First Taste: Mugen Ramenya

Jorge Mendez, the chef behind Modan, has turned his attention to ramen. He’s opened Mugen, a ten-seater bar on Maginhawa Street in his hometown of Quezon City. 

His crab broth oozes with the essence of pounded shrimp heads and crab fat, with a richness that evokes laksa, made creamy with a base of sesame paste. Chunks of crab meat add sweetness to the briny, savory bowl.

It’s one of a number of stars on the short menu.

We were fortunate to have been present at the very first seating, oohing and ahhing as Mendez and his team presented their array with starters like gyoza dumplings with a savory dipping sauce, nuggets of shrimp and golden brown karaage, and a crab claw hugged in a bun topped with fish roe.  

The wagyu ramen features a rich broth topped with A5-grade beef, tendon, and a fresh egg. The marbled meat also comes as a luxurious topping for fried rice, and on a soba served without broth.

Mendez says the small, intimate bar has just enough space to appreciate the short menu properly.

“We serve hakata ramen, bold in flavor, rich and fatty in the mouth, yet light and clean as you finish,” he says. “That balance is something that we keep working on, and we don’t see that ending. That’s where the name Mugen comes from. It means ‘infinite’.”

Mendez had been eating across Japan over the years, watching different chefs work, learning different techniques, and deciding what to focus on himself. 

“One day I was sitting in a quiet ramen bar. It was one of those places where you don’t need to speak. You just eat, observe, and learn, and that’s when I realized that each ramen is uniquely different,” Mendez says. “Every bowl is a form of art. Every chef has a different hand, every ramen has a different way of expressing things. We decided to focus on something that would be truly us.”

Mugen is at 108-B Maginhawa Street, Quezon City. Photos courtesy of Mugen Ramenya