Amateur Review - Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen at SM Aura

Today was Martina's Moving Up Day. After her school event we decided to go to SM Aura to celebrate and do the groceries. We decided to have lunch at Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen.

(Author's note: Martina's moving up day had some heavy snacks I ate. Then while waiting for Maica to finish her second class Martina and I had Starbucks. I was feeling pretty full when we arrived at the restaurant.)

Upon arriving I immediately notice the paper placemat.

Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen's placemat has a handy "how-to-eat-ramen" guide

Maica ordered the Miso Tonkotsu Ramen, and I ordered the Ajitama Tonkotsu Ramen. Martina and her Yaya Jill had the chicken karaage and extra rice.

Maica was starving, I was (unfortunately) full when we arrived

Here's a photo of my order. Sadly my order didn't look like the one in the menu. I was really disappointed that one of the ajitama eggs had no yolk, and the other was swimming face down in the broth - like a dead Jason Bourne at the end of Bourne Ultimatum.

Ajitama Tonkotsu Ramen I ordered

I wasn't in the best of moods, since I was feeling sleepy, but the ramen was surprisingly good. Enough to wake me up. The broth was good, the chashu was tasty, and the ajitama egg was, well, disappointing. Maybe it's because I've tasted ajitama eggs in Japan (sorry for the humblebrag). Anyway, my order was good, taste-wise. The noodles I chose were firm, as recommended by our server, and I think it fit in well with the soup.

One good thing about reading the placemat before eating was seeing the advice how to enjoy the ramen. I added ground sesame seeds in my broth and mixed in some of the pickled ginger. The sesame seeds and ginger made the ramen taste even better. I told Maica to add some to her Miso Tonkotsu and she also agreed that it improved the flavor.

Pickled ginger, chicken karaage, and some crayons for Martina

Overall we had a good experience in Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen. The place was clean, the food was good, and the service was okay. Expect to pay around Php500.00 per head (including service charge) for one order with drinks. Maybe a bit more since we didn't order drinks.

Group shot of the food we ate

Finally, would we go back there again? Not really. There's a reason why we never ate at Ikkoryu Fukuoka Ramen whenever we went to SM Aura. And that reason was Yabu. There are other reasons why we will have a hard time going back. Like Lugang Cafe, and that other ramen restaurant that opened beside Yabu.

I'm not saying don't eat there. Please, try it out. I wouldn't mind eating there again. But I also wouldn't go out of my way to eat there again.

Out.