Food review

Gumshara - A hidden gem

Neatly tucked away in Chinatown’s Eating World Food Court, the place boasts of the aroma of pork bone soup (tonkotsu). The long queue and the chaotic shouts of the chef taking orders echoes the busy, cosy ramen stands in Japan.

The shop is simple, decorated with red curtains, with an open small kitchen where the chef serves the ramen one bowl at a time. Although the wait is long, it is worth it. Opening early last year, the shop has already attracted many customers with its famous soup base.

There is a cardboard menu explaining how their soup is made, using ‘100% Australian pork’, and guarantees the richness of the soup comes from the pork bones ‘which is essential to maintain smooth skin’.

The normal ramen flavours are there: miso, salt (shio), tonkotsu, bbq pork (chashuu), hakata as well as additional ones: tomato, garlic and other rice dishes and gyoza (dumplings). Beside some of the flavours on the menu, there are the words ‘thick soup’ attached to it. This refers to the thick soup base made daily from 120kg of pork bones which is boiled until the tendons and marrows are broken down and enriches the soup with collagen.

When you order your ramen, they try to adjust to your preferences: they ask if you would like it ‘less thick or less salty’ and if you would like to include a soft-boiled seasoned egg.

Meanwhile the chef constantly takes out boiled portions of ramen with nets in both hands and appears to be dancing when he flicks them dry on the ground. This creates a springy effect on the ramen. The soup is poured into the bowls through a net as well and is very ‘thick’.

The ramen comes within minutes after your order and is generous in portion. Although the whole shop emphasises ‘thick soup’, the thickness of the soup doesn’t hit you until you drink it. The richness of the soup is indescribable and differs from most other Sydney ramen places. Although the food court is a crowded and squishy, it is a great winter meal which gets you coming back for it again and again.

Gumshara is located in the Eating World Food Court Chinatown, Shop 209, 25-29 Dixon Street