Taisho Ramen and Teppanyaki House

Hanna Lee

3.0

After being dragged by the hyperbolized craze for ramen for the past three years, I thought I have tasted all ramen restaurants out there, from “wow” to “neh”, which left my wallet empty. So it was a delight to be given a chance to able to try Taisho Ramen and Teppanyaki House, which went under the radar during the Ramen boom season.With the vision to create a reputation of quality, low priced menu with consistency and security, Taisho Ramen broth and ingredients are freshly prepared daily in the restaurant, while the ramen noodles were specially made with own recipe specification. And boy do they deliver it! The broth of their ramen is so full of flavor from its slowly-simmered pork bones that you can taste and feel the goodness with ever sip of their thick, meaty flavor soup. And to maintain its authentic Fukuoka style flavor, most of their seasonings are sourced from Japan itself. So with their ramen costing about Php300 – Php355, it is a real value compare to some of the overrated expensive ramen place that has sprout out.Some of the ramen that we were able to try on Taisho:Tonkotsu Ramen - their original ramen dish a real comforting dish you will definitely enjoy. Would have been even better if there were more chasu meat as theirs were smaller compare to others. And while the egg is flavorful, the yolk I got is a bit runny when it should just be just wet, but this can be easily be improved and fixed by them. Miso Ramen – it has a subtle complex flavor that plays on your mouth that you would not get from other miso ramen. This may due to the fact they uses 3 types of miso for this dish (red, white and yellow). This is their best-seller ramen, which I’m not surprised.Takana Ramen – My favorite so far. Love how the Japanese pickled mustard greens created a more complex flavor to the tonkotsu soup when mixed in. Well maybe I’m also just biased as I am particularly fond of “kiamchay” (chinese for pickled mustard greens). But some might find this dish weird and get surprised with the tinge of bitterness of the pickled mustard.- Karamen – their spicy version of tonkotsu ramen dish. Even with its spiciness and redness of the soup, you can still taste the flavor of the soup. What’s more you can ask them to customize the spiciness of the soup according to your preference from mild, regular and very spicy.And what’s good about Taisho is that you can still customize your ramen to your perfection! Every table has seasoning set that you can add further taste to your ramen. They offer red ginger called Benishoga in Japan, there is also some fresh garlic or Niniku you can freshly crush, chili powder and chili oil for people who are into spicy adventure. Aside from their flagship product, we were lucky to able to sample some of their other dishes like. Gyoza – They cook their gyoza perfectly – crispy on the bottom but soft upper wrapper that maintains that juiciness of the meat inside. They offer not only pork but also beef gyoza.- Makis – I like the Rocky Roll, it’s a kani filled maki with a suprising spicy kick from its sauce that you don’t need to dip in soy sauce and wasabi. While Taisho Wafu has a colorful, appetizing appeal with the bright color of the sweet mango on top drizzled with strawberry sauce. It is just kind of sad that the chunk of chicken inside is so small that the sweetness of the sauce and fruit overpowered the savory-ness of the chicken. Or maybe if the rice surrounding the filling would be thinner, it would have helped the flavors to come out more.- Kani Wasabi Salad – While it is your typical salad you usually see in Japanese restaurants with its lettuce, crabstick, and mango, what I like about this dish is that they did not use the usual sweet Japanese mayo. They create their own dressing with wasabi in it. It is flavorful but not sweet with a feeling of freshness in the mouth. But they could still have put more wasabi in it so one can really experience its taste along with the greens.- Chahan – A very familiar, comforting this that you can’t go wrong. It has a lot of ingredients in it from chasu meat, veggies and egg. One order’s portion is a bit hefty. - Gyudon – The beef is flavorful and soft and perfect with the red ginger they put on top of it. One might not get used to its reddish color which is beef color we are not used to. Of course, it would have been better to have more beef in it for a more proportionate beef to rice ratio. - Chicken Teriyaki – I like their chicken teriyaki as it is not that sweet and the portion is big. But some find taste of teriyaki could be fuller.- Katsudon Curry – The breaded pork cuts are thick but a bit tough and the meat itself lacks flavor. It is highly depended on its breading and curry sauce for its flavor. But unfortunately, the curry sauce lacks the distinct taste of the Japanese curry, like it is somehow diluted, and is rather too thick and starchy.- Yakiramen – It’s their stir-fry noodle Yakisoba version but using ramen noodles that soba. I like the al dente of the noodle. And the sauce while super flavorful is rather overwhelming for my taste buds.All in all, Taish Ramen & Teppanyaki House has a good ambiance and cozy feel that is welcoming. Their ramen something I would love to go back for again and again without going overboard with my budget. Hopefully I can try the other ramen dishes they have.Thank you Taisho and website for the invite and being a gracious host. All food and drinks are complementary.

Isabella Fitzgerald

3.0

I haven't really tried a lot of ramen places, and since Taisho is just below the building where we live, me and my partner decided to have dinner here last minute.Ambiance: 3 out of 5Service: 3 out of 5Food: 4 our of 5Price: $$$We ordered Karamen Ramen and Ninniku Ramen. Both tasted good, but I liked the Ninniku more.Will defintely go back to try their other dishes.

Therese

3.0

I ate the kimuchi (kimchi) ramen and it was good. I find it better than ikkoryu Fukuoka ramen. I will definitely be back for the yummy broth and decent soft chashu.