Review: MOS Burger’s Mac and Cheese Burger

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

Do you like carbs?

Do you like mac and cheese?

Do you like seasonal menu items?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above, maybe MOS Burger’s Mac and Cheese Burger is for you!

While I am admittedly not the hugest fan of mac and cheese and am certainly no connoisseur of the dish, I love carbs and am a huge sucker for limited-time menu items, so I trotted down to MOS Burger after work yesterday to give the Mac and Cheese Burger a shot.

Before my review, let’s look at the promotional picture and description from their official website.

Loose translation: Sitting upon lettuce is a hot croquette, MOS Burger’s special meat sauce, and thick, rich “mac and cheese” sauce. The sauce is subtly flavoured with ume and powdered bonito, giving an easily enjoyable flavour. This is a voluminous, piping hot burger – perfect for the cold season.

Sounds pretty promising from the advertisement, right? But how did it fare in real life?

Non-promo version of the burger. How does it compare?

My Opinion

I was worried that it would end up being a pure novelty item that completely sucked, but was actually pleasantly surprised. The soft, pillowy buns, slightly salty mac and cheese, and hot, crispy croquette went surprisingly well together. I think the crisp texture of the croquette provided a good textural contrast to the creaminess of the mac and cheese. Also, there was enough mac and cheese to get some with every bite, so that’s a thumbs up from me, because doesn’t it just suck when you buy a special item for a particular feature, only to have a pathetic token amount of whatever it is? Furthermore, the burger held itself together reasonably well as I bit down into it and wasn’t overly messy to eat either.

I was a little worried that the burger would be too heavy and sickening since it’s literally triple carbs from the bread, potato croquette and macaroni (not to mention the fattiness of the cheese), but I devoured the whole thing with little issue. I think the slight kick of the mustard helped to cut through everything sufficiently to prevent that from happening.

As for the meat sauce? It could be that I ate too quickly to notice it or didn’t have enough of it in my burger, but I didn’t really notice it at all, which was a bit of a shame. I’m not sure if the ume and powdered bonito were supposed to be in the meat sauce or the mac and cheese, but I detected neither on my taste buds. I guess my taste buds aren’t refined or sensitive enough.

Overall, I’d give it a 6.5 or 7/10. It was a pleasant enough experience, but I don’t think I’d get it regularly if it were a staple. Nevertheless, I think it’s worth trying while it’s still around until the end of March.

Review: Kikkoman Soy Milk (Pudding/Purin)

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

Second in my soy milk tasting adventure is Kikkoman’s purin (プリン) flavoured soy milk. “Purin” is basically the Japanese katakana word for “pudding” and usually refers to the custard variety. Purin is a pretty popular dessert, and the chiller section has many brands of purin available for one to purchase as at-home desserts.

My Opinion

I was a little surprised to see purin-flavoured soy milk and was excited to try it. I thought the package with the little cartoon illustration of a pudding looked pretty stinkin’ cute too. The back of the pack even had instructions on how to turn the soy milk into actual solid purin with the help of gelatin, though I didn’t do that, and just consumed the product in its original form for testing purposes.

The taste wasn’t bad at all. As was the case with the tea-flavoured version, this one didn’t really taste like soy milk. It kinda just tasted like how I’d imagine cheap pudding to taste. Like if I wanted to make actual pudding from a pack of generic pudding mix, but didn’t wait for the pudding to solidify and just drank the solution. Not terrible by any means, and definitely tasted like pudding as promised, but a little thin in flavour.

Overall, I think I’d give it a 6/10. It wasn’t bad, but I think eating real pudding would have been more satisfying.

Yellow 200ml carton of pudding-flavoured soy milk produced by Kikkoman.
Are you up for some liquid pudding?

Review: Kikkoman Soy Milk (Black Tea)

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

Soy milk is a popular drink back home which I love. It’s sweet, delicious, widely available, and pretty affordable. Since coming to Japan, however, I can’t say I’ve had much soy milk. It’s not that difficult to find in stores; there’s just not as much brand variety, in my opinion. I also find it kind of pricey for the quantity you get, hence my lack of soy milk consumption thus far. However, since it was my winter vacation, I decided to give myself a treat, and bought a couple of soy milks made by Kikkoman from the drugstore to try. Today, I’ll review the 紅茶 (black tea) flavour.

My Opinion

I’ll admit I didn’t have very high expectations for it, but I was pleasantly surprised. The package promised the strong fragrance of Earl Grey (豊かなアールグレイの香り), and I have to say it did deliver on that front. The drink was mildly sweet with floral and citrus notes from the Earl Grey tea extract. As I was drinking it, I just thought it tasted like Earl Grey tea with milk, and didn’t think it really tasted like soy milk at all. Which could be a plus for people who don’t really enjoy the taste of soy milk, but can’t consume real milk. If you don’t like Earl Grey tea though, this might not be the drink for you.

Overall, I’d give it a 7/10. I don’t know if I’d buy it regularly purely due to the price point, but I enjoyed it as a milky Earl Grey tea-flavoured beverage, and would happily have it again if offered.

200ml of Kikkoman Soy Milk (Tea Flavour)
200ml of tea-flavoured soy milk goodness for about 80 yen.

Review: Chicken Nanban at Karayoshi (から好しのチキン南蛮）

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

Chicken Nanban (チキン南蛮) is one of my favourite chicken dishes to eat in Japan. What’s not to like about it? It’s deep-fried chicken in a sweet and sour sauce, topped off with creamy tartar sauce. Basically, it’s a combination of things that I really like, and something that I’d consider a pretty “safe” dish for anyone to try. It’s probably really unhealthy so I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone on a diet, but hey, this isn’t a health food blog.

So far, I’ve mainly had Chicken Nanban from Miyamoto Munashi, Yayoiken and Karayama. Today, I decided I’d try the one from Karayoshi. Karayoshi, like Karayama, is an affordable restaurant that specialises in karaage (aka Japanese fried chicken). It was only my second time eating at Karayoshi, and the last time, I had something else, so I was pretty excited to try their Chicken Nanban.

I ordered the Chicken Nanban Teishoku (チキン南蛮定食）which came with a bowl of rice (I asked for less rice, but you can actually order a large serving of rice at no extra cost when you place your order), a chicken cutlet accompanied by a bed of shredded cabbage, and a bowl of miso soup. The little jars on the table contained some sort of pickles and kimchi. This set cost me 759 yen post-tax.

My Opinion

I’ll start off with what I liked about it:

  • The chicken cutlet was a decent size. Not insanely big or anything, but big enough for me, and nothing to scoff at.
  • The chicken was well fried. The meat remained moist and juicy on the inside, while the the batter formed a thin, crispy shell around it. There was enough batter to surround nearly the whole cutlet properly and give it the textural contrast against the meat, but not so much that you’d feel cheated out of your chicken meat.
  • The batter remained crispy for a long time. Soggy batter depresses me, and I was pleasantly surprised that the coating remained decently crisp even after sitting under the sauce for awhile. Towards the end of my meal, the part covered by the sauce lost most of its crispness, but it didn’t disintegrate into mush.

On to what I liked less:

  • I think the chicken was under-seasoned. Without any of the sauces, the chicken cutlet was pretty plain (both the meat and the batter). I wonder if it was intentionally done that way because they wanted to rely on the nanban sauce and tartar sauce for flavouring, which would have been fine if they were sufficient, but they weren’t.
  • I don’t think there was enough sauce. As you can see from the picture, only maybe half (or slightly less than half) of the chicken was covered in the nanban sauce and tartar sauce. Since the sauce-less chicken cutlet was quite plain, I think it really needed the sauces. Also, I’m a sauce kinda person. Karayama’s version pretty much covers the whole thing in tartar sauce.
  • The nanban sauce was a tad mild for my liking. It was slightly sweet and sour, and didn’t taste bad per se, but didn’t pack enough of a punch. So there wasn’t enough of it, and what was there wasn’t concentrated enough in taste to make up for the lack in quantity.
  • To be frank, I have no idea how nanban sauce is supposed to be since I’m not a chef, but I wish the sauce had been less watery and a bit more viscous to help it adhere to the chicken. Maybe it’s the combination of that specific coating and sauce, but I felt that the sauce couldn’t really adhere to the chicken despite my best efforts to roll it around in the sauce beneath.

Overall, I’d give it a 6.5/10. I wasn’t too displeased or offended by it, but I wouldn’t make special effort to go to Karayoshi for this at that price.

What do you think of Chicken Nanban? Have you had Karayoshi’s Chicken Nanban? Do you have any recommendations for good Chicken Nanban? Feel free to leave a comment.

Review: Hamazushi (はま寿司)

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

I’ve always enjoyed going to kaitenzushi (conveyor belt sushi), whether it be back in Singapore, or in Japan. Keeping a watchful eye on the belt for my favourite item to come up before snatching it off the belt is always a great deal of fun that gives me a sense of satisfaction. You can always order the item right off the menu, of course, but where’s the fun in that? I’ve been to several kaitensushi restaurants in Japan so far, namely Kurazushi, Kappazushi, and Sushiro. Today, I added Hamazushi to the list!

