Keisuke Tonkotsu King

Keisuke Tonkotsu King
1 Tras Link
#01-19 Orchid Hotel

60 Paya Lebar Road
#01-04 Paya Lebar Square

158 Rochor Road

80 Marine Parade Road
#B1-18A Parkway Parade

http://www.keisuke.sg/


Decent Ramen But Slightly Overpriced

(Ratings: On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 = Worst and 10 = Best)
Overall: 6
Ambience & Setting: 6
Food & Beverage: 6
Service: 7
Value for Money: 6
Spent about SGD $20 per person.


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Keisuke Tonkotsu King is a niche store, specializing in Japanese Ramen... And they only offer 1 type of soup base for their Ramen, which is Tonkotsu. In other words, no Miso, Shoyu or Shio. However, Keisuke Tonkotsu King does allow you to customize your Tonkotsu Ramen in a few ways.

Keisuke Tonkotsu King allows you to choose types of ingredients to include (Egg, Seaweed, Cha Shu), noodle texture (Soft, Normal, Hard), amount of oil (Less, Normal, More) and soup strength (Light, Normal, Strong). Be warned that the tonkotsu soup base is already quite salty, with bits of pork fat floating within. I personally prefer 'Light' for soup strength and 'Less' for amount of oil.

Keisuke Tonkotsu King also offers to additional option of 'Black Spicy', which is black pepper, or 'Red Spicy', which is chili powder. Beyond this, Keisuke Tonkotsu King also offers diners complimentary bean sprouts, sesame seeds and hard boiled eggs to add into your Tonkotsu Ramen, as well as water / green tea.

I find the Tonkotsu Ramen at Keisuke Tonkotsu King to be just decent, although the soup is tasty. I think it's slightly overpriced, and the ambience is terrible during peak periods... Definitely not worth queuing for.


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Keisuke Tonkotsu King Banner

Keisuke Tonkotsu King Menu

The Tonkotsu Ramen soup base is quite tasty and savoury, but has bits of pork fat floating within. The noodles seem to be quite ordinary, although it's nice to choose the doneness. The egg is nicely half-cooked, similar to what you'll get elsewhere. The 2 slices of Cha Shu were quite large, but thinly sliced. Overall, quite decent, but not worth queuing for.

Tonkotsu Ramen Special

Tonkotsu Ramen Special With Sesame Seeds

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Update Jun-2016: The little ramen stall founded by Japanese Chef Keisuke Takeda is still going strong, and Keisuke Tonkotsu King now has expanded with 11 different concept restaurants across Singapore. Their core business however, still remains, and their ramen is as good as ever.

Keisuke Tonkotsu King Exterior

Keisuke Tonkotsu King Interior

Seating

Returning after 4 years, I'm glad that Keisuke Tonkotsu King is still consistent in the quality of their food, though prices have risen. Ambience at Keisuke Tonkotsu King is less cramped, and is now more bright and airy, though the quick casual dining concept is retained. Wooden furniture is packed closely in the small floor space, while Japanese posters and banners adorn the walls. Service at Keisuke Tonkotsu King remains partial self-service, as payment is over the counter, though ordering is done tableside. Staff are helpful and informative, able to answer questions on the various dishes. Food remains focused on tonkotsu ramen, though the range of soup base has since expanded. They now offer a greater variety of dishes on the menu. However, prices have also risen accordingly with inflation.

Menu

Menu

Menu

Menu

Table Salt, Chili Powder

They offer a variety of condiments on the side, including a small dish of sesame seeds you have to grind on your own, which releases an addictive aroma! They even have free-flow, complimentary Sauteed Bean Sprouts and Hard Boiled Eggs!

Sesame Seeds, Fried Onions, Bonito Flakes

Sauteed Bean Sprouts

Hard Boiled Eggs

The Soft Drink Wasabi Ginger Ale (SGD $3) is rather interesting, with its fizzy, carbonated, light texture, and a mostly sweet and ginger spice flavour, with a hint of sharpness from the wasabi infusion. Decent beverage.

Soft Drink Wasabi Ginger Ale (SGD $3)

Got the Tonkotsu Ramen Special King (SGD $16.90) with the normal Tonkotsu soup base, which is savoury and robust, yet not overly salty, being quite well balanced. Garnished with a large sheet of crunchy, mineral-tasting seaweed; bouncy, chewy ramen noodles; crunchy, earthy cloud ear fungus; fatty strips of savoury grilled pork yakiniku; a lean and meaty pork cha shu slice; and a wobbly eggy ajitsuke tamago / marinated soft boiled egg. Add on your own condiments, and enjoy! Good!

Tonkotsu Ramen Special King (SGD $16.90)

Tonkotsu Ramen Special King

Tonkotsu Ramen Special King

The only difference between the Tonkotsu Ramen Special King Black Spicy (SGD $17.90) and the normal version, is the addition of mayu / black roasted garlic oil, and chili. This lends the dish an incredibly fragrant, herbal garlic flavour with notes of savoury sour spicy, and a matte black colour. Slight more pricey though. Worth ordering!

Tonkotsu Ramen Special King Black Spicy (SGD $17.90)

Tonkotsu Ramen Special King Black Spicy

Tonkotsu Ramen Special King Black Spicy

The only difference between the Tonkotsu Ramen Special Red Spicy (SGD $15.90) and the normal version, is the addition of chili oil. This makes the dish fiery red in colour, and is a lot more savoury spicy and punchy, though the dish also becomes a lot more oily. Burns with good heat.

Tonkotsu Ramen Special Red Spicy (SGD $15.90)

Tonkotsu Ramen Special Red Spicy

Tonkotsu Ramen Special Red Spicy

The Gyoza (SGD $3) is supposed to be a house speciality here, but I find it to only be decent. While the dumpling skin is crisp, and the minced pork filling nicely savoury and juicy, it's not tightly packed, with small air pockets within. Worse, it's overly oily, and I feel the taste is just average, not memorable. Also, it's expensive, at SGD $1 per gyoza pork meat dumpling. Will not order again.

Gyoza (SGD $3)

Gyoza

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Update Jun-2018: Another 2 years have passed, and Keisuke Tonkotsu King has expanded to even more outlets across Singapore. The newer outlets feature more elaborate decor, with larger seating areas. Even within the Keisuke Tonkotsu King brand itself, they've carved out specific niches for each stall, so you get different dishes at different outlets.

Warrior Samurai

While the price for the Soft Drink Wasabi Ginger Ale (SGD $3) remains the same, the beverage itself has improved, and now has a more concentrated flavour. Notes of zesty tangy sweet spicy herbal. It also feels less carbonated than before, with the change in colour and visuals being obvious.

Soft Drink Wasabi Ginger Ale (SGD $3)

The Tonkotsu Ramen Sanjya Special (SGD $18.90) features their signature tonkotsu soup base, savoury salty in flavour. Garnished with a large sheet of crunchy, earthy seaweed; bouncy, chewy ramen noodles; crunchy, earthy black fungus / cloud ear fungus; a lean and meaty pork cha shu slice; tender vegetal sweet bamboo shoots; and a wobbly eggy ajitsuke tamago / marinated soft boiled egg. A trio of seasoning lend bold flavours; including black garlic paste, red chili oil; and green coriander paste. Stir them all in, and you get a visually unappealing bowl, that is completely delicious and layered. There's still the complimentary marinated bean sprouts, sesame seeds, and hard boiled eggs available too. Good!

Tonkotsu Ramen Sanjya Special (SGD $18.90)

Tonkotsu Ramen Sanjya Special

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