I <3 Menchanko Tei

Oh Menchanko Tei
I wish I could eat you everyday
Especially when the days are cold and gray
Like today...

Hm... what else rhymes with "tei"? Sadly my attempt at an ode to Menchanko Tei ends here. But what I did say, came from the heart! I really could eat Menchanko everyday and not get tired of their Hakata Ramen. EVER.

Maybe it should have been more of an ode to Hakata Ramen? Nah... I've had Hakata elsewhere, and it's just not the same. Menchanko's Hakata kicks all other Hakata ramen's butt! Even Shinsengumi, the famed LA Hakata Ramen establishment doesn't measure up to Menchanko (it's not as well seasoned and has this smoky (?) flavor). Besides, Menchanko has a delicious Oden bar, and a mighty tasty konbu riceball.

Look look, slivers of konbu enveloped in warm rice and crisp seaweed (don't let the seaweed get too soggy!). I compared the konbu riceball from Yakitorri Totto to Menchanko, and Menchanko won, yet again! Totto's konbu is too hard and not as flavorful... just plain salty.


And the beef tendon is soooooo tender... not at all tendon-y. I usually love a springy tendon, but I have nothing to complain about here since it tastes so goooood.

But, the star of the show at Menchanko is really their Hakata Ramen. When you take your first sip of this hot, rich, porky broth, you'll be blown away by how porky, how complex and refined the broth really is. It's like you're ingesting the very essence of pork. You see this big bowl of ramen? That's the full-sized Hakata. If I ate a whole full-sized ramen, I'd have no space to eat my favorite riceball, so I get their half-sized Hakata (pictured above with tendon and riceball). PLUS, it comes in a prettier bowl!


AND! I can squeeze in some dessert.


By the way, there are two Menchanko Tei locations in Midtown. I don't recommend going to the one on 45th St. Their Hakata Ramen soup tastes like instant noodles! I won't be surprised if they used MSG... Go to the one on 55th.

Menchanko Tei
43-45 W. 55th St
(btwn 5th and 6th Ave)
New York, NY, 10017