Today I had to go to a school to register for a few courses. These are part-time courses and I’m really looking forward to learning and trying out new things/idea. This should all be fun.
I had to take the bus to this place and when I got off at the City Hall/Broadway station, I was in the process of running to catch a bus when I twisted my eye to the right and saw a ramen restaurant. A while ago, I wrote on my blog about another ramen restaurant (Santouka) and how I couldn’t believe how much I spent there ($20 for ramen and a bowl of rice with meat... tip and tax).
I gave up on the bus and walked to the entrance of this place to look inside. I’m not the snoopiest person so I didn’t stare too long from outside the doors... luckily, the menu for this place is displayed right outside of the front door. I checked it out and the price of the cheapest ramen was a bit over $7. After living in Japan for so long, I’m slowly getting back into the calculating-everything-that-isn’t-included-in-the-menu mode, so the tax would be about a dollar and the tip would be $2. If I chose the cheapest route, the total cost would be a bit about $10.
I figured why not and went in.
The name of this restaurant is Benkei (弁慶). Click here to go to the webpage. I was a bit surprised that the English webpage doesn’t have a link to the Japanese webpage which is here. The English webpage doesn't really say much... just the usual “we’ll try our sincere best to please you” kind of stuff, plus the menu. There are a few mistakes on this webpage and the English isn't exactly "natural".
The staff gave the usual “irashaimase” upon entering but didn't approach me or give a gesture for me sit down. I sat down and checked out the menu. The price of the ramen is reduced slightly if you add chashu-rice so I ordered the miso ramen with chashu-rice.
The restaurant isn’t too big or too small. There’s a counter area (I sat there since I was alone) and several tables for groups. I’d say there’s enough room for about twenty-five people.
The mama-san (the webpage refers to her as “chief executive officer”) who works there seems fairly professional and easy going. There were two waitresses moving around and only one man in the kitchen with a couple of female workers doing various things.
I waited a few minutes for the ramen to be made and it came. The taste... was pretty average... but this is coming from the guy who’s never really been “blown away” by ramen. Isn’t it just oily soup with noodles, a few slices of meat and vegetables? Ah well, the ramen connoisseurs can shake their heads in disgust all they want.
My only complaint about the food would be the chashu rice... the bowls that they use are too small and very difficult to scoop the rice into your mouth with chopsticks. Since I’m complaining I may as well mention that when you go to the washroom, it almost feels like you’re going to walk into the kitchen. Not the most comforting feeling.
When check time came, I was reasonably pleased with the price. It came out to $10.64 and I gave a $2.36 tip to make the grand total $13.
Will I go to this restaurant again. Maybe... at least the price seems a bit more reasonable than that other ramen restaurant in town.
