Ichi-ban Boshi

The Galeries Victoria
Level 2, 500 George St, Sydney
7 Days, 11am - 9pm

It's a ramen house!! And dayumn is it fine.

No matter what the hour is, or day, the queue for this place is always a long one. Personally I don't see a big problem with this as Kinokuniya lies directly opposite always waiting to consume anyone who dares enter. Level two, therefore, of this building is one of the best 'mall' levels EVER. Don't even try to contest that one.

So after what seems like an age of wanting to try this noodle bar out, a window of time is found to be had for some ramen. With a reasonable on-the-door waiting list for those before us, we mingle about the front podium - which marks the open entrance and which usually holds a cute Japanese girl with a headset - worrying about whether enough time was left to eat. Nevertheless we are taken in reasonably fast. And then supplied with a basket next to the table...which was for what exactly? My dirty laundry? Food scraps? Turtles? No, apparently my coat - I like the idea!

After much deliberation I decided to go with Aburi Chashu-men - gorgeously succulent pieces of pork which were flamed (who can't resist the addition of throwing flames at something?) and sitting within a mildly salty broth flavoured oh-so-slightly with ginger. The actual ramen was delicious, and accompanied with broth-marinated bamboo shoots, chopped spring onions, a bok choy (I would imagine) of sorts, and other soaked root vegetables, it became a hearty meal indeed.

Ichi-ban Boshi serves are huge (see scale of chopsticks in picture) and filled me up well enough for lunch and kept me going so I only had to have...a hot chocolate and Oreos for dinner *blushes*. For the $11.50 paid this was well worth the amount of food presented, as well as the anticipation of coming here.

As a side note, a big draw for this place is its famed 15 bowls-a-day-only Tonkotsu Ramen, a dish made with pork, and, among few other things, collagen. Yes, the stuff that fake lips are made out of. Will be in early upon my next visit in order to sample this dish of curiosity!