First Taste: Ukkokei Ramen Ron

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="553"] Ukkokei Lunch Set C[/caption]

One's love for food is nurtured not just by oneself but also by the company that one keeps.

I'm blessed to have colleagues at work who share my passion for yummy food. :)

We found ourselves one lunch break in Ukkokei Ramen Ron, a quaint Japanese restaurant in Mabini corner Quirino. It has another branch in Makati, I believe. I haven't eaten in the other branch but I wanted to find out if Ukkokei would become one of our go-to places for lunchtime comfort food.



There are several items in the menu to choose from including, of course, big bowls of ramen (I reckon that 3 people can share one bowl). For those on a budget, there's the more affordable Bento and for those willing to splurge a little bit more, Ukkokei offers lunch sets.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="553"] Ramen, Curry Rice, Gyoza, Salad = carbo overload <3[/caption]

I ended up choosing Lunch Set C consisting of half a bowl of ramen, curry rice, gyoza and salad. For our drinks, we split up for a pitcher of cold green tea.

So how did Ukkokei fare? Not stellar but not bad. 3 stars, I'd say. Let's break it down.

Ambiance:
• unpretentious - since the space is small, the design is minimalistic. I prefer it that way, nothing too distracting. It feels neither too formal nor stiff.
• clean and no funky smell - that makes up for a portion of a good ambiance

Food Quality:
• LOVE the ramen! I'm not much of a noodle person but I love Ukkokei's and I'm almost sure that I might find myself coming back here on a rainy day.
• Not loving the curry rice too much - it was just spicy and lacked the tangy mixture of flavors found in other curry rice. My expectations might have been too high given that I've had really good curry rice in Yabu and Nihonbashi Tei.
• The gyoza was just alright - not too bad, not so great either. Gyoza will always be comfort food.
• The salad has to be presented better, in my opinion. It tastes okay but it will serve better to inject more artistry in its presentation.

Service:
• I'm disappointed that they completely forgot about my officemate's order! :O Her order was about 30 minutes late.
• And that disappointment stems from the 5% service charge that they have. We don't mind paying for service charge but we hope they don't forget the food too, hehe. :)
• Late food aside, they have nice personnel so it was hard to get angry at them.

Bottom line: we might come back here for those days when you just want straightforward comfort food - in short, stressful days! Hehe. :P

I've read and heard good reviews for Ukkokei's other branch. I hope that I can try that one out next time. :)

Amount spent: 380php for the lunch set, 100php for one pitcher of green tea
Location: Mabini corner Quirino, beside Angel's Pizza