Bia Rebel Ramen

Brian and Jenny are doing the good thing in Bia Rebel, a wee room on the Ormeau Road where the cooking boasts a big heart, and stunning technique. For instance, they create a homemade dumpling, with broth and a sweetcorn butter, that is so diaphanous and mellifluous it simply disappears in your mouth, leaving nothing but sheer delight. It’s both a triumph of modernist cooking, and a series of tastes so ancient that you figure they were probably first laid down in the I Ching. Of course, we all go to BRR for their tip-top ramen – there are always half a dozen ramen riffs on the menu, including the signature Belfast ramen – but if the special on the checkerboard promises dumplings, then you need to know there are no other dumplings as fine as these. The ramen has no equal, and these are bowls of unctuous goodness. Thrillsville.