What I Got

Torched Salmon with Mayo and Cheese (Aburi Cheese Salmon) Sushi
Aburi Cheese Salmon sushi

Aburi Cheese Salmon sushi (torched salmon with cheese) is one of my favourites, and I always get it when I go to kaitenzushi, so I was excited to try it. Unfortunately, I was disappointed by Hamazushi’s version of it. Usually, in other places, the cheese comes in the form of a cheesy mayo sauce, but Hamazushi does it with what seems like a small piece of processed cheese from a plastic wrapper with a bit of mayonnaise drizzled across it. I must say, I do not prefer their version.

Duck Carpaccio sushi
Duck Carpaccio sushi

I love duck, and had never had it on sushi before, so I was excited to try it, but it was just okay. Not bad by any means, but nothing to write home about.

Kalbi beef with mayo sushi
Kalbi beef with mayo sushi

Grilled beef, mayo and rice. Can’t go wrong with that.

California roll
California roll

Your standard California roll. I was quite surprised by the size though. There were two fairly large pieces.

Butter shoyu fries
Butter shoyu (butter and soy sauce) fries

It’s a bit weird but I really like ordering fries from kaitensushi places. I especially love Kurazushi’s fries. I was really keen to try these because I love seasoned fries. The fries came with a little packet of butter-soy sauce seasoning on the side. I was kind of let down that they weren’t hot though, and I wish they had perhaps tossed the fries with the seasoning before serving, instead of leaving me to awkwardly try to distribute the seasoning across the fries at the table.

My Overall Experience

As you might have gathered from my descriptions of the items I tried, I was not particularly impressed by Hamazushi. Their offerings are pretty standard, with the odd unique item (like the duck and seasoned fries), but I found the execution lacking, sadly. Comparing the same items to that of other kaitenzushi chains in the same price range (admittedly, I’ve only tried Kurazushi, Kappazushi and Sushiro in Japan so far), I think Hamazushi loses.

20190609_132107
Fries on the red bowl that indicates it’s a private order

Another thing I noticed is that unlike other places which use the little “sushi train” to deliver individual orders to your table, Hamazushi places orders on the main belt on a red bowl, and the screen warns you to pick it up as it comes around your spot. I don’t particularly like it that way because there’s a risk that someone else might take your order, and vice versa, because there were just so many private orders circulating around. In fact, I would say that there were more private orders on the belt than there were regular ones that you could grab, which put a damper on the kaiten experience.

If I had to state a positive, I guess it would be that there’s a 10 yen discount off the 100 yen plates during weekdays, if I’m not wrong. However, even so, If I had to choose between say, Kurazushi and Hamazushi on a weekday, I think I’d rather spend that little bit extra on Kurazushi because I feel like they put more care into their food.

Would I go to Hamazushi again if I wanted kaitenzushi and it was the only place nearby? Maybe. Would I walk about 30 minutes again to Hamazushi like I did earlier? Unlikely, but who knows. All that being said, I didn’t hate my experience at Hamazushi. Perhaps it was just that I expected a little more. I think if I didn’t know any better, and if I hadn’t patronised other kaitenzushi places before, I would feel better about Hamazushi. So I guess that’s my verdict. It’s a decent place to go if you have little to no expectations and don’t know any better, but kind of disappointing if you do know better. And I do know better.

A New Adventure Begins (Again!)

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

It’s been awhile. I feel like I’ve come a long way since I started this blog last year, to document my three-month long job hunt in Japan. To be honest, I never expected to succeed, but somehow or another, I’m back in Japan, waiting to start my new job on Monday as an ALT. Not everything is peachy, and it has been a roller coaster of emotions, with a less-than-ideal housing situation which infuriated and frustrated me (it still does) and just a general lack of self-confidence in my ability to perform at my job (I have no experience, but somehow I’ve been assigned to do practically every level). Hey, who knows, I could be fired during my two-week probation. I’m not in the clear yet.

Anyway, though I initially thought that I’d pour out my frustration in great detail here over past events thus far, I want to try to keep this place as a place of positivity. I came to the conclusion the other day that though I had shitty circumstances loaded unto me without any prior warning or power in decision-making, I’ll still try my best to make the most of my time here. Being unhappy and upset over my situation doesn’t fix anything, and only serves to ruin any potential of me enjoying anything else. So that’s that.

