You’ve probably seen footage of Menbaka’s epic fire ramen all over the internet. Famous for setting their food ablaze, you can soon experience the fiery spectacle for yourself from 24 Nov!
Located at Cineleisure Orchard, the outlet will be the eatery’s first-ever overseas outlet outside of Kyoto. They were supposed to open in April, but the date was pushed back due to the pandemic.
Menbaka Fire Ramen was opened in 1984 by ramen master Masamichi Miyazawa in his native land, Kyoto. In a bid to make his ramen more appealing, he created the world’s first fire ramen, which quickly shot to fame and became a hit with Japanese diners and tourists from around the world.
‘Fire’ is usually associated with spice, but at Menbaka, flaming negi oil is poured on top of its green onion broth to create towering flames and give the broth a deeper, smoky flavour. A far cry from the usual ramen joints!
To protect diners from the flaming hot oil, you will be required to wear the protective leg covers and apron. You are advised not to touch the bowl and be at least one metre away from the action in order to stay safe. Make sure to watch your eyebrows and eyelashes too!
The Kyoto outlet also requires customers to hand over their phones prior to the chefs pouring oil into your bowls. “But how will I capture this scene for all of mankind to witness?!” You may wonder. Fret not, dear millennial, because the phones are then placed on cute selfie sticks behind the counter, and staff would help to snap photos and videos of the diner reacting to their food being set on fire. We imagine that the Singapore outlet would follow suit with this too!
Menbaka Fire Ramen will be serving a Singapore-exclusive dish, the Tonkotsu Fire Ramen, as well as Menbaka’s signature Shoyu Fire Ramen, which comprises chicken, mackerel, seaweed and bonito brewed for over five hours to achieve a complex and flavourful aroma. Vegetarians are not forgotten – you will have the Vegetarian Fire Ramen to look forward to!
So if you’re adventurous and love over-the-top dining experiences, Menbaka Fire Ramen is a place that you'll want to bookmark for a visit. We don’t imagine this to be a chill experience, but don’t worry. Their menu says that they’ve been serving fire ramen for 30 years, and nobody has died yet.