Benkei Noodle Shop Robson

Update Jan 3, 2014: This Robson St location is now closed.

It’s a bit late but after all this time, we’ve finally got on the Benkei-wagon and visited the renowned Benkei Ramen.

It was Boyfriend’s birthday and he didn’t want anything fancy. He actually really really wanted to have ramen! All the better for my wallet~

He originally wanted to go to Motomachi Shokudo. He really liked it the last time we were there. However, once we got to downtown, we were able to find a spot right in front of Benkei. For the sake of our blog, Boyfriend gave up going to Moto and allowed us to go to Benkei instead. I think he actually decided to let us go there because he knew that I would like that instead. What a guy huh?!! *swoon*

We were in downtown pretty early since we know that despite it being a weekday, downtown is never not busy. That pretty much explains how we got that spectacular parking space and being seated right away once we stepped in. By the time we ordered, there was a line up building.

Most of you probably already know this but they offer 5 different ramen soup flavors. I was interested in the Miso and the Shoyu, and also the Shiro. But as shiro wasn’t a traditional flavor, I digressed. Miso was my final decision. I’ll definitely go for Shoyu next time.

For all the ramen you can add toppings to it. There’s a special deal where you can add all the toppings for $3.50. That’s a dollar off adding them individually.

So this was my choice. I added an egg to mine. I must say this is better Miso Ramen than Ezogiku. In fact, it was better than Gyoza King’s G-MEN in Richmond. The broth was richer, and actually tasted like miso.

but man-oh-man look at the layer of oil sitting on top! That must be why the soup’s so rich.

Boyfriend picked the Akanoi which is Spicy Miso. He added extra chashu in it for $0.50. For that he got 2 extra pieces, which was 1 more than I thought he would get.

The soup was pretty good also. The spiciness was there. It kind of tasted like the spicy powder they provide on the side…a tinge of sourness to it. Boyfriend really enjoyed it.

Oops almost forgot this. I ordered the Chashu Onigiri also. Originaly I thought it has maybe slabs of chashu in the middle. But inside it was just small pieces of it here and there. It was ok but not particularly interesting.

All-in-all it was very enjoyable. Boyfriend however stated he still enjoyed Moto more, probably since it was the healthier choice. We would definitely come back though.

Happy Birthday Sweetie~! ♥