White soy sauce ramen with eggplant and crab｜Shurakutei Kuuan

While out looking for a ramen restaurant in the area, I noticed “Shurakutei Kuuan” nearby and headed there immediately, but the parking lot was full before lunch time.
I parked my car nearby and waited for a while, and after about 10 minutes the parking lot became available, so I quickly parked my car in the lot and went inside.

“Shurakutei Kuuan” was established in 2013. The owner was previously the head chef at FOUNT, a high-end Japanese restaurant in Shanghai, and is a veteran Japanese cuisine chef who has been working with kaiseki cuisine（Kaiseki cuisine is a traditional Japanese multi-course meal.） for more than 20 years.
When the restaurant first opened, they had “Slow-cooked chicken broth” as their signature menu, but around the end of 2014, they renewed the menu with “Duck” as the main dish.

Japanese-style, modern storefront and Japanese garden with spectacular views

As you felt when you parked your car in the parking lot in front of the store, the store has a stylish, modern, Japanese style. Upon entering the restaurant, a large glass wall offers a full-screen view of a beautiful Japanese garden.
The clean and relaxing space gives the impression of coming to a museum rather than a ramen shop, and is a wonderful place to use for various occasions suitable for families, couples, and groups.

Kindness of the staff and the unique style of “Shurakutei Kuuan”.

The staff was very friendly and seemed to be committed to providing prompt service, and I was very impressed with their attentive service that matched the special atmosphere of the restaurant.
We were guided to the ticket machine at the entrance of the restaurant and ordered “White soy sauce ramen with eggplant and crab”. All ramen at “Shurakutei Kuuan” comes with a “dish of duck with green onions”. The ramen is very popular, especially the ramen with duck meat.
A unique experience is the style of cooking the “duck with green onions” by yourself on an induction stove. This is one of the ways to make your meal more enjoyable, and is a memorable presentation that can only be experienced at “Shurakutei Kuuan”.

The best ramen time to immerse yourself in the owner’s specialties

As we quietly waited for our ramen at the table we were shown, we were first served a cup of soup. As we sipped and savored each mouthful of soup, our anticipation for the next dish naturally grew, and the “dish of duck with green onions”.

The staff will first explain how to prepare the dish, and then you will cook the dish of duck with green onions by yourself using the induction stove built into the table at each table. If you overcook the dish, the duck meat will become tough, so you will cook it quickly on the surface, then turn it over and cook the other side as well. When the time is right, turn off the induction stove and cook the duck slowly in the residual heat to make it tender and tasty.
Before the main course of ramen noodles, the duck with green onions in a special Japanese broth with salt sauce is the most delicious dish. I would love to have another bowl of this dish.
To say the least, the dish of duck with green onions alone is worth coming to “Shurakutei Kuuan”.

After enjoying each piece of duck with green onions, the ramen is served at the perfect time.
At this point, your mouth and mind are in perfect condition to face the ramen.

We start with the soup.
The soup looks simple and beautiful. The clear broth of special white soy sauce and duck broth, made by boiling down a large amount of crab, is packed with richness and umami, making it a very tasty soup with depth of flavor.　

Next, the noodles are medium thin and straight. They go very well with the deep and tasty soup, and the sensation of them gently passing down your throat is also excellent.
After tasting the soup and noodles several times, the next step is to pour in the oil from another small plate at the right moment. The oil is an excellent accent to the clear soup and makes the ramen even more enjoyable.

Ingredients such as fu and eggplant, which absorb a lot of the delicious soup, and seasoned egg, which has a thick yellowish yolk, provide a variety of textures and accents, delighting the palate every time you eat more. Needless to say, it is the most delicious.
It was the best food and ramen time that I enjoyed not only the food but also the owner’s sense, feeling, skill, and orientation.

【 UMAMECCA Editor’s voice 】

Overall, the quality of the food, the service, and the atmosphere are all highly recommended at this ramen restaurant. I recommend it especially to those who want to enjoy duck ramen and to be healed by enjoying the view of the Japanese garden. We don’t like to give critiques because they include only comparisons, personal opinions, and impressions, but the ramen restaurant is so complete as a place to experience the ramen, food, service, atmosphere, and time at “Sharakutei Kuuan” that it doesn’t matter.