The Keisuke Ramen outlets in Singapore that are owned by Ramen Champion 2011 Chef Keisuke Takada have been very well received in Singapore. However, little did I know that he has actually operates a ramen conglomerate in Japan.
There are at least 10 ramen shops in Japan with a completely different concept and menu. And Keisuke Nouen Seikatsu農園生活 is a new outlet that has opened only on 22nd November 2013. The mission of the shop is to help diners meet their daily vegetable intake. The flexibility of the menu is a plus point of the shop. One can choose to have half-day or full-day vegetable intake, and also the portion of the noodles (so one would not have to feel overstuffed) BUT Ajitama eggs are not included so do put a tick if you need the eggs. The shio ramen (¥880) with half-day amount of vegetables comes in a cabbage bowl. Though there is oil floating on the broth, the taste is neither greasy nor overly seasoned, perhaps keeping in line with the "healthy" concept. As for the Tomato Tsukemen (¥880), the noodles were served in a pumpkin bowl and the sauce in a tomato bowl. The noodles for the tsukemen are spotted with black dots unlike the noodles for the shio ramen. These medium thick noodles are more manageable than the version from Rokurinsha as it required less efforts to chew.Top up ¥100 and one gets this full-day amount of vegetables. I can't tell much difference between half or full day amount but they were less than what we expected. Though the vegetables have been stir fried with pork, they were under-seasoned and slightly too oily.
The tomato Tsukemen sauce were thick, with bits of chunky tomatoes but needs to cut down on the sweetness. The spicy fried chicken looked promisingly fiery on the menu but emerged not golden brown but kind of pale and dusted in chilli powder. The crunch was limited only to the thin fried layer and thus they were overall very greasy. This was especially so for those that were soaked by the pool of chilli oil at the base. A health-conscious ramen shop is definitely a great idea but the way the vegetables are prepared needs to be retweaked. Perhaps the item that fulfills the criteria of healthy and delicious is none other than the soup ramen.
Ramen Keisuke Nouen Seikatsu けいすけ農園生活
Shinjuku Lumine Est Level 7
Shinjuku 3-38-1 Tokyo 160-0022
Tel: 03-5925-8398
www.grandcuisine.jp/keisuke/nouenseikatu.html
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