Taro's Ramen & Cafe

Oh. My. God.

First of all, this is a wayyy over due post and I have been wanting to rave about this place since I had a bowl of ramen at this place.

I fondly remember the time when I moved to Brisbane last year and I was absolutely craving Asian food - I really really wanted a hot bowl of noodle soup that'll hit the spot.

Unfortunately, after many ventures to Japanese restaurants, many served tempura udon (one of my favourite Japanese noodle dishes) which were utterly horrendous for the price I was paying.

Thank God for the invention of the internet and Google, I stumbled upon a restaurant which was literally right downstairs from the apartment James and I lived in for a while.

Taro's Ramen.

Heck, from the outside, it didn't look too fancy but they had a sign boasting "The Best Ramen in Brisbane". Why not give it a shot?

I craved something spicy and on their menu, my eyes were absolutely glued on the 'Fire Tonkatsu'. Too be honest, at the time, I hadn't had much ramen experiences other than the one time I went to another popular ramen place in Fremantle's market which was good but wasn't good enough to have me raving about it.

I enjoy the casual atmosphere of Taro's, you go up to the counter, order your meal, take your number and you find yourself an available table. There are also condiments such as pickled veggies, pickles, chilli bean sauce (which I highly recommend to go with the Fire Tonkatsu), chilli oil and also refrigerated water with glasses to your taking.

Yeah, I don't normally take many photos when I go to Taro's. This is taken from their website.

Okay, so back to the food. It arrived shortly after ordering and took my first bite. 

I almost had tears of joy wtf!?

Lo and behold! The mighty Fire Tonkatsu!

My memory of the ramen in Fremantle must have been fuzzy as I did not recall the egg looking this good! Ajitsuke Tamago (or Japanese marinated egg) was cooked to perfection! Every single damn time I visit this place, I sometimes secretly hope they give me an egg which overcooked - no one can make eggs perfect every single time right? 

Nope. Their eggs are PERFECT each time. Makes me wonder how many imperfect eggs they chuck out?

Back to the Fire tonkatsu, it was a heavenly mixture of chilli oil and that rich, pork broth which is almost creamy to an extent (yes, it is that rich). It is simply an explosion of flavour. Every single ingredient used in this dish subtly accompanies one another - from the egg, to the char siu, the chopped spring onion, nori, and what I assume is dried thin strips of red pepper.

Hell, I can see why this place was voted best for ramen. Their ramen is awesome - al dente - springy and light (when you chew, it actually feels quite bouncy! Seriously!).

The only wish I have is that they include more than one slice of bbq pork/charsiu. One is not enough! Plus I'm a greedy pork lover! Other than that, IMO, it's perfect. At $15.80AUD, it also doesn't really break the wallet (I normally add the 2-piece Salt Loin Charsiu for an additional $2+AUD).

Ordering and paying at the counter.

Soft-shell crab side dish

The soft-shell crab dish wasn't anything out of the ordinary. It had some good sauce on it and good overall. 

I absolutely adore this place!

Verdict?

• Presentation: Great 4.5/5
• Ambience: 3/5 (very casual dining)
• Food/Taste: Superb 5/5
• Service: n/a (friendly staff at counter and relatively quick service) 

Check them out!

Taro's Ramen & Cafe

363 Adelaide Street
Brisbane, QLD 4007
(P): 07 3832 6358
(W): http://www.taros.com.au/