Kobuta's ramen bowls take up positions in Eixample

The Japanese restaurant opens a location on Gran Via after the success it had in the Sants neighborhood

3 min

The wontanmen bowl from Kobuta ramen restaurant. Ruth Marigot

One day I was shopping at Neko, one of my favorite stores. It is second-hand clothing and is very close to the Sants Market. Its owner overheard me and my friend talking about where we were going to eat. If you are one of those who when you have lunch you talk about where you will eat and when you eat you talk about what you will have for dinner, you are one of me. Well, the fact is that she suggested that we go try a ramen stand that we had nearby and that she really likes, the Kobuta (Súria street, 6). We arrived early and were lucky: although we didn't have a reservation, there was space. We loved it. Since then we have returned several times. That's why I followed with great interest the announcement that they would open a second one. He new Kobuta It is located on Gran Via 439, between Entença and Rocafort, and has some differences from the first restaurant.

The Eixample restaurant is more spacious and, therefore, invites you to stay longer. The first is a more Japanese style, in the sense that you have to go to work. Both restaurants specialize in ramen, but you will find other dishes, such as gyozes, takoyaki, potato salad, fried chicken or rice bowls. Now, the star of the place is, of course, the ramen. The broths are 100% homemade. And the tastes and intensity of taste convince both the local public and the Japanese clientele. ~BK_LINE_HOP~

If you already knew the Sants restaurant, you may detect some differences, since the ramen bowls offered at the new location are not exactly the same. They wanted each restaurant to have its personality. A ramen that you will only find on Gran Vía is the wantanmen, which comes with this type of ravioli filled with pork, pork broth, Chinese onion, egg and bamboo. If you try the tantan, although it is on both menus, you will see that the one from Eixample incorporates Sichuan pepper, as well as pork broth and sesame sauce, minced meat, bean sprouts, leek and spinach. They all come with noodles, which must be eaten quickly, before they become too swollen. Those from the Sants restaurant come from Hawaii, those from Eixample from the island of Hokkaido. Of course, in both cases they are made by Japanese suppliers.

The two restaurants are owned by Hiro Yamane, a Japanese who curiously learned to make ramen in China. He opened ramen restaurants with a Chinese partner and perfected the technique. There he shared a flat with Catalans. An Italian friend convinced him to come to Europe. And a Catalan friend, Joan Montserrat, encouraged him to be in Barcelona. This is how he landed here and how he ended up opening the first Kobuta in December 2017. Since the premises in Eixample were very expensive, he opened Google Maps and searched. He found an area in Sants with many neighbors and few restaurants, and that is where he decided to settle. It was said "If I make good food, people will come." And so it was: the place is a success. Especially at night and in the cold months. Now she has decided to open a second one because she has had a child and has more expenses. He says that we Catalans already liked soup, as is the case with escudella, and that is why it is easy for us to like ramen. He has only made one adaptation: he has reduced the spices so that they are not spicy. However, Yamane says the cooking he makes "is authentic." ~BK_LINE_HOP~

The new Kobuta restaurant in Eixample. Ruth Marigot

The facade of the Kobuta restaurant. Ruth Marigot

If we talk about prices, and keeping in mind that a bowl of ramen is filling, with a drink and sharing a dessert the ticket does not reach about 20 euros for any of them. So it is a fairly affordable option for most pockets.

Hiro Yamane is in love with the new restaurant, because it is in a modernist building and has a much larger kitchen. It started in March without a reservation, and now it is the opposite, you have to make a reservation, especially at night. It is done in a minute and in a very practical way electronically. The success of the first location seems to have already spread to the second.