Ramen Matsuri – Traditional Ramen Shop At Boat Quay Serves Delicious Chicken Ramen and Mazesoba

Ramen Matsuri is a small ramen shop along North Canal road (behind Boat Quay) that sells chicken ramen and mazesoba (dry ramen). It is run by chef Kenichi Ikehata, who honed his craft at Marutama Ramen for years before deciding to open his own ramen shop.

If you find the setup here familiar, it’s because Ramen Matsuri is the sister restaurant of Kajiken, a popular mazesoba specialist restaurant with several branches across Singapore.

Menu (click to enlarge)

The menu offers a variety of chicken soup ramen, spicy ramen, mazesoba, and side dishes. No MSG is used in their food.

If you are a big eater, go for the free noodles upsize – however, do note that the upsized portion is not for sharing.

As expected, this Japanese joint serves a selection of alcohol like beer, sake, and umeshu (plum wine).

Authentic Japanese Vibe

Ramen Matsuri is a cozy restaurant that offers traditional izakaya-style dining. They have an open-concept kitchen but ventilation was good so I didn’t really smell any odours.

The staff were extremely friendly and food was served fast.

Incidentally, I used the washroom during my visit and was very impressed by how clean it was. No wonder the Japanese are world-famous for their toilet hygiene.

Torikoku Special Toppings

The Torikoku Special Toppings ($16.80) is a sumptuous bowl of chicken ramen containing two slices of chicken, one slice of pork char siew, one kakuni (braised pork belly), one ajitama egg, black fungus and spring onions.

The chicken broth was rich, savoury and nourishing – the kind of soup you crave when you are feeling a little fluey and need some comforting broth to feel better.

According to their website, the chicken broth is made by boiling whole chickens for more than 6 hours over a strong fire, and each bowl of ramen soup is made from over 400grams of chicken! This probably explains why I could really taste the rich chicken essence.

The thick chicken slices were surprisingly tender and juicy with a very smooth texture. The char siew was good, and the kabuni was soft and savoury.

The noodles were springy and it was very satisfying to slurp them up with the chicken broth. The flavourful ajitama egg, chewy black fungus, and fresh spring onions completed this hearty dish.

On the whole, this was a wonderful bowl of ramen. Simple yet complex, packed with flavour, and executed perfectly.

Taiwan Karaage Mazesoba

The Taiwan Karaage ($15.80) is a mazesoba dish consisting of dry ramen, one ontama (soft boiled egg), spicy minced pork, shredded seaweed, spring onions and two pieces of karaage (Japanese fried chicken).

I mixed everything together, and the resulting mixture was definitely quite savoury and satisfying. That said, I felt that it was not as flavourful as the mazesoba served at Kajiken.

As for the karaage, it was decent but not fantastic.

Don’t get me wrong, this was still a very enjoyable dish, but it fell just a little short of my high expectations.

After you are done, if you are feeling hungry, you can order a complimentary oimeshi (small bowl of white rice) to eat with the remaining mazesoba sauce.

Conclusion

In Singapore, most people prefer pork ramen over chicken ramen, and there are only a few well-known chicken ramen shops like Marutama Ramen and Ramen Keisuke Tori King. However, I feel that even though pork broth has a more luscious texture, chicken broth has a very rich flavour too and should not be overlooked. I enjoyed my meal at Ramen Matsuri very much, and I highly recommend checking out this cozy Japanese joint if you are in the CBD area.

Ramen Matsuri
Address: 7 North Canal Road, Singapore 048820
Phone: +65 6533 0845
Opening Hours: | Mon to Thur: 11.30am – 3pm, 5.30pm – 10.30pm | Fri: 11.30am – 3pm, 5.30pm – 11pm | Sat: 11.30am – 3pm, 5.30pm – 10.30pm | Sun & PH: Closed |