What’s in store for this space then?

Looking back on previous posts, it was mostly about reviews and travel. Since I’m going to start work though, I guess things will change a little. I hope to keep writing about food and travel, but I’ll probably end up talking about work and other shenanigans. More personal stuff, I suppose? Not that anyone really cares (haha).

Here’s to the future!

path lined with sakura trees

Review: Jyoty

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

Tucked away in a quiet spot after the main stretch of Fushimi Otesuji Shopping Street is an unassuming Indian restaurant, Jyoty. Perhaps people in the area aren’t fans of Indian food; perhaps it’s just the less-than-visible location; But both times I went there, it was basically empty. The first time I went there was with B, and it was only halfway through our meal that another lone Japanese customer came in. My second time was an accidental solo trip (due to me trusting B and getting on the wrong train), and that time, I was the only customer in the entire shop. Still, despite the lack of customers, I don’t think it’s an indication of poor food, because the food is goddamn tasty, and Jyoty is one heck of a hidden gem.

I’ll admit though, that when I arrived at night, I was disappointed to see that the prices of the dinner sets were higher than expected compared to the lunch sets’. So I decided to go the ala carte route, and ordered butter chicken and cheese naan. To my surprise, I could also choose a drink as part of their dinner service, which was nice.

butter chicken and cheese naan
Cheese naan (500 yen) and butter chicken (880 yen). So. Good.

butter chicken in metal bowl close up

A vibrant shade of orange with what seemed to be a swirl of cream, the butter chicken looked extremely inviting when it arrived at the table. It was sweet, creamy, and had a nice consistency (not too thick or watery). The curries come in four different spice levels (mild, normal, spicy, extra spicy), and I went for the normal spice level. However, I couldn’t really detect any heat whatsoever, which I had no issue with since butter chicken is mild anyway, suitable for my palate which is a tad weak to spiciness.

close up of cheese naan slice

While the butter chicken was good, I thought that the cheese naan was the star. It was generously loaded with gooey cheese that stretched out with each bite I took. Taste-wise, it was slightly sweet. It was delicious with the butter chicken, though I do think that perhaps, I should have ordered a spicier curry to cut the sweetness so it wouldn’t have been sweet and creamy upon sweet and creamy. By the end of it, I was absolutely stuffed. You could probably have it alone as a meal, in my opinion.

I’ll be honest and say that while Jyoty might not be the cheapest, it is still affordable enough to dine at without burning a hole in your pocket if you are craving some Indian food in Japan and happen to be in the area. Unfortunately though, its location is truly so obscure that it feels like you’d have to stumble upon it by accident like I did. I hope that business is actually better than what I’ve observed so far, because when I was there, the waiter seemed to enter and exit the restaurant multiple times either to a) attract customers or b) curb his boredom. I hope that Jyoty carries on operating for a long time because I do think the food is good and I’d love to try their other dishes.

Click here for Jyoty’s official website.

Review: Nino

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

There are few restaurants that leave a deep impression on you because of the taste. There are fewer restaurants that leave an even deeper impression on you because of the entire experience. The latter fits Nino.

Nino is an Italian restaurant located near the Nara Kintetsu railway station run by a Japanese chef, Nino. When B and I stepped in on Saturday night without a reservation, the waitress apologetically told us that the restaurant was full. Disappointed, B and I were trying to come up with an alternative outside, when the waitress came out to tell us that they could squeeze us in as a couple of customers were leaving. I was delighted.

As the waitress cleared a couple of seats at the counter, I observed that Nino is really quite tiny, with counter seats looking into the narrow open kitchen which Nino runs solo, and three or four tables in the back of the restaurant. Despite being busy whipping up dishes to feed a restaurant full of hungry customers, Nino still greeted us and introduced himself warmly, even asking for our names (we’d see why at the end).

I’ve been to a few restaurants in Japan with open kitchens by now, but the experience with at Nino differed because of the high degree of interaction between the Nino and his customers. Throughout the night, he made conversation over the counter, and was more than happy to explain my options and provide a recommendation when I had trouble deciding on a pizza. B and I ended up ordering the Amatriciana pasta and Margherita pizza which he recommended, to share.

