Opened recently in
North Adelaide, Tuno Izakaya's operation is similar to a Japanese bar that specialises in offering ramen and yakitori dishes. Their ramen dishes are notable in that both the noodles and broth are made on site to ensure their high quality. When you eat at the restaurant, you get a complimentary serve of cabbage with some miso paste to sate your hunger while waiting for your meal.
Made using a broth cooked with pork bones, the soup of the Tonkotsu Ramen had the slightly thick texture and subtle savoury flavour that you expect from the dish. The use of hand-made noodles also contributed to the enjoyment of the dish. Accompanying the noodles were tender pieces of roast pork belly, a soft egg and a large piece of nori seaweed.
Tonkotsu Ramen (Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
Great for those who like something spicy, the Spicy Miso had the level of spiciness that we desired. The use of chicken broth gave the soup a lighter texture than the pork broth used in the Tonkotsu Ramen. Aside from roast pork belly, the dish also included salmon mince to add a bit of meatiness to the dish.
Spicy Miso Ramen (Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
The Aburasoba differs from normal ramen dishes by being a dry noodle dish as well as using thicker noodles to provide a bit more bite. The combination of the fish oil used in the sauce and the minced salmon hidden beneath the noodles gave the dish its distinctive salty flavour. To best enjoy the dish, mix the noodles thoroughly with the sauce and salmon to spread their flavour throughout the dish. If you desire your noodles to be a bit spicier, you can choose to add some chilli oil.
Aburasoba (Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
In addition to ramen and yakitori, Tuno also offers a selection of smaller dishes to accompany your main dishes. The Karaage Chicken we chose had pieces of chicken fried to golden brown with the hint of gingery flavour that we expected. In addition to some potato salad and a dipping sauce, we were also provided with a pair of scissors to cut the chicken into more manageable portions.
Karaage Chicken (Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
The décor of the restaurant gave it a cosy feel and you can choose to sit at the bar or at one of the tables. We plan to return for a second visit to taste their yakitori dishes.
(Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
(Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
(Photographed by Jonathan Phoon)
