Name: Touhenboku Ramen
Cuisine: Japanese / Ramen
Address: 261 Queen Street West, Toronto, ON, M5V 1Z9

Website: http://www.touhenboku.ca/ and http://twitter.com/TouhenbokuRamen

Touhenboku Ramen is the latest restaurant to enter the ramen market in downtown Toronto. It’s located conveniently on Queen St W and is open from 11 am to midnight; perfect for a late night meal. The restaurant officially opened up on November 12, 2013, and I had the opportunity to try it out last week. 

The broth from Touhenboku Ramen differs greatly from other ramen joints, as they use chicken broth rather than the standard pork broth. According to the owner, Zuimei Okuyama, the chicken broth contains a rich amount of collagen which is good for the skin. Chicken broth is commonly used for lighter ramen such as shoyu (soy sauce) or shio (salt) in Japan, which are both offered at Touhenboku Ramen.

 The ramen are served in porcelain crafted bowls imported from Japan. I was surprised to learn that each bowl was priced at $50, but it does help to maintain the warmth of the ramen much longer.
Touhenboku Ramen features five different ramen with your choice of toppings. All of their ramen are served with your choice of lean pork, rich pork or chicken chashu. Additionally, all bowls come with seaweed, tasty boiled egg, wood ear mushrooms and green onions.

 Original Touhenboku Ramen (white) ($10.50).
Straight forward ramen in a rich creamy chicken broth flavored with sea salt or soya sauce.

 Spicy Touhenboku Ramen (red) ($10.50).
Original ramen with a kick! Incorporated with our special chili oil, it will bring your taste buds to life. Sea salt or soya sauce soup base.

 Garlicky Touhenboku Ramen (black) ($10.50).
Original ramen with our special blend garlic sauce. Wonderful bitter-sweet aroma. Sea salt or soya sauce soup base.

Light Touhenboku Ramen (light) ($10.50).
This clear and light chicken broth with salt adds flavor without being thick.

Chashu ($13.00)
For those who love chashu; comes with 4 pieces of pork or chicken. 

We were presented with a special menu for that day, and given a choice of one of the ramen and dessert. I got the red colored Spicy Touhenboku Ramen with thick noodles, sea salt, and rich pork. It wasn't too spicy but I was pleasantly surprised that the chicken-based ramen was both rich and flavorful. The rich pork was fatty and delicious; definitely a hearty meal. I also forgot to mention earlier that the noodles are made in house with their own noodle machine, which is located in the back of the preparation area. 

 For those who are in the area during the lunch hours; there are also various lunch sets for $14. The set includes your choice of Touhenboku Ramen and Donburi rice bowl.

Although ramen is their specialty; Touhenboku Ramen also offers six different (made in house) Japanese pastries for desserts; all priced at $5.50 each. The pastries are light and not overly sweet which is perfect for when you’re done eating the ramen. I tried the Tomo Creampuff which was a crispy choux puff filled with vanilla custard and loads of whipped cream. The texture of the puff was hard but it complements well with the soft and creamy texture of the whipped cream. Overall, it was an enjoyable dining experience, and I will definitely return to try out other items on their menu. 

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Disclaimer: The food provided in this post was complimentary. However, all of the opinions expressed in this review are of my own.