long time because we were 11th on the waiting list. It didn't matter if we couldn't get a booth. Sitting by the bar would be preferable because that seems more authentic. We got seated an hour later, and all I can think about was how excited I was.

The place was small and packed, not much moving space. The menu looks simple yet daunting because you can't see pictures or descriptions. Don't fret!  Descriptions of the dishes are found on the right side of the menu. Even if they had only 4 ramen options, we still found it hard to decide which one to get. One rule, though, is that you have to eat ramen right away! You also can't use spoon and fork so you have to level up your chopstick game before you gobhere (one of us always had a hard time using chopsticks but that didn't stop her from enjoying the meal).

I was confident that we would have to taste the gyoza since all of the people I know who ate here are raving about it. And they were right!

Gyoza P150

5 pieces of this appetizer are served to us steaming hot. At first I thought that they skimped us on dipping sauce. But since you get a flavorful dish, you don't need to douse it with sauce. The wrapper was paperthin. Thr meat-veggie filling was perfectly seasonrd and not fatty. A lovely, perfectly browned side complemented the steamed side very well. I can't describe how magical it was, but maybe me using the word perfect multiple times in this paragraph may give that picture already.

Shio Ramen P320

I decided to choose the most basic ramen because I wanted to taste it at its purest form. They describe the Shio ramen as having a light, milky broth. You can see globules of fat swimming on the delicious broth. I tend to hate oily and fatty dishes but this one complemented the broth well. It's salty enough for my liking. The serving was just right, enough to make me so full (I saw reviews that their serving size was small but come on, ramen is meant to be a fast and enjoyable meal). The noodles and veggiea had a nice bite to it. What surprised me was the meat. I usually see thin cuts of meat on other ramen places. Ramen Yushoken had a thick slice of pork with chargrill marks. The smokiness of the grilling adds another dimension to this savory dish.

Shoyu Ramen P350

Miso Ramen P380

My friends chose the Shoyu and Miso ramens. The Shoyu has soy sauce that gives another flavor dimension to the broth. The Miso ramen is a very different ramen not just with the broth but also with the toppings on it. I look forward to trying these two out. No one got the Tantanmen ramen (spicy)  because we didn't really want to be that adventurous onnour first visit. I failed to get Aji Tamago (soft boiled egg) that would go perfectly with any ramen. Remind me to get it next time I go!

All in all, it was a perfect way to perk ourselves up. I give it a 9 out of 10, just a point less from a perfect score because of its small seating capacity. My guy friends paired their food with Asahi and Sapporo beers to give this get together that "bro" feel. Haha! I prefer the Sapporo beer as it has a lighter and smoother taste. I do wish to go back sooner so I can try the other dishes. Maybe I can drag along these guys again? Comment below about your Yushoken experience. What should I eat next time? Where should I go next?