Ramen & Izakaya Himeji @ Adelaide, SA

Ramen & Izakaya Himeji is opened by the same owners as Genki Japanese restaurant, the only restaurant that makes half decent ramen in Adelaide, so we had really high expectations for it. Almost as soon as Ramen & Izakaya Himeji was open for business, we made a reservation and we popped in for lunch.

We realized that Ramen & Izakaya Himeji was opened at the location where the restaurant Auge was. Auge closed down early this year and the shop was renovated into a classy looking ramen restaurant. The place is decorated with Fuji drawings and looks quite modern. It has a good setting for Japanese food.

We had a quick browse through the menu and saw that they do a wide selection of Japanese food. More variety will also become available after their official opening . Since we were only here for ramen, that was exactly what we ordered. The lunch special also allows us to order one extra side per ramen ordered ( ie sushi, gyoza, salad or don. ) at a cheaper cost than ordering them on their own. Between the two of us, we ordered “Himeji Tonkotsu Black Ramen” and “Himeji Original Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen”. For our sides we had “spicy salmon sushi roll” and “avocado salmon don & salad”.

The Himeji Original Hakata Tonkotsu Ramen surpassed any Ramen we have tasted in Adelaide. The soup was creamy with a slightly grilled pork taste. The texture was close to the ones we have in Japan and Taiwan. The pork loin and belly in the soup were soft and flavoured well. The noodles tasted fresh, chewy and cooked just right. It contains everything I expect in a good ramen.

The Himeji Tonkotsu Black Ramen seems to be able to top the original. The soup was thick with sesame taste and the texture was superb. I finished all the soup in this one. The Ramen comes with the same noodles and pork loin and belly. It was a very enjoyable ramen and I choose this sesame soup when I come back again for ramen.

There were complimentary pickled vegetables, but they were a little salty for my liking. The spicy salmon sushi roll was really good as well. The filling was creamy mayo with chopped salmon. The outside had fish eggs and the whole this held together well. The sushi was not spicy at all and it was so addictive that it left me wanting more.

The other side we ordered was the avocado & salmon don. It comes with pieces of raw salmons and avocados on mixed white and black rice with quinoa. The rice was really tasty and goes well with the toppings. You have to be really careful eating this dish though as there were wasabi placed next to the Avocado. They both look very similar in a bowl and Winny accidentally ate a mouth full of wasabi.

This is the ramen store that I have always waited for in Adelaide. Finally we have somewhere to go in Adelaide when we crave for good ramen. We will be back soon for more!