We can eat Japanese food all day, every day, and never get sick of it. There’s just something about Japanese food that keep us coming back for more. That’s especially true when it comes to their popular most popular dishes like sushi, tempura, udon, and of course, ramen.
Ramen is a Japanese noodle soup dish that can be made with various different toppings and flavours. And while there are many different ways to enjoy this delicious dish, one restaurant, in particular, has become well-known for its take on it.
Kinton Ramen was first opened in Toronto in May 2012 making it one of the first and best authentic Japanese Ramen bars in the city.
They’ve become so popular that they’ve expanded in Ontario, Quebec, and British Columbia. They even have locations in the U.S. including Illinois and New York.
It’s no surprise that Kinton Ramen already has locations across Toronto and has become a city-wide favourite for ramen lovers. From their famous pork and chicken to vegetarian options, Kinton Ramen has something for everyone in the city to enjoy.
They are also a family of Kinka Izakaya, which is literally one of the best and most popular Japanese restaurants in Toronto! We highly recommend trying this restaurant if you haven’t already because we know it will instantly become one of your favourite places to eat in Toronto. We also have more gorgeous indulge-worthy photos of Kinka Izakaya here to share with you — they serve delicious ramen and udon noodles too on the menu!
Kinton Ramen Review
Kinton Ramen’s goal was to bring a taste of authentic Japanese ramen to Toronto, using only the freshest and highest quality ingredients.
For die-hard ramen fans that would never leave a single drop of broth left in their bowl, you can also become a “KINTON BOWLER” and earn special rewards. For every Kinton Ramen bowl that you finish to the last drop, you’ll earn 1 stamp. Once you collect 10 stamps, you can get 10 pieces of gyoza for free. With 100 stamps, you can get their famous Kinton bowl and one free topping for life!
So, whether you’re a fan of ramen or not, Kinton Ramen is definitely worth a try. They offer an authentic Japanese experience that’s perfect for anyone looking to enjoy a delicious bowl of ramen.
We have a few favourite spots like Ramen Isshin and Sansotei Ramen, but we were in a nearby area, hence decided to pop by the Scarborough location in Kennedy Commons. This is the Kinton we generally come to after visiting Starbucks in Chapters Indigo.
Kinton Ramen Menu
1. Age Gyoza
We don’t usually get full from a bowl of ramen noodles, so we thought a plate of gyoza would make a nice filler.
Gyoza (餃子) is a Japanese dumpling typically made with pork and vegetables, and whenever we go to the best all you can eat sushi restaurants, we would order a dish of gyoza as our appetizer. It’s nice to indulge in that crispy and unhealthy fried dumpling whenever you’re eating out.
So, we were really excited when we saw that Kinton Ramen had age gyoza on their menu! There are two options, pork or just vegetable fillings, and we chose the meat! Dumplings are just not the same without meat!
The gyoza came out piping hot and fresh! I have to say they were some of the best that we’ve had in a while, but probably because I don’t eat fried food that often.
The wrapper was so nice and crispy. And the sweet orange chili sauce, probably loaded with chemicals, was so delish, making it more addicting and enjoyable to eat. Yum, you’ve gotta love sauces that are packed with non-sense chemical ingredients – that’s what makes it tastes so good! 😀
Overall, these dumplings are fried to perfection and make for a great starter to your meal.
2. Kinton Pork Original
I ordered the Kinton Pork Original with original ramen noodles.
I wanted to try the shirataki noodles — which consist of starch from the konjac plant — because are lower in calories and high in fiber, making them a healthier alternative. It’s perfect for those of you who are watching your carbohydrate intake especially if you want to manage weight loss or diabetes.
But it’s $3 extra, making this dinky little ramen bowl $17.99 before tax and tips!
I thought it would be absurd given how little noodles most Japanese ramen restaurants give you. And if you want to add EXTRA shirataki noodles, it would be an additional $3 on top of that, which means your bowl of ramen would be $20.99 before tax and tips ($28 total), which would be absurd for a small lunch. This is 2022 pricing by the way.
So, I opted for the Kinton Pork Original instead.
When the bowl came out, I was salivating because it looked so darn good! The noodles, tender and cooked perfectly, were swimming in a sea of delicious-looking milky broth.
