Tom Takagi Ramen is a Singaporean ramen joint that aims to serve “ramen for the average Singaporean“. Priced at less than $10 per bowl for most of their offerings, Takagi Ramen does price their ramen for the “average Singaporean”. Moreover, each order comes with a complimentary serving of noodles (Kaedama – extra serving of noodles) – fresh handcrafted Hakata noodles no less. But how does it stack up in the taste department? We’ll find out more in this review of Takagi Ramen!
Takagi Ramen Ambience
Although Takagi Ramen is a Singaporean brand (nope, it is not a franchised brand from Japan), the owners have taken the effort to recreate the feel of dining at a local ramen joint in Japan. There’s the “open kitchen” concept, seating booths and counter seats that recreate that authentic Japanese ramen dining experience. Moreover, the music the sounds like J-pop tunes from the 90s! 😁
Together with the ordering machines (synonymous with ramen joints in Japan), Takagi Ramen definitely scores highly in the ambience department.
What we had at Takagi Ramen
As we knew that the tonkotsu soup from Takagi Ramen is boiled for over 12 hours, we knew that a tonkotsu-based ramen was definitely a must. Hence, we went with the Chashumen ($8.50). To mix it up a little, we also tried the Tantanmen ($6.50). Both ramen came with kaedama – extra portion of noodles! 😋
The Chashumen came with 5 slices of charshu pork. Unlike most ramen joints, the chashu here were rather thinly cut. This probably helped to explain why the price could be so affordable. Nonetheless, the chashu were very tender. The soup was as touted – thick, flavourful and has that slight umami taste. If it were a blind-folded taste test, we could easily have mistaken it as Ichiran Ramen…Ok…no not really…but it’s a really good tonkotsu ramen. As for the ramen itself, it was good – though a little too al dente for our liking. Perhaps, we’d request for it to be slightly more cooked during our next visit (yes, definitely going to be back!)
For $6.50, the Tantanmen at Takagi Ramen is definitely a steal. A slightly spicy taste with a rich tonkotsu base makes this an irresistable choice for a quick fill-me-up.
Takagi Ramen also certainly knows its clientele – Singaporeans who can’t live without their bubble teas. They offer a limited but popular range of milk teas and this time, we tried the large brown sugar milk tea with sakura pearls for only $4.20! 😮
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Conclusion
Takagi Ramen does live up to its motto of serving “ramen for the average Singaporean”. The ramen are affordably priced but quality is not compromised in any way. Moreover, with the bubble tea options as “desserts”, it makes a for a perfect meal. The only gripe that we have is that the seatings are actually quite narrow – perhaps another authentic experience of dining at a Japanese ramen joint.
