RAMEN YUSHOKEN - When you want the best ramen, better go South. *****

The best ramen place is not found in Manila. It is in Molito, Alabang, where the ramen gods call home, at a place called Ramen Yushoken. 

Yushoken's ramen recipe is derived from ramen god, Kazuo Yamagishi, who invented the popular tsukemen or the "dipping" ramen. His skills were passed to successor Hideayi Aoyama who personally ensured that Yushoken's ramen is at par with the ramen houses in Japan.

Their ramen base is the Tonkotsu, made from pork bones boiled for 12 hours.
From there, 4 different tare or base sauces that give flavor to the ramen.
These are the stuff you're familiar with: Shio, salt-based, Miso, soy bean paste, Shoyu soy-sauce based and Tantanmen, which has sesame paste, chili oil and ground pork.

Yushoken also serves tsukemen, or dipping ramen, this is composed of having a thicker soup and dry ramen on the side. Other signature items include the gyoza.

The place  has a no-frills decor and their  wi-fi is fast.  I heard that there are lines at this place as well, but with the quality of the ramen, I think that's a small price to pay to enjoy a really good bowl of noodles.

Here's what we ordered and loved:

Shio Ramen P 320
One sip of this ramen and you know this what good comfort food tastes like. The soup is rich, flavorful and creamy. Among all the Tonkotsu based ramens I have tried, this is the one that
gave me that "Eureka!" moment. With a piece of tender Chasyu, bamboo shoots, leeks and sesame seeds. The moment the bowl is served on your table you know that this is a good thing, just by the fragrant smell alone. 

 Gyokai Tsukemen Php 390
Tsukemen is a new way to enjoy ramen. The noodles are al dente and firm, almost spaghetti-like and  dipped in the sauce. Gyokai has bonito flakes giving it a smoky flavor. I love to swirl the noodles around the soup and dig in. This is so enjoyable that I wanted to ask for more ramen to dip into the soup. Delish!

Gyoza Php 150
5 pieces of pan-fried dumplings. The gyoza skin is very thin and the meat fillings are delicious.
If I have to rank these, this will be at least top 3 of the gyozas I had.

Karaage  Php 210

Had to order these, since we saw that most of the tables had these. The chicken karaage looked as good as it tasted. The juicy morsels of chicken was fried well and it could work well even when not dipped into the Japanese mayo. If kids enjoy this, adults will enjoy this dish more. 

I had high hopes for this place and Yushoken was worth the long trip to Alabang.
The ramen was outstanding and crave-worthy but what blew me away was the side dishes were holding their own against the mains. That is why I'm giving Yushoken, a 5 spoon rating, for taste, service and efficiency. Hands down the best ramen house I've experienced.

Ramen Yushoken
Molito Mall Alabang
8087424