There’s ramen, that’s clear! What it isn’t said is that you can eat a whole unpeeled crab in a sandwich, tasting the Japanese version of cocido (Spanish stew)or booking a room with tatami to eat sitting on the floor in true Japanese style. Put on your bib and ask for one of its rich noodle or taste the most traditional dishes in Japan.
In full Tribunal Square (you know, where you usually meet with people at Barceló Street subway exit) is this restaurant that has unseated me. It might seem a local most unfunny, one in all that throngs of fast food restaurants, but cross its noren curtains and enter into a haven of peace, thanks to Paloma.
Her grandparents are from Kyoto, his parents lived in Taiwan and she was born in Madrid(her name so castizo is no coincidence). Between her, and her brother in the kitchen, they’ve been proposed bring the best of Japanese izakaya to Madrid. Izakayas are popular restaurants where you drink after work or eat traditional cuisine.
Like many of us don’t eat paella every day, they’re not every day eating sushi. There’re many different types of meals (thanks Diego for Almu for so beautiful cookbook of Maori Murota). I glanced at this book and the menu of Ninja Ramen before going.
In this case, just inside the gates of Ninja Ramen, there was one thing that caught my attention. Japanese people. There were Japanese everywhere eating dishes I hadn’t seen in life. Maybe I’m not a great expert on the subject but I’ve gone to a few Asian restaurants in Madrid and I already know the names of a few dishes memory.
Ninja Ramen has small nooks that will transport you to Japan: a bar where eat like in a small street stall and a communal table with big bluffs. I sat at a “normal” table and let Paloma surprised me and bring me whatever she wanted.
It started with a Chicken and vegetables gyozas, soft and delicate, with dough made by themselves. This I the most conventional food I ate, from here I went into an unknown world.
The next thing came to my table was a bao bun with a crab inside. Whole and unpeeled. They’ve taken the Taiwanese steam bread for a crab in tempura with homemade mustard, Soft shell crab bao bun.
You eat it unpeeled. The tempura makes the shell soft and there’s no problem. At first it may seem odd, but it’s great. I had already tasted many baos and I have my list of my 5 favorite baos of Madrid, but I won’t remove any, surely I expand the list…
Once all the ingredients are put on the table, the burner underneath the bowl it’s started to cook the vegetables and the soup. Once you’ve done a little hollow by eating some vegetables, it’s time to the meat.
You take a piece of meat (raw) with chopsticks and plunge in the broth, and when it changes color, you can eat it. It’s tradition before put it in the mouth dipping in beaten egg.
Finally, you put the noodles to the tasty broth. As you can imagine is a dish for the cold months and ingredients vary a bit like Spanish stew, depending on the area.
I ended up with Taiyaki, like Doroyakis but fish. It’s a bagel stuffed with Anko dough (sweet bean made) that usually eat Japanese children at school. It’s a kind of Bollycao, but much healthier and traditional.
After the meal told me they are making a great effort to reach all those of you who can not eat have milk or gluten. It has gluten free soy sauce and they modify many dishes. I’ll include it into my list of gluten-free restaurants in Madrid. So , everyone can eat the traditional cuisine of Japan, and of course ending sake!
Ninja Ramen
Phone: +34 914.93.99.193
Schedule: every day 12:00 to 16:30 hrs. and 19:30 to 0:00 hrs.
Average price: 25€
Address: Barceló, 1, Madrid.
Ninja Ramen on our map
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