Kichitora of Tokyo: The Place To Go For Real Japanese Ramen

I love ramen. I could probably eat ramen for an entire year without getting sick of it. Unfortunately, it's not everyday that I get to see or eat real ramen (and I mean authentic Japanese ramen) because I don't live in Japan, and local places serving ramen cooked by real Japanese chefs here are quite far from where I live (like the restaurants at Little Tokyo in Makati). Fortunately, Kichitora of Tokyo is a little bit more accessible from my place.

My fiancé and I first dined in this restaurant a week ago when we went to Megamall to pick up some figures I ordered, and while searching for a place to eat lunch, I remembered that there's this ramen place in front of Yabu on the second floor of the Atrium, so we went there. We checked out the menu first and decided that the prices were okay, so we gave it a shot.

I ordered Shoyu Chicken Ramen and my fiancé ordered Paitan Chicken Ramen, and we chose ajitama half-boiled egg as our topping. I think I completely fell in-love with the ramen from Kichitora of Tokyo, so when we were at Megamall again today, I said I wanted to eat there again. Both of us ordered Shoyu Chicken Ramen, but this time, with dried seaweed as our toppings.

Kichitora of Tokyo's Shoyu Chicken Ramen

I could say that Shoyu Chicken Ramen tasted much better this time with the dried seaweed. It was already delicious the first time with ajitama as its topping, but the dried seaweed gave it a more distinctive and flavorful taste, which I loved.

I can remember some of the other ramen dishes from the menu of Kichitora of Tokyo and they include Shio Chicken Ramen, and specialty ramen like Special Miso Chasu Ramen with Ma oil and Special Crab Seafood Ramen. They also serve Tsukemen, a variant where the noodles and soup are served separately. Of course, let's not forget the good selection of toppings for your ramen like chicken chashu (grilled chicken), ajitama (half-boiled egg), bamboo shoots, green vegetables,  pork chashu (grilled pork), dried seaweed, and mixed vegetables. Aside from ramen, Kichitora of Tokyo also offers other goodies on their menu, such as gyoza dumplings, rice bowls, and desserts.

Are you hungry yet? ;)

Bottom line: I highly recommend Kichitora of Tokyo to everyone who loves ramen or Japanese cuisine in particular.

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Kichitora of Tokyo is located on the second floor Atrium of SM Megamall Building A in Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, Philippines (it's on the same level as Forever 21, Watson's, Yabu, and Mango).
More links:
Kichitora of Tokyo's on Facebook
Kichitora of Tokyo on Twitter

My Most Anticipated Figures For 2013

I have quite a lot of Nendoroids and scale figures on my figure wishlist, but I only have two highly anticipated figures this year, and they are Megahouse M.M.S. Collection 1/8 Lancer and Megahouse M.M.S. Collection 1/8 Gilgamesh:

Megahouse M.M.S. Collection 1/8 Fate/Zero Lancer

Megahouse M.M.S. Collection 1/8 Fate/Zero Gilgamesh

So far, I've tried my best to curb my compulsive buying (i.e. staying away from more Sabers especially that GSC 1/7 Saber Triumphant Excalibur figure) to prepare myself for these two. Pre-orders for Megahouse M.M.S. Collection 1/8 Fate/Zero Rider and Waver Velvet figures are already available, and they come with hefty price tags. You probably have to be as rich as this guy to be able to afford every Fate/Zero figure in that M.M.S. Collection line:

And this is exactly how I feel every time I see a Fate/Zero figure that I like

I already have Lancer's prize figure by Banpresto from its DXF line, and I could say that Megahouse's figure is more detailed. This is my Banpresto DXF Fate/Zero Lancer:

It lacks the scrumptious abs but it kinda has a cute butt

Megahouse Lancer's face is also more pronounced and attractive than the prize figure, so if you don't mind not having Banpresto DXF Lancer, then I suggest waiting for the Megahouse version.

I just have one concern about Megahouse's Fate/Zero figures: the poses are quite boring. I'm sure other avid figure collectors and Fate/Zero fans also noticed this, too. Perhaps it's understandable if it's Gilgamesh, because let's face it, he just stands there in all his arrogant glory, makes weapons rain down from his Gate of Babylon, and he kind of lacks exciting fight scenes, but I was hoping for more dynamic or action-type pose for Lancer, because he looks more awesome when he's in action.

Still, I'm willing to go "shut-up and take my money!" on these two.

You can learn more about Megahouse M.M.S. 1/8 Fate/Zero Lancer and Megahouse M.M.S. 1/8 Fate/Zero Gilgamesh here and here.

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The pictures of Megahouse Gilgamesh and Lancer figures in this post are not mine. They are from MyFigureCollection.net. Kindly click these links to see more:
Lancer
Gilgamesh

Good Smile Company Nendoroid Saber Zero version

This is one of my most anticipated Nendoroids in 2012 because I absolutely loved Saber in Fate/Zero. When pre-orders for this figure was announced, I immediately jumped at the opportunity. She finally arrived this year and I got her last Saturday, January 19.

