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2012-12-27
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Went to Menya last Sunday to check another box off the "Must-Eat" ramen hotspots in SG (we've probably tried at least 7 different ramen styles in Singapore as offered by the host of ramen restaurants). Having been to Star Vista a couple of times now, we were anticipating the usual snake-queues at Menya (the other 'snake' being at Itacho Sushi), despite the rainy December weather. So, we only attempted to get a seat really late into the afternoon at about 3-4pm. True enough, this strategy paid of
True to its namesake, the local franchise of Menya does not discount the Japanese hospitality to be found in its flagship Shinjuku outlet. The waitress offered us glasses of water while we waited, never hesitating to offer us more water, updating us on the status of available tables, and introducing their menu offerings to us - without a single frown on her face! We're not sure about you guys, but good service before even tucking into a meal proper creates that whole positive atmosphere which certainly lends to the memorability of a great meal. The unfortunate part was that this fantastic waitress was not local (Chinese National, we believe). Not that we are biased or anything, but to date, we have not met any local waitress with a remotely similar level of service - Japanese restaurant or not. If any managers in the Star Vista franchise of Menya are reading this, give this valued employee a pat on her back - or make it two!
However, this phantasmal experience would find us crashing back to reality upon entering the restaurant, as well as what transpired thereafter.
The first sights and sounds greeting us was a tremendous furore of activity - be it in the kitchen which we beheld in plain sight behind a glass panel, or the chatter and banter of other patrons tightly packed in the small dining area. Truly reminiscent of a 60's coffee shop! Unless that was the image Menya wanted to project, it didn't seem quite fitting for a high-profile ramen chain that reveres the legendary "Sword Saint", Miyamoto Musashi as its inspiration. The aroma to be found in other restaurants, tightly packed or not, was more of a stench in Menya, reeking of oily rags and a subtle hint of stale squid. Although we would probably remember the hospitality of the Chinese waitress for a while to come, the 'ambience' at Menya certainly dispelled any good impressions we had of the place - albeit lasting for as long as we were there.
We ordered their signature Cha Shu Ramen with Black Soup Base (we made this into a 15.90 SGD++ set which included a plate of Chicken Karaage), a plate of Green Salad at 6.90 SGD++, and a plate of Sliced Smoked Duck Breast at 6.90 SGD++. Since the waitress (not the Chinese waitress at the door) suggested warm tea to wash it all down, we went for a cup at 1.00 SGD++.
The husband was still wondering what the hype about Menya was all about when the Ramen was served. What happened in terms of gastronomical experience next was too negative to describe, so we will attempt to use more neutral adjectives to allow you, the reader, some breadth for interpretation should you wish to go through the same experience as us.
The ramen 'gravy', as aptly named, was black. But unlike soup bases from other ramen joints, this was more of a 'gravy' (note the inverted commas), which lingered in your nose in similar fashion as what we have described about the restaurant environment. Perhaps the primary ingredient in the soup base was squid ink and generous amounts of pork fat, we thought. To our disbelief, the manager told us that the black soup base of Menya is based on black garlic! Now, we have had numerous experiences with black garlic - in powdered pill form, as an ingredient to dishes like Bak Kut Teh, and even in its original food as bought from the supermarket (yes, we have tried peeling the cloves of a black garlic bulb and eating them direct). Nothing in Menya's black soup base tasted anything remotely like the varieties of black garlic we have tried. Absolutely nothing (when squid ink is the first thing that comes to mind, it's pretty obvious, don't you think?).
As alluded to earlier, the soup was pretty thick and oily, probably more than what your palate can take (aka jelat) after a couple of mouthfuls (just look at the photograph and see for yourself). Nonetheless, the husband didn't want to waste his money and food, so he had as much of the soup base as he could take. At this point, we have to add that Menya's choice of Houji Cha (Roasted Green Tea) as their de facto "Japanese Tea" item is excellent as it really does wonders in washing down the soup base as well as memories of ever having consumed it. Best of all, the tea is refillable - much needed, indeed!The ramen noodles were a bit on the tough side, rather than the springy or smooth or spongy varieties to be found in other ramen restaurants. To be honest, the noodles didn't seem very well-cooked. But then, this could be a ramen style we have not tried before so we won't delve into it. The cha shu was evidently seared to make it more fragrant as observable from the slightly burnt edges - a technique employed by other ramen restaurants as well. However, this was not enough to mask the stale pork taste found in the fats and lean textures of meat in the center region of the cha shu.
All in all, we felt that the ramen was truly more hype than substance. Perhaps the chefs were too tired after having served a huge lunch crowd? We don't know. Perhaps you, our valued reader, can be the judge to that.
The other dishes we ordered, were nothing much to shout about, with the Sliced Smoked Duck Breast in particular, to be leaning more on the salty side than the smoked fragrance to be found in sliced smoked duck breast offerings in other restaurants - Japanese, Chinese, Western. Lastly, the Chicken Karaage was more powdery in texture than crispy - maybe the flour mixture was a tad too much or the oil in which the karaage was fried wasn't hot enough.
In summary, a mixed bag of emotions swelled over us as we left Menya. On one hand, we remembered the good service rendered by that Chinese waitress, and Menya's choice of de facto "Japanese tea". On the other, it was the less favourable memories that would probably spell the end of our visit to Menya - at least in Singapore.
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