RAMEN NAGI is celebrating its 10th anniversary in the Philippines with heft, and a series of limited edition dishes.
During a tasting on Sept. 29 at their Bonifacio Global City branch, the ramen chain introduced its collaboration with the Tokyo ramen store Ramen No. 11: Ramen Nagi x Ramen No. 11 Limited King, which is the first in a series. This new dish will be available in Ramen Nagi branches nationwide from Oct. 6 to Nov. 10. After that, it will be replaced by another ramen dish in another collaboration with another Tokyo ramen store.
In Ramen Nagi x Ramen No. 11 Limited King, thick, homemade wheat noodles are suspended in a thick soup strongly flavored with garlic, topped off with cabbage, bean sprouts, quail eggs, garlic, and buta (pork). The tender pork is chopped up into tiny bits, making for a very rich and fatty ride.
Off the bat, this ramen — which goes for P680 — isn’t built for everyone. At the tasting, few people had managed to finish their bowls. It was not because of the flavor, which is strangely reminiscent of lomi or batchoy (two Filipino noodle soups), thus giving a sense of familiarity and comfort. It’s the sheer heft of it: a bowl of the very thick noodles (also resembling our native lomi) may possibly be enough to last a person the whole day (skip breakfast for this, and maybe have a salad for dinner). We noticed others splitting their bowls between a couple of diners, and they seemed to be fine.
The Ramen Nagi chain was founded by Ikuta Satoshi in 2004, with a bit of a rebellious streak (he doesn’t shy away from Western flavors in the traditional Japanese noodle soup). Operating from borrowed bar spaces (we now call them pop-ups or takeovers; a concept which was a bit foreign in 2004), he now has 55 branches worldwide.
Ramen Nagi was brought to the Philippines by Erickson Farillas (of the same Farillas couple behind the fashion brand Plains & Prints). In a statement, he said, “In the last 10 years, the iconic red Ramen Nagi bowl saw many unique ramen experiences, but always the same last scenario: an empty bowl and smiling faces. I believe we got here because we understand that ramen is not just food; it’s an experience, a work of art. It must celebrate tradition and also push boundaries. Do this, then you will go far.”
Ramen Nagi branches can be found in most Ayala, Robinsons, and SM malls in the city, with branches as well in Pampanga and Cebu. — Joseph L. Garcia
