TL;DR: This is another delicious ramen joint to hit up when the cravings persist.
Right in the heart of bustling Paddington, with so much going on at any time of day, some of the nicest places are right in plain view of bypassers on the street. Taking what used to be an old house on Latrobe Terrace, they renovated it pretty well into a cosy cottage which can seat a good couple of handful of clients at one time, the folks behind Hai Hai Ramen have managed to get the appeal of a ramen bar down to a fine art.
Many of us probably have our little tradition to see the work year off. I can make a safe bet a lot of it involves hitting the bar. You won't see that from me, since I am a non-drinker. Instead, what I like to do is a find a new place that does ramen. It worked well for me last year, and it was going to be the same this year. That meant a whole lot of searching around for good, viable alternatives, which made finding this place perfect - a small launchpad from where I worked. The last day of work ended for me about half-way through, just in time for some lunch. Off it was to get a bus, and before I knew what was happening, it stopped pretty much out in front of where I wanted to go.
There is a friendly air walking into Hai Hai. They are quick to attention to anyone coming in to order, and the usual process of counter service goes ahead. Afterwards, it is not long at all before you are helping yourself to some robust, hot grub that is ultimately satisfying. Quick is the word of the day around here, and when it comes to ramen it is about all you need. Beyond getting the food and drink of choice, it becomes self-service from getting your own water, to any condiments on the side. Plus, they already have the chopsticks, spoons, and serviettes are your disposal on the table.
Looking around here, the shape of the interior is a bit of an oblong shape. It is nothing that could be done with the structure, and honestly that does allow it to have some character. This is a house of two rooms, with the main rumpus room coming in where you enter, and an outside communal area where you can catch a breeze if inside is a bit too warm. When clients are spilling in a bit too much, al fresco dining out the front become an option. All-round, an attempt is made to keep it simple and low key. On the walls are posters of old Japanese movies, and paintings. Part of why I like ramen bars is the "bar" part of it. Going up to a counter, being shoulder-to-shoulder with other clients eating and drinking the famous dish. They have not abandoned this aspect, giving a small bar with about four seats adjacent to the front counter, under a window facing out to an alleyway.
They keep their menu pretty concise. There are fewer options of ramen varieties on the menu than usual (specials do pop their head up on the odd occasion), which is made up for by first having several ways to customise it to the clients' liking, and secondly all sorts of bites on the side. The bites that can be had on the side included steamed buns filled with several kinds of meat, salads, and sauce, which can be ordered in multiple batches, and a few izakaya to either garnish the soup or eat it on the side.
You can definitely say the food menu is pretty small, but that is not something to say with the drinks menu. They needed to use the wall for this, presenting a big range of beers, wines, sake, and ciders, plus all the sodas and juices, to accompany the bites. With all the homages to Japanese culture, about the only thing missing is some ramune - which would really liven it up.
Not often is it that I can walk in knowing full well what I will order, and this was one of those times. None other than the reliable tonkotsu ramen. This had a broth based on both soy and salt tastes, along with thin noodles. The toppings were a big piece of charsiu pork belly, a soft boiled egg, some seaweed, plus a drizzle of black garlic oil, and garnish of shallots.
This did well satisfy the ramen cravings, albeit maybe a bigger portion of the titular soup would have done well. Credit will be made to the presentation, all of the photos make it look mouth-watering. The noodles were cooked al dente, the broth had that texture which was a strange hybrid of rich and light - possibly some ingredients created a slight cream texture making it rich, and the flavours were fairly subtle. Black garlic gave it a good bite throughout the soup, when it gets soaked in the soup the seaweed becomes very delicious, but it is the last two additions that truly do it for me. A soft cooked egg is hard to match at any given time, and after a long, slow cooking process, the pork belly is as tender as meat can get, and rich in flavour. If it is not the first component to be finished completely, then I am a monkey's uncle. That is how delicious the meat can get.
Plus, as something a bit more on the side, it was hard to go wrong with an order of chicken karage. Goodness knows how many pieces were on the plate, and they came with a wedge of lemon, and some mayonnaise for dipping. Might it be a little on the blasphemous side if I ended up getting more impressed by the chicken than the ramen? It is nothing against the ramen either, just that the chicken was so delicious. Each piece was substantial, needing at least two bites to finish. The flesh was tender, and juicy, with the batter being almost a tempura consistency. Not much really to these suckers, it is just almost each time they are ordered they practically go like hotcakes.
The folks at Hai Hai Ramen are doing a fine job as is, giving good and due respect to presenting the favourite soup of many people abroad, as well as experimenting with the astute knowledge of how it all works. Looking around the eatery, it is apparent that a love for all things Japan is in the walls, giving it an adorable character of its own. I can see it as someone who really took a liking to cooking particular dishes, and made a great effort to learn how it is done, and perfect it. Maybe it is not the best overall ramen in town, but in seeing it from a local point of view - even in central - it is definitely great knowing this place exists, because most of us ramen fans know that the craving does like to hit, and you can practically saunter into here readily with the welcoming atmosphere.
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