Hakata Gensuke QV

You don’t open a second restaurant five minutes’ walk from the original unless you have a unique selling proposition. In this case, it’s chicken. This ramen giant’s QV pitstop offers tori broths made with a blend of chicken stock and dashi, as creamy as tonkotsu but without a shred of pork.

Peer into the signature bowl and you’ll spot a layer of shihou scattered across the soup. It translates to “fat bubbles” – and flavour – and tastes of the essence of chicken; every spoonful intense and meaty without any underlying funk.

Black sesame ramen reveals new depths of creaminess plus a left hook of garlic. Burnt orange “god fire” broth will impale your tonsils, while the shoyu is as restorative as a classic chicken and noodle soup. Unmissable fried chicken boasts a spice blend that puts the Colonel to shame.

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