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In the middle of the night, my stomach was growling, so I came to this ramen shop and ordered spicy miso ramen and dumplings. The broth looked really rich and smelled very Japanese, but I didn't drink it—since I can't handle spicy food, the smell of the spiciness already made me hesitate. The noodles were pretty good, chewy and had a nice bite, and even without the soup, I could still enjoy them. The dumplings were really great, with thin skin and plenty of filling, perfectly crispy, and dipping them in some sauce was super satisfying— they really saved the meal. To be honest, the spicy miso ramen without drinking the broth was okay for someone like me who has a Taiwanese palate and doesn't like spicy food, but it wasn't particularly impressive. Late-night meals are just about filling my stomach, and my mood was also somewhat satisfied. Next time, I might try something non-spicy and have a sip of the broth to see if it can be more enjoyable. This time, though, the dumplings were strong enough, so it was already pretty good!
First time here to eat~ You have to wait in line inside the department store!
📍 Pork Bone Salt Ramen
I ordered it without green onions and with regular noodles. The pork bone ramen is saltier and has more of a Japanese flavor, which I really like. Plus, the strong shrimp flavor is really delicious!
📍 Shrimp Dumplings
There’s a small shrimp inside, pretty tasty!
📍 Chashu Rice
Completely different from typical ramen shop chashu rice. The crispy shrimp on top adds great texture, it’s really good~ I’ll want to order it again next time!
In the past, when Jiji-kun only had a shop at West Lake, there would be long lines almost every day. Recently, they finally opened a branch in Ximen, which makes me very satisfied as a ramen lover🤣. This time, I ordered the light Jiji-kun, the rich Jiji-kun, and a bowl of char siu rice, but when the rich Jiji-kun arrived, I was so happy that I forgot to take a photo🤣. The taste is as excellent as always, but the rich one is really rich! When the staff brings the meal, they also provide a cup of clear broth, and if you are still worried it’s too rich, you can ask them for more! Eating the rich one first and then the light one gives an incredibly refreshing feeling🤣. The char siu rice is also truly delicious! The meat, whether fatty or lean, has the perfect flavor—it’s the kind of dish you can eat more than half of in one sitting. The staff also kindly remind you that the bowl is very hot, which is very thoughtful🫶.
Yushan Ramen is hidden in an alley on Section 1 of Daan Road, about a ten-minute walk from both Zhongxiao Fuxing and Daan MRT stations. The nearest landmark is the famous Ren’ai Hospital.
Today, I enjoyed two bowls of the ultimate duck Jiro, adding green onions, homemade braised bamboo shoots, and soy sauce braised duck leg, totaling 900 TWD.
Ultimate Duck Jiro:
This bowl is a perfect combination of visual appeal and portion size. The broth features a lot of garlic and back fat, smooth and rich without being greasy, with delicate duck fat bubbles floating on the surface, leaving a slight stickiness on the lips after drinking. Of course, it's best enjoyed hot; it can become quite heavy as it cools.
The ramen uses 360 grams of medium-thick noodles, which are hard and salty, similar to Japanese-style noodles. The noodles are coarse, with a good chew and a noticeable wheat aroma.
The meat selection is extravagant, featuring sous-vide pork chashu, soy-braised pork chashu, duck chashu, and chicken chashu, each with a distinct characteristic. The sous-vide pork chashu is tender and delicate, while the skin-on duck chashu has a strong duck flavor. The yolk of the onsen egg is perfectly jelly-like, with a hint of sweetness in its eggy flavor, moist and delicious.
The black pepper garlic vegetables weigh a staggering 400 grams, making the whole bowl (excluding broth and meat) exceed one jin (600 grams). If you don't have a strong stomach, you might want to think twice before tackling this. However, for those who want to experience a Jiro-style garlic flavor and back fat but have a lighter appetite, there is also the smaller Yushan Little Jiro to try.
Green onions:
Adding green onions gives the broth a refreshing touch, and for just 30 TWD, it's quite affordable.
Homemade braised bamboo shoots:
The bamboo shoots are cut rather thickly, maintaining their crispiness without being rough, and are well-marinated without being overly salty.
Soy sauce braised duck leg:
The skin has a deep color from the sauce, while the duck meat inside is fine and juicy, with a flavorful but not overly salty braising sauce. This flavor would make me buy a duck leg bento box if it was offered.
The spicy bean sprouts on the table are available for self-service, mildly spicy and crunchy, making for a nice appetizing addition.
Overall, this is a specialized duck ramen shop. The Duck Jiro is presumably available every weekend until the end of April, but even after the Jiro is no longer served, the other duck dishes are definitely worth trying.
The dining space is not large, so it's advisable to avoid peak dining hours. The small courtyard design at the entrance is great for taking photos.
Highly recommended for everyone!
📍Location: Taichung. North District (Yizhong Shopping District)
In central and southern Taiwan, it can be hard to find a proper meal after meal times,
but fortunately, you can still find something in the Yizhong Shopping District.
A savior for late-night returners 🥹
Although it’s a ramen shop, there are many rice options available.
This time I ordered:
🍚 Grilled Pork Rice Bowl $180
🍄 Crispy Fried Japanese-style King Oyster Mushroom
🐷 Crispy Fried Cheese Pork Meatballs
(Side dish combo price $98)
✅ A 5% cleaning fee is included
🍚 Grilled Pork Rice Bowl:
When it arrived, I was a bit disappointed,
thinking how can there be so little meat for $180? 😞
However, after finishing, I felt the portion of rice was just right.
Although the meat seemed to be fewer slices, it had a bit of thickness.