Plate of Amatriciana pasta
Amatriciana spaghetti (M size, 1650 yen)

margherita pizza close up
Margherita pizza (M size, 1300 yen)

The Amatriciana pasta was zesty with a good portion of bacon in the sauce. However, I did feel that maybe, another pasta dish might have been better. I don’t usually order Margherita pizzas because they are a little plain for me, and ordered it mainly because Nino recommended it, but I enjoyed it more than the pasta, though I actually quite like Amatriciana sauce in general! The crust was thin and crispy, and the mozzarella cheese was super stretchy. Due to how thin the crust was, I could eat the pizza without feeling too full.

That should have been the end of the meal since we only ordered two dishes, right? Wrong. The waitress came over and presented us with the following card:

Nino dessert message
An offer of a free dessert from Nino. A lovely surprise!

Nino free dessert

Naturally, I gladly accepted the offer of a free dessert because I love desserts and I’m a glutton. The dessert, though petite in size, was delicious (B said it was the tastiest thing of the night) and a thoroughly lovely gesture because really, they didn’t have to.

So you’d think that’s the end of it, right? I mean c’mon, a free dessert was served already! I’m not sure if it’s because we’re foreigners, but the following that happened is what I think is unlikely to happen anywhere else but at Nino. Remember how Nino asked for our names? We were presented with a card with our names written in kanji on them in beautiful calligraphy script, apparently courtesy of the monk from the local temple who I guess is a friend of Nino’s. On the back of the card were even English translations of each character used. Nino then emerged from the kitchen, gathered his staff, and took a group selfie with the customers at the counter, which he printed out a copy for us to take home.

Souvenirs from Nino
Souvenirs from my evening at Nino! Pity that Nino’s face was cut off 😦

When B and I finally left the restaurant, Nino followed us out, bidding us farewell after pushing a 5 yen coin (a symbol of good luck) into our palms, and we went home with our souvenirs and wonderful memories of our night at Nino.

After visiting Nino, I can see why it garnered such high reviews on TripAdvisor. Just as the reviews said, the food was tasty (though admittedly, not that cheap), but I think that what truly makes Nino shine is the service. Now, Japan is renowned for excellent customer service. Go to nearly any Japanese restaurant, and you’ll be greeted with a smile and treated with a level of politeness that might be difficult to find elsewhere. However, you can tell that that stems from sheer professionalism and the typical brand of “Japanese hospitality”. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but in a way, it lacks a sense of love and warmth.

This is where Nino is different. You can tell that the chef puts a lot of love into his craft and interactions with his customers. You aren’t just served stellar food, but served a good dose of human connection. At Nino, you don’t just leave will a full belly, you leave with a full heart, and I would strongly encourage you to visit if you’re in the area.

Click here for more information on Nino.

 

 

 

Review: Tendon Makino (Nara)

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

I remember seeing the Teramachi branch of Tendon Makino when I was in Japan in 2016. It was always crowded, occasionally even with people queuing outside the restaurant, so I was curious about it, but never got around to trying it. I finally satisfied my curiosity yesterday when I remembered seeing a branch in Nara, and decided to give it a go at last.

Perhaps it was because I went a bit later than the main lunch hour (2pm-ish), but fortunately, I didn’t have to queue up. From what I could see, the restaurant was full though, with only a few empty seats available. I was seated at the counter, which was personally, quite a treat because I got to watch the chefs at work as they prepared the tempura behind a low glass panel while I worked up an appetite waiting. As I observed them carefully battering and frying the ingredients on the spot in a huge pot of oil in front of me, my mouth watered. There’s something to be said about knowing for sure that your food is made fresh to order, and isn’t just languishing somewhere in a pile waiting to be dished out.

chefs frying tempura behind counter
Chefs frying up a storm!

bowl of tendon
Fresh bowl of delicious tendon served over the counter!

There are various tendon bowls you can order, and I went with bowl A because it was the cheapest (990 yen before tax), and I don’t think I could have finished the other bowls. It came with a piece of shrimp, squid, soft-boiled egg, seaweed, shishito green pepper, whiting — all prettily seated on top of a bed of Japanese white rice. Drizzled over the tempura (and the rice, as I later discovered) was a sweet-salty sauce.

I’m not a tendon connoisseur, but I was pretty darned pleased with what I got overall. The rice was just right–neither dry nor mushy, and each grain retained their individuality; I’m not even exaggerating when I say that the rice seemed to glisten. The tempura batter was nice and light, and coated the ingredients enough to provide the right amount of crispness. For something that’s battered and deep-fried, it also didn’t feel heavy, which was something I was afraid of. The squid was tender, and the whiting was delicate and moist but not mushy. I don’t particularly like fish, but I quite enjoyed it. The shrimp was firm yet soft, though personally, I would have preferred a bit more of a bite to them, but that’s just me. My favourite part–and also the part I was most looking forward to–was the soft-boiled egg. Upon poking the egg gently with my chopstick, the runny egg oozed over the rice, coating my remaining rice (I had saved the egg for last) in rich, golden yolk.

