I used to say I didn’t like Japanese cuisine because I mistakenly thought it was limited to sushi. But thankfully, my recent visits to three Japanese restaurants in Madrid – Sumo, Hattori Hanzo and now Chuka Ramen Bar – have turned me onto a whole new world of tantalising flavours and creations.

Last Tuesday, I went to Chuka with Daphne, Juan and Vanessa from the teams at Naked Madrid and Las Mesas de Vanessa (one of Madrid’s best restaurant blogs). Chuka is a wonderful new ramen bar situated near metro Sevilla and next door to one of Madrid’s oldest bars, La Venencia, where you should get yourself a glass of sherry either before or after your meal.

Chuka specializes in ramen yet also offers a number of other Japanese dishes you have to try. Our waiter was kind enough to walk us through the menu and thanks to him, I sipped on delicious Japanese beer and ordered the best dish of my life… So keep reading and make sure to do as we did.

We started with Dok Boki, which consists of rice balls with Korean chili and sesame. They tasted just perfect. Then we had some tasty dumplings filled with butifarra and Chinese chives.

Once we finished the starters, I was already impressed. Then the main dishes arrived… We ordered two types of Ramen: shoyu and hiyashi. The first one, Shoyu, is prepared with noodles, bacon, boiled egg and Chinese chives. The soup had a mix of dashi and chicken with nori seaweed. It was insanely good.

The second ramen, hiyashi, the one I ordered, sent me straight to food heaven. As soon as I tasted it, I knew I couldn’t share and thus proceeded to devour it in a matter of minutes.  Even though I had made a deal with Daphne to try each other’s dishes, I couldn’t bear the idea of giving up even one spoonful. It was made of cold noodles and ground sausage. All of it was covered with chilli oil, a boiled egg, some watercress and sugar-roasted cashews. The ingredients were perfectly cooked and well selected, making the dish truly unforgettable (seriously… I can’t get it out of my head).

According to Juan and Vanessa, who travel to Japan whenever they can, Chuka Ramen Bar has an authentic Japanese feel and look; there’s nothing pretentious about it and it’s a great spot for dinner with friends. Our recommendation is to get there early at night (they open at 8:30pm) and grab a table at the back. Be careful because the restaurant doesn’t take reservations and it gets packed! We arrived at 9:15pm and waited at the bar until 10pm when we were finally seated. It was totally worth it though, don’t worry.

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Address

Address: C/ Echegaray, 9

Metro: Sevilla 

Hours

Tuesday through Thursday: 8:30-11:30 pm

Friday & Saturday: 1:30-3.30 pm

Menu (In Spanish)

 

More Asian restaurants featured on Naked Madrid:

• Ramen Kagura, Madrid’s (almost) perfect ramen bar
• Kintaro – Oy Vey
• Sumo – This Japanese restaurant’s name says it all
• Tuk Tuk – Asian-inspired street food
• Hattori Hanzo – Japanese food, straight up. No sushi.
• Nippon 2 – top quality yet affordable sushi, finally!
• Soy Kitchen – a fusion of Asian flavors
• Karachai – A cozy and elegant Thai restaurant in Alonso Martínez

 

I rekindled my love for Japanese food when I went for dinner at Hattori Hanzo with friends on Tuesday night. Our group of seven had no reservation, yet the waiters fit us in at the bar and then moved us to a table just in time for our first round of dumplings.

Located a few steps from Gran Vía, Hattori Hanzo is a Japanese izakaya, meaning a casual bar that acts as a gathering place for coworkers and friends. It’s similar to a Spanish tapas bar; food is served to accompany drinks, not the other way around. That’s why the ambience here is rather laid back.

Hattori Hanzo specializes in a variety of traditional Japanese dishes such as okonomiyaki, takoyaki, and grilled meat and fish skewers, offering a number of combination platters and sizes. Plus it’s vegetarian-friendly, affordable, and has a big space with a great seating arrangement.

In the front room, you can dine at the bar (note: no sushi!) or at a six-person table under a red canopy, where we sat. The red canopy sheds a fiery red hue over everything, so we apologize for the red-tinted food pics you’re about to see.

You can also sit in the back room at tables sunken into the floor. I can’t quite explain it so please have a look at the photos below.

When it comes to food, you’ve got a ton of options. The menu is separated into three parts: the first includes starters such as Nira Gyoza delicious pork dumplings with a spicy sesame sauce.

The second part includes larger plates meant for sharing between two or three people, such as the Omu-yakisoba (Japenese yakisoba noodles in a thin and flavorful tortilla) and Dorayaki Shuriken (Japanese pancakes).

Lastly, the third column offers tapas-sized skewers of Japanese delights such as chicken ginger meatballs and marinated eggplant and salmon. You can order these skewers individually (ranging in price from 2-5€). Or you can order them in platters: the 7 Samurai platter includes Hattori’s seven most popular skewers for €16.20 (which I ordered with James) and the 3 Imperial Treasures platter (which I’ll try next time) includes three Japanese delicacies such as Unayi Kabanaki (grilled eel) and Taro (tuna) for €18.90.

For dessert, we got Kuro Goma Matcha Ice Cream (black sesame and matcha ice cream) and Matcha Ichigo Roll Cake (rolled pastry with matcha, strawberry and anko, meaning red bean paste).

So you’re probably wondering about the price. Each of us had a few drinks, split a starter and shared a main dish and dessert. The bill came out to 18€ per person. For the quality and the ambience, I’d say it was absolutely worth it.

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Address: c/ Mesoneros Romanos 15

Metro: Callao or Gran Vía

More Asian restaurants featured on Naked Madrid: