Maison Ramen

"You didn't finish your ramen the last time," my husband chimed as we tidied up the table to leave.

I was stunned because I didn't think he'd notice. I thought I buried all the leftover noodles under the dark, soy-based ramen broth. Can't escape this guy's eagle eyes...

"Uhm," I sipped the last of my drinking water out of a wine glass. "Because I was nervous that day."

My husband laughed. He didn't think I was nervous. But I always finish my food, even if I thought it was bad. It's considered sinful to not finish your food, and even rude especially if someone else made it for you. But he wouldn't have known that - it was his first time meeting me.

We had dinner at Maison Ramen in December 2025, as a nod to our first date in 2023.

"But also," I added, putting on my coat. "I lived in Singapore, where we have many halal ramen options from cheap ones at food courts to good, expensive ones in restaurants. So I had... higher expectations."

I had the chicken shoyu-based ramen, one of the halal-friendly options available (I'll keep my criticism of halal-ness in French restaurants for another post, because I have a lot to say). I also had a soy egg because who can resist the umaminess of soy paired with the creaminess of egg yolk? I definitely can't. We also had vegetable pan-fried gyozas and I loved them because I know I could tear through 6 of those on my own at dim sum. Crispy bottom, slightly chewy skin and hot filling. It was almost 3°C that day. I had just finished work and was starving.

I've never had real Japanese ramen in Japan before so the one at Maison Ramen could be pretty authentic (it's not...). But this time, I was pretty satisfied and maybe because I was not too stressed out and nervous about meeting a guy for the first time after only speaking to him less than 24 hours prior 🙃 (said guy is now my husband so take it as you will...)

And maybe because I've been away from home long enough (my favourite halal Japanese ramen in Singapore was Ichikokudo Ramen - yes I am your average malay girl, sue me!!!) that I've come to accept that if I can't make something at home, I'll accept whatever is out there. Although, maybe this is a nudge for me to learn and make ramen at home 🤷‍♀️

And so it was good, but I might have to credit it to nostalgia (which I spoke about in Food as Bearer of Memories) and a touch of homesickness. Given that there are tons of Asian restaurants here in Lille, I may find all of them good if I viewed them through the lens of nostalgia. So even though this was good for me, it might not be good for you.

I know there's probably a couple of lessons to be learned here, like don't trust reviews (both good and bad) wholeheartedly, taste is a matter of personal preference and nostalgia makes you blind to terrible things. But I don't really care, I just wanted to relive the experience of having the ramen on a cold winter day in December.