Here's what you can expect inside the box:

 The black plastic contains the other base, which looks like a road with tracks.

Close-up of what's inside

Not much oomph factor on the faceplates, but I have other Saber Nendoroids here (plus the faceplates of my other Nendoroids) whose faceplates I can use to make Saber Zero look a bit less serious.

Let's move on the figure itself:

You might have noticed that the pony tail has its own slot in the plastic. It's detachable, just like Max Factory figma Saber Zero ver. However, unlike the figma version, the ponytail is more likely to remain in its proper place even if you move it sideways. Yes, I've experienced figma Saber Zero's ponytail falling out of its place a couple of times just because I accidentally slightly brushed a finger or a hand against it.

Here's the figure in its cute glory:

Now let's check out the other base:

I discovered that this figure may come with different bases, as I've seen in the comments here. Apart from this road base, you may get a grass/dirt road or a wood base. Apparently, Nendoroids released from December 2012 to January 2013 are packaged with a second base. Luckily, I got the road base because I think a wood base would look awkward with the motored cuirassier on it. The dirtroad base sounds interesting, though.

Here's Saber and her motored cuirassier standing on the road base:

The bike can stand on itself without any support, as long as the surface is solid, and Saber can confidently sit on it without wobbling. Just be sure that everything is settled on a flat, solid surface so Saber and her bike won't wobble and topple over. I transferred her over to the desk where some of my figures are while she's sitting on her bike on the base, and when I settled her on the desk, she topped over and I heard a muffled "thud". I'm always afraid of Nendoroids falling on hard surfaces because the neck joint might break just like what happened with one of the faceplates of my Nendoroid Saber Super Movable Edition. Luckily, nothing broke.

Here she is with my Good Smile Company 1/8 Saber and Saber Motored Cuirassier:

Saber Zero with my favorite faceplate from Nendoroid Saber Super Movable 10th Anniversary Edition

There's just one issue I encountered on this Nendoroid: I had a difficult time attaching the bent arms. I had to carefully twist them around as if I'm removing the nuts from a car's tire until the pegs on the arms were completely inserted into the torso. Other than that, the entire figure is fun to play with and easy to assemble. I didn't have a difficult time making her hold the bike's handle and Excalibur. No issues with paint transfer, too.

January 19 Haul

More Sabers for my collection :)

When pre-orders came out for Nendoroid Saber Zero, Nendoroid Hakase, and the re-released Nendoroid Saber Lion last year, I immediately jumped at the opportunity. It's a "shut up and take my money!" moment. I got them last Saturday with Nendoroid Hetare Saber limited edition and Banpresto Ichiban Kuji Kyun Chara Fate/Zero Berserker.
I haven't opened Nendoroid Saber Zero and Hakase yet. Probably when I have more time in my hands.

In the meantime, Berserker is now enjoying his time with his new friends:

Gilgamesh is like, "Oh hello, mongrel." And Berserker replies with "BWARHRAURHGLFH!"

And two of the new Sabers are busily ogling the doughnuts from J.Co.

No Saber was accidentally eaten after this photograph was taken.

Figure Greetings

I usually draw stuff for greetings, but because I lack time, I am more motivated to take pictures of figures and use them to greet people on special occasions. Here are some of them:

Christmas Greeting with Saber and Gilgamesh

New Year with Ohana, Gilgamesh, Saber, and Lancer

Birthday greeting for one of my friends.

Birthday greeting for another friend. All the Saber Nendoroids I currently have with Gilgamesh.

Hungry Sabers to greet another friend on her birthday.

The 2012 Figure Haul

Whew! I haven't posted anything here for several weeks, but for my first post this year, let me share my 2012 figure haul.

The first item I ever bought last year was Bandai Figuarts Zero Aizen Sousuke Hougyoku ver. I got him on January 5, 2012. The next figure I ordered was figma Irisviel von Einzbern, which was around March or April. Around that time, I was already starting to like Saber more because of Fate/Zero, so I decided to look for the Saber Zero figma, too. Luckily, I was able to obtain her with the help of one of my favorite online Japanese figure stores. I got her by June together with figma Saber armor, which was an anniversary present from my fiancé. A few weeks after getting Saber, figma Irisviel finally arrived.

From there, my Saber obsession grew, but because money doesn't grow on trees, I have to choose and buy only the figures I want the most. I initially thought I wouldn't be buying Saber scale figures any time soon back then, but by November, I had Good Smile Company's 1/8 Saber & Saber Motored Cuirassier. Next is Alter's 1/6 Saber Maid Ver. R, which is my last purchase for 2012 and a late Christmas gift for myself.

I think there are only three remaining Saber scaled figures that I would like to have, and I hope I can get them this year. We'll see.