8 bowls of super-fatty tonkotsu ramen and where to get them in Bangkok
Where to find Bangkok's most well-simmered bowls of hearty pork bone goodness.
8 years ago
Black ramen at Kyushu Jangara Ramen (B180-360)
Looks so wrong; tastes so right. The intimidating, heavy appearance disguises a flavor that’s actually quite refined, with unusual tastes of aniseed and chamomile poking through the salty broth. Order the “zenburi” bowl (B360), which comes loaded with great big chunks of braised pork, a boiled egg and a dollop of salty, marinated cod roe.
Explosive volcano ramen at Tonkotsu Kazen Ramen (B220/270)
A member of staff will deliver to your table a large, piping hot bowl filled with noodles, veggies and chashu pork. After pouring in the thick, pork bone broth, the waiter will cover the bowl with a volcano-shaped lid, through which steam will start to blow. After a few minutes of excitement, the cover is removed and you’re left with a steaming, bubbling bowl of ramen—just beware, you’re given that bib for a reason!
Yamagoya Ramen at Yamagoya (B190)
The secret is a deliciously thick broth that rivals even the fattiest kha muu (with 10 times more salt). It’s so rich, in fact, that if you let it sit even a few minutes, a slightly disconcerting film will appear on the surface of your soup. Added to that succulent soup in the signature Yamagoya Ramen are toothsome noodles, slices of fatty pork and a hard-boiled egg with a magically creamy, bright-orange yolk.
The Kakuni ramen at Bankara Ramen (B250)
This one comes with a massive chunk of three-day-braised pork belly that literally melts on your palate. The restaurant is known for its fatty tonkotsu broth, served with perfectly al dente noodles and various forms of intense slow-cooked chashu. Delicious.
The Tokyo Kara Yasai Aburi Chashu at Misoya
It’s the chargrilled, meaty slices of chashu that make any of the bowls of ramen on offer here stand out. Our vote goes to the spicy Tokyo-style broth.
Tonkotsu ramen at Chabuton
The 2002 TV Champion-winning Chef Yasuji Morizumi’s tonkotsu chashu men (B245) has a slightly greasy broth that is packed with flavor, and the slender in-house noodles have that perfectly springy quality, served alongside three slithers of tender rolled-up chashu.
Hakata-style tonkotsu ramen at Ippudo
It comes in three variations—the traditional and delicate Shiromaru Motoaji (B220), the intense miso-and-garlic-flavored Akamaru Shinaji (B220) and the spicy Karaka-men (B260)—which allow you to choose the level of doneness of your noodles. Both the shiromaru (ultra-thin straight noodles, pork loin and tamago) and karaka-men (curly noodles and tender pork cubes simmered in Ippudo’s special soy sauce) are less greasy than the offerings at Bankara and Kio, but still contain enough fat to deter anyone dieting.
Tantanmen at Ramen Tei (B180-230)
The slightly sweet omelet and chili tang make this bowl of ramen a force to be reckoned with. We also love the smooth soup that tastes substantially less greasy than your average tonkotsu broth.
Special Ramen at Menya Kouji (B230)
Hailing from Sanuki prefecture in Ibaraki, Menya Kouji’s tonkotsu ramen is creamy and very earthy. The house-favorite Special Ramen features molten pork fat, slow-cooked pork-belly chashu and a boiled egg with a perfectly fudgy yolk. This guilty, cholesterol-fueled (but surprisingly palatable) pleasure is just too good to miss out on.
Also see: The best tonkotsu ramen restaurants in Bangkok
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