At Wisma Atria, Picnic Food Park’s collaboration with two Michelin-starred Seizan (a kaiseki restaurant based in Tokyo) produces a modern ramen concept – Seizan Uni Ramen which has opened in mid August this year.

And if the name “Seizan” sounds familiar, that’s because Nabe Seizan, which specialises in nabe or Japanese hotpot (in Wisma Atria @ Japan Food Town), is also an offshoot of Seizan.

Uni ramen ($21++)

Their philosophy of “using high-quality ingredients prepared with finesse” is apparent in the execution for the uni ramen ($21++). Firstly, let me just say that I’m very impressed that the water used to make Seizan’s proprietary dashi is the spring water imported from Mount Fuji. Does it also have age-defying properties like SK-II? I digress.

Back to the makings of Seizan’s dashi (which takes about 10 hours). Kombu or edible kelp is first soaked overnight in spring water from Mount Fuji; then removed and the infused liquid is subsequently flash boil (a type of cooking technique by using a small amount of water to quicken the process of boiling).

Curly noodles are used to increase the surface area so that the broth can coat it.

Two types of fish flakes (bonito and tuna) are added into the broth and removed swiftly so that the dashi does not turn out to be overly savoury. Hence, a clean, flavourful and of course, very umami broth is achieved.

Under the tutelage of Seizan Tokyo’s Chef Haruhiko Yamamoto, Nabe Seizan’s Head Chef Uchida has created a light but satisfying buttery, sunshiney emulsion of Japanese bafun uni, milk, cream, and dashi.

The noodles are imported from Tokyo with a proprietary blend of egg-and-flour ratio that complements the uni broth. The noodles are also deliberately made to be curlier than most ramen noodles so as to allow the velvety uni broth to coat each noodle strand even more.

Kumamoto wagyu ramen ($20++)

Besides the uni ramen,Seizan Uni Ramen offers 2 non-uni dishes: Kumamoto wagyu ramen and dashi somen.

Kumamoto wagyu ramen ($20++) is prepared by combining Seizan’s signature dashi with a beef stock made from beef bones, tendons and vegetables. In turn, that makes for a comforting beefy consomme of noodles and a generous portion of tender, chunky wagyu tendon.

Dashi somen ($18++)

Dashi somen ($18++) is prepared by pairing Seizan’s dashi with somen or very thin noodles made from wheat flour. It is my favourite out of the 3 noodle dishes. There is something about the clean tasting, umami dashi; which is elevated with Japanese soy sauce, mirin and sake to give a lingering sweet finish with nothing to distract my taste buds. Just broth and noodles. It’s pure, unadulterated joy.

The usual toppings such as char shu made in-house, onsen tamago, leeks, spinach, spring onions and nori (even the nori is delish – unlike those you get in some ramen chains) come with all 3 ramen dishes. One can also have an extra bowl of soup for an additional of $4.

If you’re skeptical about having uni in ramen soup but still enjoy creamy sauce, do give this a try. Seizan uni ramen is not jelak at all and you can slurp every single bit of the soup. On the whole, the price is slightly higher than other ramen restaurants’ but for the effort and ingredients used to prepare the ramen, it is worth the trip down.

Food: 7/10
Decor/ambience: 6/10
Price/value: 6/10

You may be interested in…
–Menya Kokoro, 100 AM, Tanjong Pagar: First Mala Mazesoba and Ramen in Singapore
–Ra Ra Men Men Men, Want Your Bad Ramence: Kajiken, Ramen Keisuke Kani King, and Sō Ramen
–Jimoto Ya, China Square Central: Hokkaido Ebi-Tonkatsu Ramen Created by Michelin-Starred Chef Nobumasa Mieda
–Kuro Izakaya, Suntec: Ramen by Day, Izakaya by Night Using Kosei Charcoal Grill

Written by Vanessa Khong. Vanessa is someone who enjoys checking out the local food scene. She believes the way to her heart is through her stomach.