Ling-Nam noodle house

Ling-Nam brought to mind for those who grew up in the Eighties in the Philippines as one of the quintessential Chinese noodle soup shops in the country.  It's roots in Binondo Manila, it have been long time purveyor of Chinese style Beef brisket noodles Lomi and Wonton noodles as opposed to Ma Mon Luk style noodles soup,or Mami as we call here.

The name alone brought back warm nostalgia of much simpler days. Children who grew up on that era would surely have found memories of enjoying their humble dishes of hearty noodles bath in warm tasty broth. Their own adventures of taking comfort with one these on rainy days, most especially after class.

Ling-Nam  is one of the first in the country to venture in pay-at-the-counter self-service fast food Chinese restaurant, that Chow King would later on dominate. Lin-Nam was moderately successful in this, but it was very successful in getting more people to be more aware of their kind of Chinese dishes that their Beef mami recipe would become standard in the country and influenced most of today's restaurants.

Ling-Nam restaurant is trying to make a comeback by setting itself up as not as fast-food style but the usually sit-down Chinese tea-houses.

The taste of their Beef-Wonton noodle soup is practically the same as I remember when I was a kid. Their Noodles are the thin crinkly kind, is always excellent. It firm but smooth to slurp, and it holds up the flavor of the soup very effectively. The broth is on the sweet and tangy kind with the beef sauce that is added to it. The dish is definitely refreshing with the strange rainy weather we're having right now.

My only gripe is that their wonton dumplings and Siomai seems to be stuck back in the 80's to much that it would not hold up to the more sophisticated  versions we have right now. The fillings are good, but the wrapper is thin and quite very easy in getting mushy. This is rather disappointing for a shop who's business is producing raw noodles and wonton wrappers for other shops.

They also serve standard Chinese fare like chicken, beef, fish, rice dishes and other entree'  besides Noodles, that other discerning costumers can try.

I usually go to their Greenhills branch which is close to my work and my home. It's been open there since 2006. It is a very convenient location and they're open up to late at night, so it's a good place to those who are looking for a good place to eat after long tiring day of shopping at the Tiangge in Greenhills shopping center.



View Ling-nam tea house in a larger map

Ling-Nam restaurant
Greenhills shopping center, San Juan, Metro Manila

Ramen Bar - ramen restaurant

Ramen Bar in Eastwood mall Libis is one these new chic' looking place that tries to cater to the local populace with authentic Ramen experience.

I've eaten there a couple times and I must say they do serve a very decent bowl of Tonkotsu Ramen. When I first tried it is rather of flavorful and yet subtle in it's taste. More recently though their Shoyu ramen (it say shoyu flavor but it is more tonkotsu style) taste a little tepid and lacks character. The pork slices is tender and very tasty. They use too much of the green part of the leeks, giving it a little bitter taste that is rather too cumbersome.

The serving is slightly adequate, if you get my meaning, and the price is higher than average. Not that surprising for the location it is in. There is also a service charge that I should note, besides the menu price.

I also ordered a plate of their Fried Rice. It is good companion with the Ramen or their Gyoza, except they use too much garlic, making it more fitting for a Tapsilog companion than to a standalone Japanese meal of Chahan.

Ramen Bar is a very easy and comfortable place. The place is not that big so it could get crowded easily. It is is a cool place to have a good bowl and a cozy ambiance to sit to in a very convenient place to walk about, probably enough to make up for the price.


View Ramen Bar in a larger map

Ramen Bar

Eastwood mall, Eastwood City, Barangay Libis Quezon City, Philippines.

Ramen Cool - ramen restaurant

I was driving from Pioneer st. Mandaluyong on my to Ortigas center when I noticed this brightly lit, well furnished new Ramen style restaurant called Ramen Cool. It looks like a nice place, so I got try it.

I checked their menu and It's very reasonably priced. It's a good place to take your friends or your girl to for some nice Japanese meal without blowing your budget.


I ordered Shoyu Ramen as a trial base. The serving is of the Japanese standard portion. You can order extra toppings and noodles.



It is a filling and hearty meal, something you can find in some standard Japanese shops in Tokyo, Nothing special. The Chasu barbeque pork is of the lean meat variety, its more boiled than roasted, lacks the layers of fat to make it tender and flavorful.

The noodles, though not home made, is smooth and has a nice texture. The pork base soup lacks punch and owes a lot to the soy sauce than the base broth for flavor. Wish it could come much hotter also.

I also ordered an order of pork fried rice. Definitely much better than most fast-food Japanese restaurants. Very filling with lots of meat in it. It's tastes is not diluted like your standard fried rice and it can be eaten by itself without any added entree.




Overall, Ramen Cool is a good place to try out some authentic Japanese fare. The price is cheap and portions are good and the service is prompt. I'll most definitely come back to check out on how the place's progress will turn out.


View Ramen Cool in a larger map


Ramen Cool
#25 East Capitol Drive
Kapitolyo, Pasig city, M.M.