IKEBUKURO: Bankara Ramen... who poured honey in my soup? Crazy Sweet!!

Now which ramen to hit up to end the night in Ikebukuro...

Bankara!? How did I not learn my lesson from the other Bankara in this neighborhood?

http://tokyobelly.blogspot.jp/2012/10/ikebukuro-bankara-ramen-lowly-274pts.html

The entrance to this Bankara was huge and very welcoming.  Counter seats with views of the ramen masters at work and there was a great table spot by the entrance for some people watching.

Lots of fresh garlic

And here was my ramen!  There was a hint of sweetness unlike any other ramen I've tried... but it didn't phase me too much because I added some ground red pepper my soup base.

Flavored egg is always great.

Pork very tender and melty...

Red pepper.

This was my friend Scott's Tsuke-Men... At the end of the meal he still had nearly off of his soup left.  I asked why and he said give it a try... this was so incredibly sweet... as if someone poured waaaay too much honey into it.  I have never had ramen soup like this before.  

Shar Carillo take it away:  http://www.amazon.com/Sweeter-Than-Honey/dp/B00A19QJXW

Overall it was a miss due to the unusual sweetness of the ramen but the semi-lowly foodie ranking of 3.17 may have been a good indicator to move on.  

Shop: Bankara East Exit Shop

Shop Website:  http://bankara.jp/

Foodie Website:  http://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1305/A130501/13019216/

Address J: 東京都豊島区東池袋1-13-10

Address E: Tokyo, Toshima-ku, Higashi Ikebukro 1-13-10
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IKEBUKURO: Bankara Ramen... Lowly 2.74pts ouch!

The third and final stop after an early dinner at the most affordable 100yen Beer Izakaya, then a small mom and pop pub in the back alleys of Ikebukuro... 

Push button ramen ticket dispenser in the entrance.

If you can't read Japanese no worries... remember to always push the top left corner button.

Fresh garlic to crush into your ramen

All counter seating...

...and a cozy little spot for a quick date.

House Gyoza... a bit on the boiled side... was just OK.

Can't quite remember how the soup tasted but there were nice fluffy pieces of fat floating around.

Not my favorite noodles... very plain and texture was similar to an instant pack of supermarket ramen.

I really didn't think much of the ramen here and of course I wasn't the only one as I check the foodie ranking score of a disastrous 2.74 points!  With all the ramen spots in Ikebukuro please please don't eat here unless you really need to eat bad ramen.  

You might have better luck at this tiny ramen stand in front of Ikebukuro Station

Shop: Bankara Ramen

Foodie Website: http://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1305/A130501/13003932/

Address J: 東京都豊島区南池袋1-17-3

Address E: Tokyo, Toshima-ku, Minami Ikebukuro 1-17-3
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