I was at Change Alley at Raffles Place today to change some money for my upcoming China trip, and so took the opportunity to visit the highly rated Menya Sakura at Boat Quay for lunch. Menya Sakura is a ramen chain from Nagoya, Japan.
We can enjoy a picturesque view of the Singapore River and skyline from the al fresco dining area of Menya Sakura.
Best time here is around sunset as it is very hot during lunch time. We used to date here enjoying satay at the now long demolished hawker centre by the banks of the historic Singapore River.
They have various combinations of offers for lunch. The friendly staff will explain them to you. I was the first customer today 😄
I opted for this "Premium Tonkotsu Shoyu Ramen with Jumbo Aburi Chashu" based on the looks of that torched chashu (and I am not particularly keen on sides like gyoza).
I could smell the alluring porky aroma the moment the waitress puts the bowl of ramen on my table 😄
The pork broth has a lovely full round body heavy with suspended melted fat and collagen. The rich broth felt smooth on the lips and tongue.
The savoury-salty flavour is robust but not overpowering - I could still taste the underlying natural porky sweetness. The layered savouriness from the pork and shoyu is finely balanced.
When stirred into the broth, that small dollop of fiery looking, oily chili altered the savoury broth's taste profile very slightly with just subtle heat from the hot spice. To me, it does make the broth feel more balanced and complete.
I love Menya Sakura's tonkotsu broth.
The large slice of torched chashu laid on top of the bowl of noodles and broth topped with a dollop of oily chili.
The chashu made with a thin slice of pork belly has skin, fat and lean meat. All the layers are tender and juicy to different degrees which give the piece of chashu interesting textures. It has medium tenderness - neither too soft nor stiff (though I like my chashu half a notch softer).
The chasu tastes mildly savoury and it is equally balanced by the pork's gentle natural sweet porkiness.
The ramen noodles were straight and thick but they did not feel as heavy or dense as they looked.
The noodles were done half a notch below al dente with just a slight spring left to the bite. There was no resistance at the core of the strands of noodles.
The thick straight noodles did a good job picking up the broth, so they tasted savoury and smooth with each slippery slurp.
👉 I like Menya Sakura's "Premium Tonkotsu Ramen with Jumbo Aburi Chashu" as I enjoyed its full body and robust well balanced flavours. The chashu was also nice as it is tender, juicy and flavoursome. The noodles were done a little soft for my liking but the delicious broth clinging to the strands made up for it. Would love to be back for their special deals which are on offer regularly.
I feel prices are reasonable for the quality of food and tourist trap location. There is no GST charged and the service tax is worth every cent as the staff is friendly, helpful and she constantly kept my cup of green tea full to the brim 😄
Restaurant name: Menya Sakura
Address: 69 Boat Quay, Singapore 049857
GPS: 1°17'16.4"N 103°50'57.8"E | 1.287899, 103.849394
Tel: 9469 3366
Hours: 11:30am to 10:30pm (Sunday off)
Non Halal
Date visited: 5 Jun 2017
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