Dipping Time at Mitsuyado Sei-Men

I love ramen and I admit I’ve never even heard of the variety called Tsukemen so I did not know what to expect until the people behind Mitsuyado Sei-Men explained everything. Tsukumen is basically dipping ramen where in the ramen and soup are separated and to eat it you get the noodles and dip it into the soup. Mitsuyado Sei-Men is a franchise from Japan, and is a sister company of UCC Coffee locally. the Philippine store is the first outside of Japan

Step thru the glass doors and you’ll like you’ve walked thru a time machine to a long gone era in Japanese history. The interiors bring the outdoors inside with walls made to like barber shops and other small eateries complete with steel doors and corrugated sheets.

I think the most unique table in the restaurant is this noodle art/table. Too bad its not functioning else that would have kicked it even higher in the cool factor.

All their ramen and gyoza wrappers are made in the premises like Moshi Koshi. You can easily see the imported flour as well as the wooden trays they use to let the ramen rest.

We started off with some Gyoza (P160). The wrapper did not break despite the substantial amount of juicy meat inside.

Make sure to order all your noodles COLD so you’ll get the recommended al dente bite. Order the regular size if eating it alone or large if sharing, the noodles are dense and quite filling.

How to eat Tsukemen in 4 easy steps:

1. Get some ramen
2. Dip the ramen to coat it in the soup
3. Eat the soup coated ramen
4. Drink the excess soup.

The first variant I tried was the Karashi Tsukumen (P250/regular). You get one late of noodles and a bowl of soup. The noodles are thicker than the usual ramen noodles and are somewhat similar to lomi. I love the chewy bite of the noodles but could not take the spiciness of the soup.

Next one I tried was the Cheese Curry Tsukumen (P340/regular). In addition to the noodles and soup, a cup of cheez whiz like cheese sauce is provided. You can either pour this directly into the noodles of you can dip it before or after the soup.

Sichuan Tan Tan Tsukemen (P280/regular). This one tones down the spiciness and adds a layer of peanut taste. This tastes more balanced for me compared to the earlier Karashi.

The Double Cheese Tsukemen (P340/regular) is a must order for cheese lovers. The noodles are given an additional dusting of Parmesan cheese aside from the bowl of cheez whiz. I found this a little too heavy. This comes with the original yuzu flavored soup which I found to be my favorite.

Most of the tsukemen do not come with toppings, you can just add Marutoku (P80), a mix of nori (seaweed), yasai (vegetables), char-siu (roast pork) and Aji-Tama (Japanese egg).

Want something crunchy to pair with your ramen, then their light and crunchy Chicken Karaage (P190) fits the role. This is one of the best I’ve ever had.

Still have room for dessert then you can try the Sumiyaki Coffee Jelly with Ice Cream (P90) or the Cream Anmitsu (P150). The sumiyaki coffee jelly is a lighter and softer version of the one available in UCC cafes. The Cream Anmitsu has blue and pink gelatin, fruits, azuki red beans and fruits.

Mitsuyado Sei-men‘s tsukemen is quite different from the usual bowl of steaming hot ramen soup. For me it is a nice alternative but not really replaces my reigning favorite Ukkokei Ramen.My overall favorite is the basic yuzu flavored soup with many variants you can choose under the regular Tsukemen line.

I can’t wait to bring Irene and Lauren to try the tsukemen, if it does ot meet Lauren’s tastes hen there is the usual tempura to fall back on.

Mitsuyado Sei-Men

No. 22 Jupiter St
Brgy. Bel Air, Makati City
511-1390
11 AM – 12 PM Daily

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