Yamato have felt like my business partners in Koie ever since they convinced me that there was no point opening a ramen restaurant and serving expensive frozen noodles of dubious quality made by somebody else.
They sent me on a course in Singapore where the marvellous Jason not only taught me how to use their noodle machine, he also taught me how to make all the other ingredients that go into a bowl of ramen and how to manage a ramen restaurant (he also sent me to all the best places to eat in Singapore).
Next was finding the right location and space for my ramen shop. That took over 2 years of just missing places or looking at terrible ones. Then I found where I am at now – a place with an incredibly interesting architecture and atmosphere. To me it felt like an alley. It needed a ton of work and cleaning but we managed to build what I think is a beautiful shop.
While I was designing the restaurant, I sent Yamato a drawing of the location and they provided me with detailed plans for the best way to lay out my kitchen and restaurant.
To cap it off after we opened Mr Fuji himself came all the way from Japan to my little ramen restaurant in Norway to check the machine was in good working order and that the ramen I was making was up to scratch. Yamato is a company quite unlike I have ever encountered and I am delighted to have one of their machines and all the added extras that came with it.
Tim Homer
Koie Head Chef / Owner / Yamato Enthusiast