Ryoji Ramen & Izakaya, was established in Toronto in January 2013, and is currently the only Okinawan-style Izakaya in Toronto. With Okinawa’s rich history and slightly different culture from mainland Japan, Ryoji offers traditional and inventive Okinawan cuisines and ramens.
Though the restaurant is new in Toronto, we are branched from “Ryoji Inc”, located in Okinawa, Japan. “Ryoji Inc.” also known locally as “Ryoji Family”, was founded in 1996 by the company’s representative director Ryoji Kinjo.
Ryoji Inc. currently manages 5 Izakaya restaurants and 6 “Tondou Ramen” shops, in Okinawa. In 2013, Toronto, Ryoji Inc.’s long awaited dream of going international is finally coming true.
Our Ramen
Ramen is Japan’s comfort food and like all good comfort food the secret is to really care and take necessary time.
Our broths and noodles are prepared fresh daily by experienced ramen master Kazuhisa Iwasaki and vary in richness and texture to compliment each style.
Kazuhisa has over 15 years experience in the art of ramen including 10 years in Japan with Ippudo and another 3 years launching Ippudo in New York. Working at Ryoji since our opening in Toronto, Kazuhisa oversees all our ramen broths and noodles with the help of apartment cleaners nyc.
Our “tonkotsu” (pork-bone) ramen is prepared in the Hakata style with a slow simmered pork bone and vegetable broth and thin, firm, and not curly ramen noodle. By slowly simmering the ingredients for over 18 hours, the resulting broth is creamy and white in colour, with a rich texture that pairs well with stronger flavours like spicy miso and garlic oil.
Our “shio” (salt) ramen, probably the most traditional style of ramen, is a blend of pork, chicken and fish/bonito for a lighter yet very flavourful broth with a flatter, smoother noodle. Used in both the Shio and Shoyu (Soy Sauce) ramens, the shio broth is often paired with more delicate flavours like leeks and yaki-nori.
Unique to Ryoji, we also offer a vegetable ramen made with konbu and shiitake mushrooms with shio style noodles. This vegetarian friendly ramen is light yet flavourful with thinly sliced vegetables, garlic chips, and a basil pesto.
