I’d never been a big fan of tonkotsu ramen prior to visiting Japan (though admittedly I’d only had it once in Singapore), and even after being introduced to Japanese-made versions by Xianna and Ailin, I wasn’t a huge fan. Curiously enough I’ve somehow acquired a taste for it along the way, so much so that I actually really wanted to revisit this place before leaving Japan, despite it being a really long drive from where I’m staying.

Daruma Taishi (named after daruma dolls), as it is apparently called (we usually just refer to it as ‘Daruma Ramen’), is supposedly pretty well-known for its tonkotsu ramen, which essentially features a pork-based broth that is made by stewing for hours. The ingredients are pretty simple – noodles, bamboo shoots, pork, egg and scallions, but the potent broth makes it extremely enjoyable. I’d originally captioned the photo (taken last December) with the line ‘With soup so thick that it reputedly gives angmohs indigestion, this is pretty powerful stuff!’, and this opinion still hasn’t changed – but I’ve come to appreciate this ‘powerful stuff’ now, and have taken to liberally adding mashed garlic and sesame seeds into the broth to create a medley of strong flavours.

I’m probably slowly clogging up my arteries by eating this stuff, but hey – at least it’ll be a life well spent!