Ramen Teh
Ramen Teh, also known as Ramen Shop, is a Singaporean-Japanese-French film directed by Eric Khoo and starring Takumi Saito, Jeanette Aw, Seiko Matsuda, Mark Lee, Tsuyoshi Ihara, Tetsuya Bessho, and Beatrice Chien.
Ramen Teh had its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2018 and was released in Singapore on 29 March 2018.
Premise
Masato is a young ramen chef in the city of Takasaki in Japan. After the sudden death of his emotionally distant father, he chances upon a suitcase of memorabilia and a red notebook – filled with musings and old photos – left behind by his Singaporean mother who died when he was just ten years old. Acting on a hunch, he takes off for Singapore with the notebook, hoping to piece together the story of his life, as well as that of his parents. There he meets Miki, a Japanese food blogger and single mother who helps him track down his maternal uncle Ah Wee, who runs a bak kut teh stall. Masato discovers that his grandmother Madam Lee is still alive, and that she holds the key to the tender yet turbulent love story of his parents. Masato and his grandmother try to heal each other’s broken souls, and find salvation in the kitchen where the meals they cook become more than the sum of their ingredients.Cast
- Takumi Saito as Masato
- Jeanette Aw as Mei Lian
- Seiko Matsuda as Miki
- Mark Lee as Uncle Wee
- Tsuyoshi Ihara as Kazuo
- Tetsuya Bessho as Uncle Akio
- Beatrice Chien as Madam Lee
Production
Filming
began in July 2017, in Singapore. Several recurring scenes were filmed in the Jigen-in Temple, located at the summit of Mt. Kannonyama in Takasaki, Japan, featuring the majestic Takasaki Byakue Dai-Kannon.Japanese chef Keisuke Takeda and Singapore food blogger Dr Leslie Tay were tapped to consult on the culinary scenes in the film.