Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Menya - Haymarket, Sydney



One of the few ramen shops in Sydney that feels extra Japanesey - in the sense that just like many ramen shops in Japan, you order and pay before you're seated. Queues can be horrendous around 7 - 8pm at any day.

Miso katsu bento (chicken)
-> Considering the price, I'd say that this is quite good - but this dish really re-affirms my belief that money really doesn't lie. Can't really compare this to the real deal miso katsu in tonkatsu restaurants, but good enough for a quick meal.

I'd say that this is somewhat like standard ekiben (bento boxes sold in train stations in Japan) miso katsu quality. Not that good, but can't really complain.

Rating: 6/10


Menya ramen
-> Tonkotsu based and chashu with a twist. Instead of rich, pork-y aroma, this one is really leaning towards egg-y. Overall taste is so-so, and sometimes, it even tastes like very thick noodle water (i.e. water that is used to boil egg noodles over and over again 'till it's yellow and very cloudy in color). So....I guess...yuck?? LOL not really.

Rating: 5.5/10


Menya Gyoza
-> It's fine, except for the fact that they put SRIRACHA sauce on the top of the negi...AAARGH I hate sriracha!!! The idea may be novel for Japanese tongues, but for a Southeast-Asian, this really cheapen the food into an abysmal level. I mean, if I want Sriracha, I'd go to some street boiled clam stalls in Bangkok!

BTW, normal people would just discard the Sriracha sauce if they don't like it, but in this case, it sits on the top of my negi...you know how I LOOOVE my negi...

Rating (WITHOUT the stupid Sriracha): 7/10
Rating (WITH the stupid Sriracha): 4/10

1 comment:

Leony said...

Hahaha... can't stop smiling while reading about the "stupid" Sriracha. Somehow, Sriracha kinda saved me from my boring dorm food before I found out that the Asian store in Madison actually sold Cap Jempol.