There was also a slice of Japanese braised pork belly or shoulder (called chashu), some nori (海苔) seaweed, and surprisingly a full egg since different Ramen places give half.
Topped with fresh green onions, the broth was so flavourful and it wasn’t too salty. It had that perfect umami taste that all the great ramens have, making it super delicious and addictive.
The chashu was also really good! It was tender and had a good ratio of fat to meat.
Overall, this bowl of ramen was fantastic and I would definitely order it again when I come back!
3. Kinton Pork Spicy Garlic
What we like about Kinton Ramen, like other Ramen places, is they give you the option to add additional toppings such as woodear mushroom, garlic oil, seaweed, corn, etc. It’s usually $1 more for each topping.
They also allow you to add extra noodles for an extra $1.50 if you feel that the portion is too small and you don’t mind the extra carbs. Who doesn’t love to eat carbs, right?
Anyways, Rui ordered the Pork Spicy Garlic Ramen with extra noodles because he loves to pig out on carbs whenever we’re out eating.
His bowl looked very similar to the Kinton Pork Original except his soup base was spicy chili pepper, scallions, and garlic.
He mentioned that the soup was a bit on the saltier side but still super flavourful in a good way. We tried each other’s soup base and we both agree that the broth in the Kinto Pork Original taste better overall.
Despite it being called “spicy”, it actually wasn’t too spicy. We would say it added a little kick and heat to the soup, making it more enjoyable to eat.
Food: 3.7/5
They offer your choice of pork, chicken or vegetarian ramen bowls and each comes in a different variation that allows you to customize further.
We always enjoy their delicious ramen noodles because they’re cooked perfectly every time. Not too hard and not too soft – just the way we like it!
The chashu (braised pork belly) is always tender and easy to chew on.
Not to mention, their creamy broths are always full of flavour and irresistibly slurp-able!
Service: 4/5
The service here has always been great whenever we come by! Like many Ramen soups, the staff will all say hello and welcome you when you first enter.
The staff is attentive and refills your water glass regularly.
They’re also quick to take your order and bring out the food in a timely manner.
Ambiance: 3.8/5
Kinton Ramen is a nicely designed Japanese Ramen restaurant with clean and modern decor.
The place is usually pretty empty during the weekday hours, which is great if you’re looking for a quiet place to eat.
It can get pretty busy during dinner time though, especially on weekends, so that can feel a little busier. We prefer to come here during non-peak hours which is are weekdays.
Price: $$
Despite how much we love to eat ramen noodles due to the creamy broth, Rui and I find that all Japanese Ramen restaurants aren’t the best value. They are usually smaller portion sizes compared to other Asian noodle restaurants like these best indulge-worthy Vietnamese pho places in town or the top Chinese noodle restaurants.
In addition to that, most ramen bowls come with only 1-2 thin slices of braised pork or chicken, half an egg, and just noodles. Compared to other Asian-style soup-based noodles like Vietnamese or Chinese, they are generally served with more protein (e.g. chicken, beef, or shrimp) and some veggies.
These are all different styles of cuisine, and we shouldn’t compare them this way.
But the only downfall to ramen is the lack of protein and veggies. Sometimes we feel like we’re just here for the soup broth and ramen noodles.
Including tax but before tips, our lunch was $41.23. After tips, we paid $48.65 for two people. That’s $24.32 per lunch. We had an appetizer dish and two bowls with no additional toppings (but extra noodles for one of them), so imagine how much more this would cost if you started customizing more.
Due to the lack of food and feeling hungry still, we stopped by Allwyn’s Bakery for some beef patty as a snack immediately after leaving Kinton. They sell one of the beef patties and jerk chicken in the GTA!
Having said that, the price at Kinton Ramen in our opinion is a little higher, but not high enough to make it a $$$. Just remember that adding more toppings will rack up your bill easily!
We kind of feel in between and that’s why we don’t visit ramen restaurants as much as we used to. We always end up grabbing a snack afterward because we’re still hungry.
Kinton Ramen Rating: 3.7/5
Despite not feeling full from Japanese ramen, like the usual, we still give this place a 3.7 out of 5 stars because their soup broth is quite good.
We also admire that they give you a full egg instead of a half like some other places.
We’ll definitely come back to try their other soup flavours and variations whenever we are craving some ramen!
Have you been here before? What did you think?
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