Shyun Ramen – Dani Valent

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73 Koornang Road, Carnegie, 8394 5971

My score: 3/5

It’s easy to do a soup test. Wait until you’re feeling groggy, grey and brimful of winter. March unerringly – zombie-like, impelled – towards a bowl of soup. Sup, slurp and spoon it in. A good soup will act as a culinary hug to prod you towards health. Many soups do the trick: Jewish penicillin (chicken soup) is a winner, Vietnamese pho rocks and Polish tomato soup with a shot of vodka promotes healing and keeling over in equal measure. Also good is sustaining, nutritious Japanese ramen (noodle soup).

If I tell you there’s a ramen museum in Yokohama you’ll glean what a serious business this is. Ramen has a rich culture with myriad styles and protocols. Soup can be cloudy or clear, made with chicken or pork, then miso, soy or neither. Noodles may be straight or kinked, then there’s the whole question of toppings. Shyun focuses on tonkotsu ramen (pork bone broth). They also do a flavourful chicken base and most soups are offered with miso or soy as an extra layer of flavour. My pick for busting a winter lurgy is the pork gekikara. The broth is opaque, sticky and rich with collagen; it’s piled with springy noodles, spicy pork mince, boiled egg and corn kernels. The chicken karaage (with crisp nuggets) is good too.

The experience is perfunctory. Customers are crammed in, turnover is quick, and if you want somewhere to put your bag or coat you’ll have to use the gardening bucket wedged under your stool. It’s not unwelcoming though: jaunty signs give newbies the lowdown on eating rubrics (DIY seasoning, eat noodles last) and there’s a change table in the toilet if you’re brave enough to bring baby. There’s other food too but the dumplings and rice dishes aren’t a patch on the soup, either in flavour or magical healing properties.

See their website.

More soup:

Hakata Gensuke, 168 Russell Street, Melbourne, 9663 6342.
Pork broth is the focus here. Look out for the inky broth with black sesame paste and the ‘god fire’ spicy soup to blast your cold to smithereens. Also in Hawthorn.

Pho Nom, Lower Ground Floor, Emporium, 287 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, 8609 8221.
It’s not just that the noodle soups are super tasty but also that the meat is ethically raised, adding extra warmth to the glow that is pho.

Soul Soup Cafe, 55 Cardigan Street, Carlton, 0407 054 931.
Popular with students for its cheap, hearty soups and daily menu (check their Facebook page), Soul Soup is responsive to dietary requirements and offers garlic and onion-free options.

First published in The Age, July 12, 2015.

2018-05-04T15:49:25+10:00

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