Review: Kaneda-Ya, Holborn

London is such a sponge for soaking up the best in the world. And if it’s a rainy night in winter, and you need a quick and deeply satisfying meal in a short time, you can’t do much better than a bowl of Japanese ramen with some exceptional broth. So it’s lucky that the West End of London is now liberally scattered with ramen places.

Kaneda-ya is a great specimen, certainly the best I’ve had. The bone broth for my noodles was unashamedly deep in earthy pork and chicken flavours, soupy and satisfying. It came with a pungent black smoked garlic sauce stirred in, adding another dimension to the pleasure. The noodles themselves were firmly al dente. Four thin slices of soft pork belly, also good, as was the special hanjuku egg I got added on top – I believe it is cured in pork broth.

Maureen’s bowl was a yuzu-chilli broth, and the fiery citrus flavours merged with the bone broth for – I’m a bit envious – an even more orgasmic slurping experience. We stuck with tea and calpico to drink, though they’ve got a couple of beers and fruit sake if you’re interested.

It’s going to be less than £15 each even if you choose a couple of additions to your basic ramen. Good eats.