Chanced upon the new Ebi Bar — an establishment which focuses on serving up prawn noodles that had recently opened its doors at the basement of Cuppage Plaza. With its main central focus revolving around their rendition of prawn noodles, they also serve up a small variety of sides and light bites to go along as items to share at the table, or as bar snacks with the alcoholic beverages that they have to offer.

The Soul-Good Luxe Noodles is the most expensive item on the menu here at $39.90 — featuring all the goodies in one bowl such as charred, lobster, prawn, scallops and lightly pan-seared chicken with a “thick flavourful broth” — we also opted for the Miso Booster and also went for the set where we ended up with the Edamame and a canned soft drink for an additional $3.90. Really enjoyed the noodles that all their prawn noodles came with — reminds us of the broader Japanese Ramen noodles that comes with a firm, “al-dente” bite; the prawn broth carrying a lighter body overall but comes with a distinct umami note which was actually more on the refreshing side with a slight hint of smokiness from the charred seafood and meats that come together with the bowl, though those into more heavier, “creamier” broths may find it just a bit short of a punch from the crustaceans. That could be easily fixed by opting for one of the three broth boosters (choose between Truffle, Mala or Miso) — basically a secondary broth base served in a vial that could be added to the original broth for a flavour contrast — our choice of the Miso providing the broth with a richer and earthier note that brings the bowl of noodles closer to Japanese Ramen. While most other similar establishments may choose to serve Japanese Chashu for a more Japanese-inspired approach, they have opted for pan-seared chicken that interestingly comes in a roll — pretty bouncy without being as meaty as pork which may otherwise interfere with the lighter umami notes of the broth here. The accompanying seafood are also pretty fresh and pretty huge; naturally sweet and does come off from the shells pretty easily.

While the Soul-Good Luxe Noodles does come a bit pricey given how it comes with all the goodies, the true value-for-money dishes would probably be the Signature “Chao-Da” Charred Ebi Noodles and the Ebi-Vege Crispy Fritter Noodles which are priced at $14.90 and $12.90; a slight premium from the standard coffeeshop offering, but worth paying extra for the slight upgrade as well. The folks here are still getting the kinks sorted out so do expect some teething issues (i.e. our order of side was actually the Chilled Tofu with Homemade Sauce, though we let it slide since the partner wanted Edamame anyways; they had also missed out our additional of ramen egg which we did inform them of subsequently). An option worth considering dining at for something simple whilst around the lesser trekked areas of Somerset.