Ramen is a Japanese dish and is quite popular amongst the tourists. There are a lot of interesting facts about these restaurants. Some like Yuzu Ramen restaurant in Siam can be easily spotted. If one has not tasted the dish ever or been to the restaurant before, here are tips to get prepared before having food at a Ramen restaurant.
Paying options
Generally, they provide 2 paying options namely paying through a ticket machine and the other is to pay at the ticket counter. The ticket machines provide everything. They deliver side dishes, toppings, flavors, etc. One has to select the right button. The only drawback is that they are written in local languages.
Customize
The Ramen will be prepared at the choice of the taste of the customer. They allow choosing the hardness of the noodles (Ramen). The varieties are as follow
- Yuge – doshi – Passed through steam
- Kona – Otoshi – Flour washed
- Harigane – wire like
- Barikata – hard noodles
- KAta – hard
- Futsuu – normal
- Yawa – soft
- Bariyawa – very soft
As Yuge doshi and kona otoshi are raw, they are not recommended for the first timers.
Apart from this, they also provide second serving if you feel wanting little more. The second serving is called Kaedama.
Manners to dine at Ramen restaurant properly
- Begin with the broth. Have a small sample. It is acceptable and even traditional to drink a little directly from the bowl.
- One can absolutely make noise while slurping the noodles
- Slurping and eating should be done alternatively at desired intervals to enjoy the ramen completely. This is done to aerate the noodles and broth to allow the flavor to develop completely. Apart from this it also cools off the noodles faster
- Have the egg separately. The egg is a side dish. But it also floats on the soup
- The veggies are to be eaten along with noodles and the broth. The meat has separate chopsticks. Choose them while having the meat. There is nothing wrong in eating with a fork if the person is new to chop sticks. Asians find it rude when the chopsticks are used like a sword and spear
- Ramen is well enjoyed when it is eaten fast. This is because when eaten slowly, the broth evaporates or will be absorbed by the noodles. This makes the ramen mushy.
- If one wants to pass the food to someone else in the table, do not hand it off to him. Instead of allowing the other person to use his chopsticks to take the food from your own chopstick, move the food from plate to plate
- Family – style sharing is practiced in Asian homes. However, when there are no serving sticks, one should use his own serving stick to serve himself.
- Chopsticks are only for ramen. Never use them for eating rice. Stick the chopsticks to the bowl of rice only during dead ceremonies!
Why is slurping the best way to eat Ramen?
- Slurping cools off the mouth. Also, it keeps the rest of the bowl hot
- It aerates the noodles and broth. This helps the flavors to fully develop before the food is chewed
