I arrived around lunch time to Raijin Ramen. One weird thing I noticed was throughout my waiting time, I saw at least 5 people leaving the restaurant but none of the staffs came to tell me there were seats available inside... (I was the next person in line for a seat) It just felt weird as I know there were empty seats but they didn't do anything and the line was just getting longer for no reason. I don't think it takes them 30 minutes to clean tables, right?
After all the waiting time, they finally told me there a seat available and that I can go in. When I entered, I noticed there were at least 4 seats available but they only called me in... I didn't really appreciate this as I don't get why do they do this? It felt like they want people to line up...
They have a wide variety of Ramen with chicken or pork based soup and the waitress recommended me their "Gyokai Tonkotsu Shoyu Ramen (blend of 5 types of Soy sauce)" and their "Spicy Tonkotsu Ramen" (which is also their #1 selling ramen) for spicy lovers. The above mentioned ramen are all pork based soup and she recommended their "Chicken Shoyu Ramen" which is made with chicken broth. I opted for their Tonkotsu shio ramen (without egg) because I prefer pork broth and the slow roasted garlic oil really attracted me. I regretted not ordering it with egg since a bowl of ramen without a marinated soft boiled egg is incomplete!
My ramen came in a bunny bowl and it just made me happier as I love bunnies! The garlic oil really made the ramen more flavorful but overall it got a bit too salty when I was finishing up with it (yes, I know I ordered a Shio ramen, so it's normal that it was salty). I loved the broccolini inside my ramen, it was something new and it went well with everything else! The meat was really tender and the portion was quite big compared to most of the ramen restaurants in Montreal! Their noodles were really chewy and not too soft! Next time, I think I would opt for their Tonkotsu Miso ramen (with egg), which should be creamier and less salty! I also really want to try their Karaage!
Raijin is placed as my #3 ramen in Toronto. I would go back to Raijin Ramen but I really think they should improve their service. The waiting time is ridiculous considering there were seats available and they still make people wait in the line. I wouldn't be complaining if the restaurant was jam-packed, but they weren't... And also, I asked for a glass of water when I placed the order since I told the waitress that I'm a bit scared it would be too salty. However, my glass of water never came until I asked for a second time (and by that time, I was almost done with my ramen).