Tonkotsu Road

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Tonkotsu Road

Ramen & noodle bar · 4 Searle Lane, Queenstown

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Ramen

  • Tonkotsu Classic$1918-hour pork bone broth, thin noodles, chashu, nori, spring onion, ajitama egg
  • Spicy Miso$21White miso, ground pork, chilli oil, corn, bean sprouts, sesame HOT
  • Shoyu$18Soy-based chicken broth, medium noodles, menma, nori, spring onion PF
  • Veggie Tantanmen$20Sesame-soy broth, tofu crumble, bok choy, crispy shallots, chilli oil VPF
  • Tsukemen$22Rich dipping broth served separately, thick noodles, chashu, ajitama, nori
  • Vegan Shio$19Kelp & shiitake broth, rice noodles, corn, seasonal greens, yuzu zest VPFGF

Rice & sides

  • Karaage Don$17Fried chicken on rice, pickled ginger, kewpie mayo, shredded cabbage PF
  • Gyoza (6pc)$12Pork & ginger, pan-fried, ponzu dipping sauce
  • Veggie Gyoza (6pc)$11Shiitake, cabbage, water chestnut, pan-fried VPF
  • Edamame$8Sea salt & chilli flakes VPFGF
  • Takoyaki (4pc)$10Octopus fritters, bonito flakes, tonkatsu sauce, kewpie PFGF
  • Steamed rice$4Koshihikari short grain VPFGF

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Seasonal specials

We change the specials board every six weeks, sourcing what we can from Central Otago farms and foragers. Available until stocks run out each evening.

Black Garlic Tonkotsu · $26

Our house tonkotsu enriched with three-week fermented black garlic and a drizzle of Central Otago truffle oil. Thin noodles, double chashu, ajitama, charred spring onion, crispy garlic chips. Tuesday to Saturday.

Yuzu Shio · $20

A bright, clear chicken-kelp broth finished with fresh yuzu from a Cromwell grower. Medium noodles, poached chicken, pickled daikon, watercress. Light enough for summer, complex enough to return for.

Venison Tantanmen · $24

Ground Cardrona venison in a spicy sesame broth with Sichuan peppercorn oil, bok choy and toasted cashews. Our hottest bowl. Pork-free.

Coming next

Late October we are working on a miso with Gibbston Valley mushrooms and crispy kale. Follow the board outside for dates.

Our broth

Three base broths from scratch every day. Nothing from a packet, nothing reheated. The tonkotsu takes eighteen hours; even the shoyu starts before dawn.

  1. Split & blanch the bones

    Pork femurs from Waipara Butchery, split lengthwise so the marrow renders out. Blanched for ten minutes, scrubbed, rinsed.

  2. First boil: four hours, hard

    A rolling boil breaks down collagen into gelatin. The kitchen fills with steam. We skim three times.

  3. Aromatics in at hour five

    Charred onion, ginger, garlic. No carrot, no celery. We want pork flavour, not vegetable soup.

  4. Low simmer through the night

    Twelve more hours at a bare tremble. The broth turns ivory and coats a spoon. Tama checks it twice overnight.

  5. Strain, season, serve

    Strained through fine mesh at 6 am. Each bowl gets its tare (flavour concentrate) ladled first, then the broth on top. Total time: 18 hours.

Shoyu & Shio

The chicken-based broths take eight hours. We roast the carcasses for colour, then simmer with kombu and dried shiitake. The shoyu tare is a blend of three soy sauces aged for balance. The shio is finished with Marlborough sea salt and a touch of dashi.

Inside the kitchen

Tonkotsu Road is a six-seat counter and twelve-seat dining room on Searle Lane. We opened in March 2022 after Tama Mori spent a year in ramen shops across Fukuoka and Sapporo. The menu is short on purpose.

Tama Mori

Head chef and owner. Born in Christchurch, trained in Fukuoka. Makes every batch of chashu personally because he does not trust anyone else with the sear.

Noodles

Made in-house three times a week on a Yamato noodle machine. Thin (1.2 mm, for tonkotsu), medium (1.5 mm, for shoyu), thick (2 mm, for tsukemen). Champion flour from Christchurch.

The counter

Six seats facing the open kitchen. Watch every bowl being assembled. No bookings for the counter — first come, first served. Most waits are under fifteen minutes.

Suppliers

Pork bones: Waipara Butchery. Eggs: Amisfield free-range. Miso: Spiral Foods organic. Rice: Koshihikari from the Wairarapa. Spring onions: Queenstown Hill Market Garden.

Hours & directions

Weekly opening hours
DayLunchDinner
MondayClosed
Tuesday11:30 am – 2:30 pm5 pm – 9 pm
Wednesday11:30 am – 2:30 pm5 pm – 9 pm
Thursday11:30 am – 2:30 pm5 pm – 9 pm
Friday11:30 am – 2:30 pm5 pm – 9:30 pm
Saturday11:30 am – 2:30 pm5 pm – 9:30 pm
Sunday11:30 am – 8 pm (continuous)

Find us

4 Searle Lane, Queenstown 9300. We are in the laneway off Camp Street, between Patagonia and the old cinema. Look for the red noren curtain.

Stylised map of central Queenstown showing Tonkotsu Road on Searle Lane Shotover St Camp St Beach St Searle Ln Tonkotsu Road Lake Wakatipu

Getting here

Walking
Three minutes from the Queenstown waterfront or the Skyline gondola base.
Parking
Man Street car park is two blocks south. Boundary Street is free after 5 pm.
Accessibility
Step-free entry from Searle Lane. The counter seats are fixed-height stools; dining room tables suit wheelchairs.

03 441 0000 · slurp@tonkotsuroad.co.nz