Awesome Sydney Ramen Adventure: Menya Makoto

I have a confession to make.

I lied.

I know, the title isn’t accurate the very moment I talk about ramen outside Sydney. I kept talking about ramen in Sydney throughout this series, but this is a place that’s too good to pass up. This store surprised me with its sheer quality and dedication in crafting good ramen. If there’s good food, it’s always nice to share it with others.

This time, I’ll be talking about a bowl of ramen I tried that was not in Sydney, but at a quiet and quaint town called Newcastle that’s a two-and-a-half hours drive from the city. Not sure why I picked Newcastle, but after exploring the Blue Mountains in the west and Kiama in the south in my previous visits, I yearn to find a new place to travel outside of Sydney. Hence to travel to parts unknown, which means moving to the north this time.

Confessions at a ramen store

Now to ‘fess up: I made plans for a short road trip away from Sydney over the next three days, and while driving in Sydney was stressful yet liberating, reaching my destination to and fro in one piece was the goal. I’ve heard plenty of horror stories involving accidents and flouting traffic rules in Australia, and I was fortunate that I didn’t end up on an ambulance or somewhere worse throughout my short road trip.

Exploring another side of New South Wales on my own was exciting by itself, and after chucking some axes to release tension built up after years of familial and societal pressures, I definitely felt a heavy weight lifted off my shoulders.

And before long, it was time for dinner. Lucky for me, there was a ramen joint less than a kilometer away from Maniax – Axe Throwing (Newcastle branch) and entered the store without missing a beat. Enter: Menya Makoto.

Entering Menya Makoto

The interior was quite welcoming that made you forget that you’re not in Japan with all the signs and wallpaper filled with kanji, hiragana and katakana. It was July when I first visited this quaint little town, but Noh from Spirited Away sure is happy celebrating Christmas early with that cute Santa hat.

One thing I appreciate about most, if not all ramen restaurants in Australia is that they provide a free bottle of water on every table. Can’t say the same for ramen restaurants in Singapore, and it feels more like a 50/50 gamble because some places charge you for water. Sigh.

I took some time looking through the menu online, but I was unable to make any orders on their ordering site since everything was stated as ‘Out of Stock’, which was impossible if a ramen restaurant just opened for business at dinner hours. Good thing a server arrived when it was time to take my order, and all I have to do is to wait for my bowl to arrive.

Bonito tonkotsu ramen with all toppings included.

Menya Makoto was the first ramen restaurant ever with their menu asks you for no toppings or all toppings. I mean, when was the last time someone eats anything, let alone ramen, with no toppings at all? Truth be told, that raise some eyebrows but maybe some customers prefer just eating the noodles and broth with nothing else, so no judgement here.

Taste Test – Bonito Tonkotsu Ramen

My bowl of bonito tonkotsu ramen arrived on my table after waiting for 15 minutes, but I’m not complaining since good food take time to prepare. I’d rather wait a long time for a good bowl than being served a mediocre bowl in a short amount of time.

The noodles were the thin, straight type, which I have stated in my Chaco Ramen post, is personally isn’t my favourite. However, it complements well with the thicker broth. The black fungi were pretty standard, and I was surprised at how the menma (bamboo shoots) was easy to chew.

Furthermore, it tasted good too.

Hate to say this, but I can’t believe I found a store in a less populated city that understood the assignment when it comes to making menma edible. That’s a feat that few ramen establishments have achieved, and I have to give props to Menya Makoto for acing this arduous task.

The chashu, like the ones I had at Chaco, came apart easily but were juicy enough to keep me going till I finish the bowl. The proportions of fat and meat were leaning more on the fats, and each piece was melting in my mouth like butter. As the name implies, the soup’s fishy and porky flavors blend very well together.

At least Noh’s happy celebrating Christmas in the middle of July. Seems as if he’s about to jump out and start raving on the dance floor at any moment.

Final Thoughts

Can’t believe I’m saying this, but that was an amazing bowl of ramen somewhere far away from the big city. Quite an unexpected encounter, but I’m glad that I got to try one bowl of ramen outside of Sydney. Apparently it’s highly beloved with a 4.8-star rating out of 403 reviews on Google as of this writing, so give it a shot if you would like to explore Newcastle, New South Wales for a day or two.

In my next entry, I’ll be doing a wrap-up of this series giving my final thoughts and my future plans of this site. Come back soon, and get slurping!

Location of Menya Makoto

Address: GF, 301 Hunter Street, Newcastle NSW 2300, Australia
Opening Hours: 12.30pm to 8.30pm (Sundays), 5pm to 8.30pm (Tuesdays and Wednesdays), 12pm to 2.30pm, 5pm to 8.30pm (Thursdays), 5pm to 9.30pm (Fridays), 12pm to 2.30pm, 5pm to 10pm (Saturdays), Closed on Mondays