Mendokoro Ramenba in Bonifacio Global City Taguig
Mendokoro's hype started to re-ignite following the controversy with Ellen Adarna, whom allegedly got pissed off by the lack of privacy when she visited the branch here in BGC. I’m not usually the type who rides bandwagons. However, this was somehow an exemption.
I checked my blog posts, and I found out that the last time I got to try Mendokoro was 2015. Heck, I didn’t know 3 years would have flown that fast! I then realized I was due for “update”, and so we decided to give this ramen bar a visit. So yeah, it’s a good excuse, right?
By the way, you may read about my first encounter of Mendokoro in this blog post - Mendokoro Ramenba in Salcedo Village - Makati's Yushoken Ramen.
Due to the hype, you’ll often see Mendokoro with a long queue. However, there’s a short window at 6:00-6:15 PM wherein you can easily get seated. It’s the interval right before customers swarm to this place. Two of my friends were already waiting for me, so I needed to run from my office to reach this “window” period.
Anyway, before we dive into the bowl, let’s first talk about the place itself.
The iconic U-shaped dining area
The interior of Mendokoro has exactly the same look and feel as the first branch in Makati. It features this U-shaped dining area that allows servers to move freely in attending to our ramen needs. There is beauty in this as it somehow gives you a glimpse of Japanese dining (though not all restaurants in Japan has such structure). However, this also creates pressure on the diners to eat-and-go, especially with a long queue casting gazes on you.
The Shoyu Ramen (P400) “missed” my palate on the first few sips. I kept telling myself, “This is not how I remembered the taste of this ramen. It was so much better.” However, three years could have clouded my memory and judgment altogether. Interestingly, as I sip and slurp halfway, memories started coming back, and I started appreciating the deep, rich and suave goodness of the broth together with the thick firm noodles that gave it great textures. The redeeming glory of this bowl was the meat which was oozing with rich flavors!
I also got a few sip of the Tantanmen Ramen (P420), and it was potent at the first slurp. It got this mild peanuty hint which was then wrapped by a playful yet flavorful heat. It may not be the most mild-blowing ramen I had, but it surely hit the right spots of my palate. (This is contrary to my initial review way back in 2015. I guess palates change.)
When I resumed back to my bowl, I realized soon enough that I’ve finished it. Fifteen (15) minutes of happiness. It was glorious but “bitin”, but I guess this is the element that keeps customers going back for literally “more” of the ramen.
Mendokoro Ramenba - Overall Ratings and Summary
Note: Unshaded stars are equivalents of half-stars. The ratings reflect my personal experiences on the times I dine here.
Place ★★★★
Taste ★★★★
Service ★★★★★
Value for Money ★★★
Budget: at least P450 each for a personal bowl of ramen
No. of visits for this particular restaurant/branch - 1 || Date of last visit - November 28, 2018
Ramen Mendokoro definitely deserves the limelight and the extra hype it is getting. I mean, your palate will definitely rejoice with the push and pull of elegance and bluntness of flavors. The more pressing question is “Was it worth it?”. Well, I’m still debating this in my mind. I mean, out of courtesy, we were “forced” to get up as soon as we downed our bowl. Normally, I’d like to bask in the ambiance, and just absorb things slowly, but here we didn’t have that luxury. This makes the P400+ paid look even pricier, but yes, I’ll still return here, but maybe after 2 months.
Mendokoro Ramenba
Location: 26th Street Icon Plaza RCBC Building, Taguig, 1630 Metro Manila
Service Charge: 10% before VAT
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