Kanbe Ramen TRX Kuro Ramen

I finally made it to Kanbe Ramen at The Exchange TRX. I have heard quite a bit about their ramen, so there was really only one thing I wanted to find out. Was it worth paying a little more for a bowl here?

I went with the Kuro Ramen, which starts at RM34. What I like about Kanbe is the amount of control they give you over your bowl. You get to choose the strength of the broth, amount of pork oil and garlic, pork topping, spring onion, noodle firmness and even the level of their homemade spicy sauce.

I kept most things normal, chose chashu, green negi and went for the noodles hard.

That last choice worked particularly well for me.

The noodles arrived with exactly the sort of al dente texture I enjoy. They had a proper bite to them and, more importantly, continued to hold their texture while sitting in that thick broth.

The Kuro broth was the other thing that stood out. It was thick, rich and full-bodied, the sort of broth that coats the noodles rather than simply sitting beneath them. Kanbe's ramen broths use pork bones as their foundation, and the Kuro is one of several flavour choices available.

There were also some seriously thick slices of chashu in the bowl. They were substantial enough that you certainly weren't wondering where the pork had gone.

Jen went in a different direction with the Goma Tsukemen at RM39 and enjoyed hers too.

What I came away appreciating most was the execution. There is plenty of customisation here, but ultimately what mattered to me was quite straightforward. The noodles had the texture I wanted and the Kuro broth delivered the richness I was looking for.

Kanbe is clearly premium-priced ramen. Our two bowls came to RM84.70 after service charge and tax, which works out to RM42.35 per person.

But this is one of those occasions where I felt the price reflected the quality of what arrived in the bowl.