I finished with about the same amount of rice and side dish,
the meat was grilled nicely, but the portion felt somewhat lacking,
so I’ll keep my rating average, it’s just okay to eat. 👌
🍄 Crispy Fried Japanese-style King Oyster Mushroom
The king oyster mushrooms are freshly fried and cut into small pieces but are very juicy.
The small size doesn’t give the feeling of a hearty bite,
but indeed, the king oyster mushrooms are juicy, and freshly fried they taste just right.
🐷 Crispy Fried Cheese Pork Meatballs
The pork meatballs were a bit novel for me, even though I knew it was just a pork meatball.
They were drizzled with cheese sauce, plus the meatball had cheese inside!
(Yes, that means it has cheese in it)
The pork had mixed seasonings, so it didn’t just taste like plain pork.
The fried skin is thin, making it feel like a crispy pork meatball,
and it doesn’t give the impression of mixed flour,
each bite feels like biting into pure meat.
The rice bowl comes with soup, which seems to be a bonito kelp broth.
I say seems because of its deep color and lack of ingredients,
it’s a simple broth, so I’m not quite sure what it is,
but based on memory, it feels more like a bonito kelp soup ~
Overall,
if one day I return late and can’t find a proper meal, I would come here again,
after all, for under $300, you can still eat well.
But if I’m looking for good food or want to recommend a place for a gathering with friends,
I probably wouldn’t specifically choose this place.
Popular ramen shop in Taoyuan 🍜
I became a big fan of this place after my first visit about six years ago! Whenever I go to Taiwan, I have a high chance of visiting this restaurant 🇹🇼
Since the last time I went, the shop has been renovated and has a larger seating capacity!
【Atmosphere of the Shop】
As usual, it’s a popular establishment, and I went about 10 minutes after it opened, but the restaurant was already full, with about 15 groups of customers waiting 🥲 However, perhaps because there are many seats, the turnover rate was quite good, and I was able to enter after about 20 minutes! There is a spacious waiting area in front of the store where you can sit and wait.
Once your number is called, you can enter the restaurant, but after ordering from the ticket vending machine, I waited another 10 minutes inside the restaurant. After being seated, the dishes came out fairly smoothly!
The staff were friendly and kindly chatted with us despite being busy ☺️
【Food Evaluation】
The ramen was as delicious as ever! The chicken paitan soup has a vibrant yellow color and is very rich! This time I had the special chicken paitan ramen, which was topped with three types of chashu, along with lotus root chips and a boiled egg!
The chashu comes in various textures, some tender and some hearty, with varying amounts of fat, allowing you to enjoy different flavors at once! The boiled egg was perfectly soft-boiled, which might have impressed me the most 😂
The portion size was generous, making it an extremely satisfying dish!
I also ordered the pudding for dessert!
The firm pudding has a rich and slightly bitter caramel sauce that is delicious!
Since the pudding is also a popular item, it’s definitely worth having if you visit here ✨
【Overall Evaluation】
I was satisfied with this consistently delicious restaurant, but since there are more good ramen shops in Taipei now, my excitement has slightly diminished compared to before 😂 However, even after many years, it remains a super popular spot, so I really hope everyone visits at least once!!
The ramen shop was delayed by the fried pork chop rice. 😂 This time I ordered ramen and pork chop curry rice; the pork chop rice has an extremely crispy and thick crust, and it feels very satisfying! The salad dressing for the shredded cabbage is quite special, not the kind of Caesar dressing we're used to in Taiwan. It tastes a bit sweet and milky, which I personally like! A meal costs around 200 Taiwan dollars. As for the ramen... it's quite ordinary; it has a texture reminiscent of adding fermented tofu, and it has a slightly funky taste?!
🍜 Affordable and filling ramen at Sangenjaya～
This restaurant, along with "Denmaru" and "Ikokudo," is part of the same corporate brand. The ramen leans towards the Chinese noodle style, with noodles that have a softer and smoother texture.
Upon entering, you order directly using a ticket machine, which is very convenient as there are photos available, and it supports a wide variety of payment methods, making it very accommodating for a ramen shop.
This time I ordered "Red Miso Ramen (small noodles)" with an additional serving of wontons. One feature here is the generous amount of vegetables, although it's mainly cabbage and bean sprouts, along with a bit of wood ear mushrooms. The wontons are 220 yen for 5 pieces.
Overall, the flavor is quite ordinary, but if you're unsure what to eat for lunch or want to save a bit while eating out, it’s still a choice. Plus, you can ask for larger portions of noodles at no extra cost, so those with big appetites needn't worry.
In the alley next to the Eslite Living in Banqiao, there is a ramen shop. During our first visit, we ordered the black garlic spicy noodles and the garlic tonkotsu ramen.
On our second visit, we tried the yuzu-flavored ramen, and it was absolutely amazing! The noodles can be customized, and they also have a special medium-thick noodle type. Although I’m not entirely sure what type it is, the texture was excellent! The fried items were standard but crispy and delicious, so I highly recommend getting some to go with your meal!
For those with a bigger appetite, a bowl of noodles with some fried items is just right, but if you don't eat much, one bowl might be sufficient.
I have eaten here twice already. The first time I ordered rice, but it was very unappetizing to me; there was shichimi (seven spice powder) on the rice that I really didn't like. This time I tried the tonkotsu chashu ramen instead. The chashu was quite good, but the broth tasted very light, and the noodles were just average ramen. Overall, it didn't have much flavor and isn't suitable for those who prefer stronger tastes. Each meal comes with a drink, which is great. My friend ordered the fried pork cutlet ramen, and it seemed to taste better; you can add honey mustard sauce to it, which is quite fragrant.