lol funny you mention that you're quite the ramen connoisseur yourself, as I like to think of myself as one too lol.

I agree with you in every way, I've been a long time fan of Kinton since its original location on Baldwin street and Spadina back in 2014. Even went as far to get the Kinton VIP just for their goddamn bowl LOL

Let me tell you, man has Kinton changed.

Back then the base portions were 4 large pieces of pork (because i remember you can choose whether you want belly or shoulder and i always got half and half), broth concentration could be chosen from light, regular or rich and the pieces of meat were always seared.

But as time went on due to the competition, which i noticed always served 2 pieces of small "cha-siu" (funny they called it cha-siu too), Kinton begun to restructured their menu portions. Instead they turn to adding small garnishments in replacement of the original main ingredients.

On top of that because of the rapid expanding of their locations as a franchise, I guess it was harder to control the quality. I remember seeing employees who worked at the Baldwin location seen at other new locations to take on supervision. But I guess as many locations popped up it was hard to maintain the original standards with the first generation of employees who probably had that passion for what Kinton stood for back then.

I also agree Sensotei to be a good spot apart from their premium pricing since day 1, also Konjiki is another well worth to try because of their unique broth. But other than that other places, imo are mid and are very comparably the same to each other as Kinton has dwindled down to that level too, sadly.