Xuan Xin Ramen Kitchen @ Gurney Plaza, Penang.

Do note that Xuan Xin Ramen Kitchen is related to Xuan Xin Restaurant which is located only 3 stories above the Ramen Kitchen and Xuan Xin Steamboat at Tanjung Tokong.
I have been here a few times and all those visits resulted in super satisfaction, excluding the recent one, the one i am writing about it now.
The Ramen Kitchen does offer set meals which are superb in term of value for money only on weekends for only a limited duration, until 5PM if i am not mistaken.
However, i have purchased RM10 cash vouchers for only RM5 at EZIvoucher, but the vouchers are not valid on weekends and are only limited to 1 voucher per head per visit.
Of course, one of the vouchers was for my other half.


The place is pretty cramped and i don't know why, the place is hot even though there is not much customer.
Once my other half and i were being seated, we felt like being in a low-temperature sauna.
It took some time for our bodies to achieve thermal equilibrium with the surrounding.
At the beginning, the service was quite efficient, food was being served in timely manner.
I will keep the one and only element that has caused our dissatisfaction hidden until the end of this review.
And, i don't know why some girls are very vain.
I was snapping pictures of the food and a girl thought i was snapping her legs and she immediately switched her seat with her friend. ROLF!
Bottles of soy sauce, pepper and sambal are there whenever you need them.
The sambal was awesome.
The crushed chilies which was mixed with micro bits of dried shrimps coupled with red hot chili oil, forming an intense spicy yet aromatic condiment.



I have got no comment on the RM2.50 soybean juice.
For your information, there was no ice cube added.


First, i apologized for such bad quality photo.
This is one of our all time favourites, Stir-fried Ramen with Seafood (RM13.80).
The Ramen was pretty smooth until it slipped down my chopsticks for a couple of times.
Besides, it was firm, soggy and it took me some time to chow it down.
Judging from the texture, i may conclude that it was handmade Ramen.
A generous amount of fresh seafood was given, such as shrimps, scallops and fish.
The fry style was identical to that of Tai Lok Mee but it was not that wet.
Weak aroma of black thick soy sauce smoked the Ramen, creating a very-pleasant taste.
Overall, the main highlight was the top class quality Ramen, you must try it.
And, 'it' means the Ramen there but not this particular Ramen.


What you are looking at now is the Rice in Soup with Szechuan Spicy Minced Pork (RM10.80) which is quite extraordinary.
The white rice was partially immersed in orangish hot and sour soup.
Szechuan stuffs are always spicy and so did this one.
Luckily, it was not as spicy as genuine ones.
The soup was relatively spicy, followed by waves of sour taste.
Anyhow, i found it quite expensive as there were only rice, soup and some minced pork.
The best part is that the rice used was steamed rice, not those rice cooker rice.



Last but not least, this was the signature dish of the Ramen Kitchen.
It was the only food that i have ordered during all my previous visits.
But, now i only notice something bad.
It is named as Crispy Eel with Aji Salt and Pepper (RM8).
What the heck is Aji Salt? Ajinomoto Aji Shio Salt with MSG??
I guess i should probably consult their management and check this out.
The deepfried eel can be eaten on its own.
It tasted a little bit salty, crispy and i could feel that i was crushing the smooth and compact eel.
Alternatively, you could eat it along with some sambal.
That will definitely taste better.
So far, it was the best thing i have ever had in Xuan Xin Ramen Kitchen.
Nevertheless, please consult the service crew what actually is Aji salt before you order it.
I have tried to google it and the results were full of words like 'Ajinomoto' and 'MSG'.
And you know, that is terrifying.



We finished our lunch with a happy mood until something went wrong.
I demanded for my bill and it took me at least 30 minutes to get it done.
Yes, i could see their cash register machine was encountering some problems.
So? At least they should inform me what was going on and i did not even receive an apology from them until my other half went mad.
She complained to one of the service crew and insisted that we will never step into their outlet anymore.
Still, got no response from the man who looks like the manager or supervisor.
He only came to us when the machine was fine once more and finally, a 'sorry' was spilled out.
For such restaurant who has sister outlets, they don't even have a receipt book back-up?
The food was fine but the service really got me doubtful over a revisit.

Posted in: Chinese Cuisine,Non-Halal,Noodles,Rice,Seafood,Spicy