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| - My friends and I came on the second day to a growing modest line-up. Inside the shop, we were funnelled past Saryo, a little built-in dessert shop with clean lines and smooth wooden finish. This abruptly changed into a more industrial feel with barnboard wood panelling, black metal ceiling cages that were both display platforms and simple decor, with bare light fixtures--seating consisted of group tables on the walls with a long island of row seating with bar chairs. Interesting design.
We ordered the signature clam broth ramen (shoyu), spicy red tonkotsu, and smoky black tonkotsu. At first glance, portion sizes appeared to be slightly smaller, with bowls with straight sloping sides (similar to Kinton). Contrary to some earlier images showing generous servings of meat (which I surmise are those of the private tasting), I received only two thin slices of the chashu. After sampling my friends' broths I dove into mine and it quickly dematerialized. The broth is markedly lighter than what I've had before: deep-seated savouriness, clam flavour coming in clear without being overtly or unpleasantly fishy, minimally if at all oily, and overall very soulful. It was quite salty as I've come to expect from ramen broths but not overwhelmingly so that I'm compelled to empty my glass of water at all. I loved the texture of the noodles. Supple and a pleasant chew, a worthy and robust vector for a nice broth. The bamboo shoots were firmer almost to the point of a lush crisp, but not unpleasantly so. The chashu I received, one slightly fatty and one lean, was alright, almost inconsequential support in the background of excellent noodles and broth. Of my friend's broths, I enjoyed the spicy red tonkotsu very much; equally hearty and soulful, with a deceivingly measured heat in the mouth with an exciting build up as it travels down the throat.
We decided to finish with some sweets, ordering the hojicha sundae and the signature parfait. Both we found were noticeable improvements over the average Japanese matcha soft serves, being creamier, while still balanced and not overly sweet.
Overall Konjiki is definitely worth a visit. I hope that this visit is only a baseline indication of more to come, with the chef staying true to his intent of leveraging local ingredients to incorporate and elevate a Japanese staple.
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