ENISHI Malaysia, Mont Kiara

ENISHI Malaysia

[Non-halal] ENISHI Malaysia is a ramen shop that hails from Kobe, Japan.

In its native country, the ramen bar has been recognised as a Bib Gourmand restaurant and is also a Top 100 restaurant on Japanese Tabelog (a popular restaurant reservation platform).

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ENISHI is known for its light shellfish dashi broth, as well as the Dan Dan Noodles. This spot had been on our list for a while – so we were quite excited to finally check it out on Labour Day.

ENISHI Malaysia in Mont Kiara

The sole Malaysian outlet is located in Shoplex Mont Kiara. Curiously, the place was quiet when we arrived for lunch at 12.30pm – but the place was packed soon after we sat down. Guess everyone was having a late start on Labour Day (as they should).

The menu here is pretty simple.

ENISHI offers ramen with dashi as its base – which is light yet flavourful. It reminded us of the fish dashi stock that we buy at the market – but of course, with better clarity of taste and flavour.

The popular choice is the shellfish stock shoyu, which is added to the dashi for a strong tangy hit. There’s also shoyu and shio ramen served here.

The other popular choice here is the Dan Dan Noodles – which is its take on the Chinese dan dan mian.

ENISHI uses only 100% wheat noodles imported from Japan.

Shellfish Stock Shoyu Ramen

We ordered a regular bowl of Shellfish Stock Shoyu Ramen (RM37) – which comes with a slice of chasu, two slices of duck breast, and ajitama (soy-marinated egg).

This was good. While the broth looks deceptively clear and light, it is packed with enough flavours without feeling too heavy. The shellfish stock is distinctly savoury with scallops added, with just a touch of tang from yuzu and sweetness from onions.

The wheat noodles were cooked with enough firmness and are thicker than the usual springly chukamen used for ramen. The chasu, duck and ajitama met expectations as well.

Dan Dan Noodles

The Dan Dan Noodles (RM39) here is served mazemen-style – which is basically broth-less and mixed with various toppings. This dish is equally popular here, based on our quick scan of the room.

The noodles are served with toppings such as cashew nuts, pickles, diced chasu and duck, onion, ontama and mizuna (mustard greens).

ENISHI’s claim to fame is the special chilli oil, which is made with 20 types of spices and 32 ingredients. There are levels to control the spices but the “Medium” bowl is the one recommended for first-time customers for just the right amount of spicy kick.

We also enjoyed this a lot. Giving the noodles a good toss resulted in a complex dish that had crunchy texture from cashew and greens, acidity from fresh onions, and a good spicy-savoury kick from the chilli oil and chasu cubes.

The ontama egg is requisite for creaminess and there’s also three types of vinegar on the table to add to tweak the noodles to your heart’s content.