Summer Snacks at Ajisen Ramen

Ajisen Ramen is a chain that specializes in Japanese ramen. They also have a sushi menu and a good selection of cool drinks and desserts. Ajisen was the first restaurant I was ever taken to in Chengdu, and I used to go quite often while I was still new to the city. There are Ajisen Ramen branches everywhere, though a few are pirated versions. I stopped in at the South Auchan branch lately and noticed they have a new menu with some interesting items. I usually order noodles but since the weather was hot I asked for a tofu salad and a seaweed salad:



Their tofu salad is cool, smooth, and refreshing. It is also one of the least expensive items on the menu, though didn't come with the tuna flakes as pictured. The seaweed salad had great flavours, a little sweet and tangy with some nutty sesame seeds and hot peppers.

This plate of yellow croaker chunks made me wish for a bun to stuff with the fried fish, cabbage, and mayonnaise. It would have made a perfect sandwich.



Service at Ajisen is usually excellent but it was a bit scatty this time. You had to be aggressive to flag the servers down. Their signature sumo mural:



Locations: Various. South Auchan shopping complex, Bailian Tianfu Mall, Ba Bao Street, etc. Chinese name: 味千拉面

Website (Chinese version) http://www.ajisen.com.cn/