I was scrolling through Instagram and one of the folks I follow talked about Kamukura Ramen, a new ramen joint that opened up in Ala Moana at the Lanai Food Court. This user is a Japanese chef and mentioned that the fried rice they serve is the closest to the fried rice he has had in Japan ramen shops so you know that got me thinking, wanting, and GETTING it. I came this past weekend at about 11, no long line but definitely had orders already. A good sign was a table next to me had three guys from Japan going for it. I wonder if they liked it.

This blog entry may turn into a…I tried it so you don’t have to because their dishes are kind of pricey. Let’s just say I paid nearly $35 for a ramen combo. It’s hard to feel good about this purchase especially since it is located in a food court, does that sound snobby? I am not used to spending this much for ramen. Well how was it?

Ramen * Gyoza * Drink * Fried Rice Combo | $29.99 + $2.99
white cabbage, pork, roasted pork

Now, this combo is with the most basic ramen they have. If you want to get an upgraded ramen (for example, I wanted the egg – you have to pay the difference). I have to say, all the pictures include nice greens in the bowls but my bowl did not come with chives or green onions and if you wanted to add, you have to pay more. $3.49 to add scallions as a topping? Why I no just go Foodland Farms and buy a bunch and cut it into the ramen myself? Okay sorry for being snippy.

I had to eat this at home and no worries, the integrity was not lost in the dish. They pack the soup separate so I reheated the soup a bit before adding it to the noodles. Here it is in final form. The char siu is very thinly sliced – there is an egg in there!

Here are the noodles, char siu and egg before I added the soup in. The noodles were perfectly cooked. No complaints on that.

The broth before I added it to the noodles. They like their chinese cabbage. I like it too.

Ugh, I thought I got a clear picture of the egg. I didn’t. But you get the idea. It’s perfectly cooked and has the perfect gummy yolk inside, no complaints.

Fried Rice! Okay, I was super excited to try this. It was good, not great. Nothing I would yearn to go back for you know?

Gyoza! To me this was the best part of the meal. They were pretty nicely packed in with filling, tasted like it was made by the restaurant. It comes with a packet of the gyoza dipping sauce. I really enjoyed this!

Final verdict? Well it was good. $35 good? I don’t know. I paid by credit card and of course when they turn the machine around, they ask for tip. I don’t know man, I am doing take out in a food court and I am being charged $35 for this – I wasn’t inclined to tip (sorry!). The upcharges to add just bean sprouts or green onions is crazy to me. I get that costs are high right now but…that high?? It was all good, not great. I feel I can go Wagaya and pay less and get the same if not better food.