Barikata Ramen Bar — Restaurant in Cebu City

Ramen is surprisingly cheap (345?? pesos for plain bowl and up to 500+ to get all toppings)for the quality here in the Philippines compared to Teriyaki Boy/RaiRaiken/UCC/other mall ramen which start at 375-499 pesos for a below average tasting 'meh salty prefrozen' soup .

The ramen I ordered was the 'black ramen' aka garlic something ramen.

The broth smelled and tasted like condensed chicharon(fried pork skin)/roast pork. Nice thick fatty broth with that deep porky flavor. Not fishy, or overly salty like most.

The noodles used are the standard straight thin noodles. Looks like they only cook it one way, and that's al dente. I prefer softer noodles, but when they're this thin, you'll most likely end up with soggy noodles in a few minutes if you request them to cook it any longer.

The chasiu(slices of pork) were good. Not sure if it's just me,but some of the slices seem to come from a different part of the pig? I had one that had the fattiness of a rolled pork belly,and another that was a little leaner like pork shoulder? Both were cooked well enough to fall apart though.

The egg? Always get it with the egg. I got mine without an egg and it felt incomplete. Their eggs are not your typical overly cooked hard boiled eggs. They seem like 5 minute eggs with velvety runny yolks marinated in some soy mixture to round out the flavor. Don't do what I did. Get. that.egg.

I'd give the ramen alone 4/5. It would be nice if there were more noodle options. The straight firm noodles were good, but I'm more of a curly&soft noddle person.

Other stuff we ordered:

5 pcs Gyoza -150 pesos. 30 pesos per 2.5 inch gyoza?

Cute little pot stickers with lovely sticky and chewy skin on the top and a crispy fried bottom. The noticeable ingredients used for the filling are green onions and pork.

3/5. Pretty average. Tasted like your standard chinese pork and spring onion dumpling. I've made this at home many and doesn't taste that different. I also found this one a little greasy.

Ebi Tempura-forgot the price

Just okay. Again, I found it to be just average. The batter was a little thick-- which isn't really a good thing since it soaks up a lot of oil.

3/5

EDIT: Let me just insert the service review here really quick: When I walked in I was surprised to see the number of staff this restaurant employed.It's a small restaurant, but there looked to be about 5 ? guys manning the kitchen and 6 more (3 waitresses and 2 managers and 1 intern ) up front.

This was at around 7pm, so dinner service hours and the restaurant wasn't that full. Not sure why they employed so many people, but hey...service was fast that I suppose that's all that matters.

The waitress who served us seemed experienced. She knew/memorized the names of the dishes on the menu and also gave us an idea of what to expect in our orders. She had a pleasant attitude towards us even though I could see that she was a little tired. 4/5

Facility/Restaurant in general: Table tops feel oily. I wouldn't blame this on the one cleaning the table though. We had just arrived and I saw how thorough the girl was on trying to get most of the crumbs and grease off. I'd recommend that the management get better cleaning supplies that can help remove the grease easily with a couple of wipes.

Air conditioner wasn't that cold. They have two ceiling aircons and only one was on. The restaurant felt warm. Not sure if this was done intentionally to stop your noodles turning into jelly or if they're trying to cut on costs. If they could install a ceiling fan instead, that would be great.

All in all, for a restaurant serving Japanese cuisine here in the Philippines, I'd give it a 4.5/5.

BTW: If you're not used to oily dishes, bring a pack of bubble gum mints. It'll help cut down on that fatty aftertaste.It's not the ramen's fault, that's...

Barikata Ramen Bar is a Japanese ramen restaurant located in Cebu City, Philippines. It is known for its tonkotsu ramen, which is a type of ramen made with a pork bone broth. The broth is simmered for several hours, resulting in a rich and flavorful soup.

I have been to Barikata Ramen Bar several times, and I have always been impressed with the quality of the food. The tonkotsu ramen is delicious, and the noodles are cooked perfectly. The broth is rich and flavorful, and the toppings are fresh and generous.

I also appreciate that Barikata Ramen Bar offers a variety of customization options. You can choose the type of noodles you want, the firmness of your noodles, and the richness of your broth. You can also add additional toppings, such as chashu (pork belly), ajitama (marinated soft egg), and menma (bamboo shoots).

Overall, I highly recommend Barikata Ramen Bar to anyone looking for a delicious and authentic Japanese ramen experience. Here are some specific details about my experience:

The tonkotsu ramen is delicious, and the noodles are cooked perfectly. The broth is rich and flavorful, and the toppings are fresh and generous. Barikata Ramen Bar offers a variety of customization options. The service is friendly and efficient.

Overall, I am very happy with the experience I have had at Barikata Ramen Bar. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a delicious and authentic Japanese...

I had the best dinner here. For those who loves eating alone or have to eat alone, this ramen place is good for you. I usually order shio tonkotsu ramen to check the ramen broth of ramen bars I'm checking out. Barikata, by far, has the thickest and richest bone broth I've tasted. Sachi's broth is more on the spice side with powerful garlic overtones (which i think is nice) while Ikkousha's has the simplest and cleanest broth (I live this place too), and Watami having thick emphasized flavor (which is best for the Filipino palate), Barikata offers a clean, well balanced thick broth that can coat their house made ramen noodles very well. This place is definitely a must try. Added to that is the very fast service for short or simple order. I got my ramen in less than 5 minutes (3 minutes or so). Don't let the visual size fool you though. Their ramen bowls may look daintly tiny, but it is actually deep bowl. This is a plus, as it keeps the ramen broth hot throughout the eating time. The serving size is large and enough to fill you...