Yum, Yum Takumi
So today I decided that I would take myself on a date in the lovely city of Barcelona. As you all may know I love authentic Japanese ramen and just the entire Asian culture as a whole. Yes, I watch anime, read manga, and a dream of mine is to attend a comic-con, or anime-expo. I am getting a little off topic ranting about my interest. Back to my favorite ramen, which is spicy miso ramen, my first experience eating it was when I went to Batman King in Washington, D.C. with my friend Jasmine. Since that day I have wanted to try different ramen shops to see how it would differ or be similar.
I am currently studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain and I thought this would be a great time to find a local ramen shop to see how it would taste. As I was searching local ramen places, I came across a ramen kitchen named Takumi Barcelona. As I looked at the reviews and pictures, I couldn’t help but become enticed in how good the food looked. I originally wanted to share my passion for not just Asian culture but Japanese ramen with my new friends, but things happen. So, I took it upon myself to take myself out on a date.
As I was making my way down the street to the ramen kitchen you could clearly see the sign that said Takumi Ramen. I can’t lie I was very excited on the inside but of course I didn’t show that on my face. I felt like a little kid who found the candy section in a store. As I walked through the doors the art work on the walls were just breath taking. The entire aesthetic of the shop was amazing. As one of the workers welcomed me to the shop, I chose a small table in the corner with a great view of the kitchen so I could see the people behind the scenes making the delicious food I would be eating.
As my server gave me the menu, I automatically got excited, as I searched for the ramen I would like. I had come across some appetizers of dumplings. So, in my head I was like if I am going to do this, then I have to do it right. So, I decided to order the Gyoza Japanese Fried Chicken Dumplings, and the Tan Tan Men. The Tan Tan Men was a spicy sesame miso soup with vegetables, grilled chicken, spring onions, seaweed and marinated boiled egg.
I was anxiously waiting for my food to arrive, so I decided to just read about the shops history that was on the wall to the right of me. The shop located in Barcelona had only opened in 2008 but the owner of the shop had been making ramen since 1995. He didn’t find the perfect noodle for his recipe until 2005 though. I was completely enticed by his hard work and love for making ramen. They called it the soul food of Japan, which is not hard for me to believe.
As they bought out my dumplings, I was excited to dig in. So, I picked up my chopsticks and picked up my first dumpling. A funny thing about me is that I am always using chopsticks even if I’m just eating basic homemade ramen from the microwave, but I always seem to forget how to use them every time. That’s ironic right? Well this time I picked them up and got it right the first time, I shocked myself. Well I wasn’t going to make too big of a deal out of it, the shop was full of people, so I didn’t want to make a scene. The dumplings were crunchy but at the same time had a soft texture that tasted amazing paired with the soy sauce. The dumplings give you a crunch as soon as you bite into it but wasn’t too crunchy to the point you would think the food was burnt. Then as you dipped it into the soy sauce the dumplings absorbed it and gave it a softer texture, the combo was just amazing.
I was able to eat four out of the six dumplings that I ordered. I didn’t want to eat too much that I wouldn’t be able to eat the ramen; so, I had to pace myself. As my ramen finally came out, I was very excited because just looking at the bowl the food just looked amazing. From the broth to the boiled egg, to the vegetables that you could see just looked too amazing to eat.
As I tasted the broth it was spicy but not too spicy. It left just a bit of a lingering spice on your taste buds but not enough for you to want to drown a carton of milk. You could also taste a bit of chicken flavor as well. Next, I tried the chicken; which was grilled with a slight crisp, nice and tender, with lots of flavor from the broth. As the chicken was soaking in the broth it had a sort of spicy taste to it. As I ate the noodles, they were not too hard and not too soft, it had a perfect balance but as it soaked in the broth it also gave you a spicy taste as well. Then as you paired the noodles with the chicken the taste was simply amazing. The veggies were definitely spicy so paired with the noodles it gives you a nice kick. After I tried the seaweed, I was honestly shocked because most of the time it is usually too soggy or too crunchy. The thing is it wasn’t too hard and crunchy but also not too soft and slimy. As it was soaking in the broth it had a spicy kick to it as well. To be honest I am not big fan of the boiled egg. Mostly because I like my egg boiled all the way, I don’t like the idea of it being mushy. Again, I literally ate my words because it tasted great paired with the broth. As the egg was submerged and soaking in the broth it does give a kick of spice but still has the regular egg taste as well.
If I am being completely honest, I was not able to finish my entire bowl which was not too shocking because since my knee surgery I haven’t had the same appetite as I used to. Which was also okay with me because I wanted to save room for dessert. There was this one dessert I saw online that I had just fell in love with. Honestly that was a big reason I decided to go to this spot. It was the matcha plate. Which was matcha ice cream, whipped cream, strawberries, chocolate pocky’s, and a jam-bean pancake. It also had these small square cakes that almost tasted the same as pound cake, and more jam-bean so you can easily pair it with the ice cream. The matcha ice cream tasted amazing almost just like any other matcha tea or shake. Paired with the whip cream gives it an extra sweet taste to it. Then if you were to pair it with the strawberries and whip cream it taste like heaven. If you add the jam it gives a chocolate strawberry feel but with the matcha ice cream and whip cream everything blends together so well. Each aspect of the dessert compliments each other so well. Then along with the cakes that are filled with what tasted like a chocolate jam it was just amazing. After growing up and eating too much chocolate I wasn’t a big fan any more, but this taste was just amazing combined together. The cakes were fluffy and light weight and with the bean-jam inside it tasted amazing, then you had a lingering matcha taste because the cakes were submerged into the ice cream as well.
Overall, I honestly loved this Ramen Kitchen. From the dumplings, to the ramen, to the matcha ice cream everything was just amazing. If anything, I just wished they offer smaller portion sizes of the dumplings because four would have been just perfect for me. If there is anyone who is not from Barcelona and traveling to the city and looking for a great ramen place with reasonable prices, then I definitely recommend going to Ramen Kitchen Takumi Barcelona. They are very hospitable, they speak English just in case you don’t speak Spanish, or Catalan. The experience was over all a great one and definitely wouldn’t mind going back again before I leave. I can’t wait to see the next ramen kitchen I go to, hopefully it would live up to this location or be better.
Comments