It has been a while since I reviewed a ramen place (again). So far, all of the ramen stores I reviewed were either places I have previously visited on my own, or found through websites. Tondou Ramen is the first place that I found through local means, rather than through recommendations from the internet. And it’s pretty good.
Tondou Ramen is located slightly south of Christie Station. The restaurant claims to serve Okinawa-style ramen.
Food
Tonkotsu Special + Extra Noodles ($21.5 + $2.5)
This is Tondou’s most expensive ramen; other dishes are closer to the $18 to $20 range. I was tempted to order their Okinawan Soba dish, but chose tonkotsu in the end. It’s because I’m more familiar with tonkotsu and can probably make a better comparison to other stores.
First thing to note is that the broth is very rich, you can tell just from the picture. It wasn’t enough to upset my stomach, but people sensitive to oily food should be aware. I personally thought it tasted just rich enough for the portion size; any stronger and it would have been overwhelming.
The Special dish gives a lot of extra pork slices, which were well cooked. The other toppings (beansprouts, green onions, egg) are overall simple but taste very nice. The amount of extra noodles I received was huge, which was nice to see.
While the Tonkotsu Special seems pricey compared to the other dishes, it effectively has extra meat built in, and the extra noodles provides good value in my opinion.
Thoughts
Overall, I was happy with what I found at Tondou Ramen, it definitely qualifies as a solid ramen restaurant. I’m actually more confused as to how I’ve never heard of this place from all of the websites I looked at. I guess it’s a bit of fortunate events that I was able to find it.
Tondou tastes great and I think offers competitive value. The only problem I have is the location; it’s moderately difficult to access from where I live. Other than that, I have no problems recommending this place. If I visit again, I’ll be sure to try their Okinawan Soba.