I’ve been raving on and on, but it wasn’t perfect. I’m not sure if the seaweed was supposed to be crisp or not, but it sure as heck wasn’t. I’m guessing due to the heat, it became kind of…soggy and withered, resulting in a slightly chewy texture that didn’t seem particularly intentional. To be honest, I felt that the seaweed was kind of redundant and could have been done away with. While I was indifferent towards the seaweed, I actually disliked the shishito green pepper. I’d never had shishito green pepper prior to that, and I don’t know if it’s supposed to be any different from the green peppers I’m used to (which I also dislike), but I found it bitter. All I can say is that it was fortunate that it was just a small piece. The funny thing is that these two ingredients are a staple in every tendon bowl on the menu, which makes me think that they are just kind of tossed in as cheap filler ingredients. I just can’t see someone going Yay! Seaweed and shishito green pepper tempura! Get me some of that shizz yo’. What do you think?

All that said, I do think it’s a place worth trying out, and I can see why it draws in so many customers. I’d happily recommend it to friends looking for a tendon restaurant with fairly generous portions of a decent quality, while still being fairly affordable.

 

 

 

Review: Samyang Carbo Fire Noodles

Miss Teh TarikLeave a comment

Most of you have probably at least heard of Samyang Fire Noodles. They are notoriously spicy, and there are many videos on YouTube with masochistic people subjecting themselves to something called the “fire noodle challenge”. Basically, they challenge themselves to finish a whole bowl of said noodles; usually they eat it solo, but there are variations like trying to finish it without drinking something, or competing with someone else to finish it first.

The first time I tried them was when my good friend S brought some back from her trip to Korea. Now, I’m pretty weak to spice, but I had seen those noodles around and curiosity was killing me, so I gathered my courage to try them. All I can say is that mistakes were made.

I used only about half of the spicy sauce, naively thinking that it would be okay that way, but boy was I wrong. The first bite was bearable, but it quickly took a painful turn. It was the first time eating something so spicy it actually caused me physical pain! My whole mouth felt like it was on fire to the point that I couldn’t feel my lips after awhile, and I was sweating like a pig. Out of desperation, I doused it in sushi vinegar because I hoped the sweet-sour taste would balance things out. It definitely helped a little and to be honest, made the noodles more palatable, but was woefully inadequate. I couldn’t finish it in the end, and thought to myself, “Never again.”

But I’m an idiot, and “again” came. Kind of. I’d been seeing Youtubers review Samyang’s Carbo Fire Noodles, and they all praised it to the high heavens. Unlike the original Fire Noodles, the Carbo version is, according to them, less spicy, and tastier as you can detect more flavour than just excruciating spiciness from the sauce. So just like with the original version, I grew curious, and ventured to Don Quijote to acquire them. I wanted to just get a single serving to sample them, but alas, they only carried the 5-pack, so I’m now stuck with four more packets.

With much anticipation and a good dose of fear for my rear end, I prepared the noodles using about a quarter (or a third) of the spicy sauce, and the whole packet of what seemed to be cheese powder (the Carbo seasoning) that accompanied it.

samyang fire noodles (carbo) in a bowl

The photo doesn’t capture it well, but in real life, the sauce was a pale pink. If I had added more spicy sauce, the colour would have been a lot darker, of course. Still, don’t let the mild colour fool you, because it packed a sizeable punch nonetheless! I’m not 100% if the “Carbo” in the name means “Carbonara”, but Carbonara it did not taste of. Alone, the Carbo powder tasted slightly sweet and cheesy. However, I think it was far too mild, because once you mixed it in with the hot sauce, the spiciness overpowered it, and the powder seemed to serve more to add just a bit of creaminess rather than any meaningful flavour profile. And that’s with me only adding a fraction of the hot sauce! Boy, was I glad to happen to have bought some mochi ice cream a few days age, because I absolutely needed it after.

Maybe my expectations were too high, but I feel kind of let down. I really wanted to love them, especially since they are more expensive than a lot of other instant noodles. Perhaps lovers of spice and the Samyang Fire Noodle range in general will like this though. Overall, despite my eventual disappointment, I’m glad I tried it at least once, just to taste for myself what the hype was about.

Has anyone else tried it before? What was your experience like? Leave a comment below! 🙂