Ohana-Ya

My latest ramenventure had taken me to St. Albert. About 2 weeks ago, YEG finally had some rainy days so I knew that it was ramen weather time. I love ramen and all but I’m not really down for it when it’s 30 degrees outside in the summertime. 

When I heard that Ohana-Ya was offering ramen during lunch time (Mon to Fri; 11:30 to 2:30) around 2 months ago, I knew I had to check it out. They’re a Japanese restaurant located off the main road in St Al. and they also offer the usual sashimi and sushi, too. Their lunch menu is more limited than their dinner menu, though. The restaurant is actually owned by Chinese people but the ramen was very close to authentic! 

Ohana-Ya serves 5 different kinds of ramen: shio, shoyu, miso, tonkotsu, and tan tan. They’re all $11 each with the exception of tan tan, which is $12. 

Green Tea

I ordered green tea for myself and it surprisingly came steaming hot in a tall ceramic cup instead of the usual teapot and small cup. Wasn’t too strong or mild. 

Japanese Croquette (3 pieces) $5

These little deep fried slices were addicting. They’re breaded then fried, and filled with mashed potatoes. It was served with a thick soy-like sauce to add some savouriness to the slices. I would order these on another trip for sure! I was suppose to share these with my friend but ate most of them.. (sorry friend, if you’re reading this). 

Miso Ramen $11

For myself, I ordered miso ramen. The ramen came out in big hearty bowls that I knew would fill me up. The broth for the miso is made with soy bean paste but it was on the lighter side. I felt that it needed a bit more salt to lean away from the bland side. All of the ramen at Ohana-Ya are served with cha-shu, bamboo shoot, bean sprouts, sweet corn, fungus, seaweed, and of course a boiled egg. Cha shu is the Japanese version of Chinese char siu. It’s made from marinated pork belly. The slice of cha shu in my ramen was thick and succulent. I felt that it was too fatty for me and didn’t enjoy it. On the other hand, the boiled egg was soft and fresh. The yolk nicely fell apart into the broth. The slices of seaweed are large and easy to chew. I hate it when seaweed is tough to chew! That wasn’t a problem here, though. And what about the ramen noodles, a critical part in ramen? They’re freshly made in-house and had a soft crisp to it, compared to other ramen noodle’s I’ve tried. I really liked the noodles here and would come back to try another flavour of ramen!

Ramen Noodles

Shoyu Ramen $11

My friend had the shoyu ramen, which is made with soy sauce for the broth. The broth was a bit more flavorful than mine. My friend wasn’t too crazy about the ramen and thought it was decent. He isn’t an obsessed ramen addict like me though, so that would explain why.

Ohana-Ya is definitely worth a try for ramen! I’m happy to see that more places in and around Edmonton are serving ramen. I’ll definitely order some sushi on my next trip to see how it is.