First of all, I would like to apologize and disclaim that I am not a ramen expert. There is a man who travels all over the country and investigates more than 600 cups a year. He is aware that I am not qualified to talk about ramen.

I'm sure you'll be wondering if you've eaten ``Ichijo-ryu Ganko Sohonke,'' and of course you've probably eaten ``Hachigo.'' Sorry, I haven't been there. There are so many things I want to experience at both stores, but getting there is too difficult.

That said, I eat about 150 bowls of ramen a year. From the limited number of experience shops, I would like to introduce only the items that I think you will not be disappointed in if you try them. The lineup may be familiar to ramen lovers.

Katsumoto, a French-style ramen restaurant

This is ``Katsumoto'' from this flow. The three restaurants I will introduce next to the high-end Chinese restaurant "Toryu" are all ramen specialty restaurants. The standing position is completely different from "Toryu". I really wanted to include ``nirasoba'' so please forgive me.

"Katsumoto" is a ramen shop in Higashi Ginza that has become an urban legend.This store was produced by the owner of ``Hachigo'' (the order in which the stores were opened is ``Hachigo'').Katsumoto” first). According to Instagram, Justin Bieber visited Yago with his wife Henry the other day and seemed happy. Incorporating French techniques, instead of dipping the soy sauce into the soup, they use soup that can be used as is. No one had done it before. Even an idiot can tell that it must be delicious. However, having to go two hours before the store opens is a pain. It's a bit impossible.

It's a long story.

"Katsumoto" closed in March 2020 due to losses. In May of the same year, the management changed hands and reopened with raised prices.

This was my first visit since the management changed, and I had a low opinion of Katsumoto. I arrived at 13:20 in the heat of the summer before Obon and thought I'd be able to get in right away, but I was 15th in line. However, thanks to the kind lady's smooth guidance, we were able to get in without having to wait long. There are two people in charge of the floor to improve the flow of customers. This is great. Moreover, he said, ``Thank you for coming despite the heat.'' It's not something that can be done easily. I would like all the ramen shops who pretend that it's natural for us to be lined up to follow suit.

First of all, the interior of this restaurant is so clean that you wouldn't think it's a ramen restaurant. You could easily mistake it for a sushi restaurant or a counter Japanese restaurant. The staff's white coats are also stylish and beautiful. The store was probably created based on that concept.

Simple menu structure
After all, the supreme dish is "Chinese soba"

There are only three choices on the menu: ``Chinese soba'', ``Ajitama'', and ``Special''. There used to be ``rich dried sardines soba'' and ``tsukemen,'' but they no longer exist. That doesn't matter to me at all. Because I didn't like either of them. There must be a limit to the strength of ``dried sardines,'' and I was skeptical about the dipping sauce for ``tsukemen.'' (Generally speaking, I think that the ``rich sardine soba noodles'' in the world are bad.) The important thing is balance, right?

However, ``Chinese soba'' is an exquisite dish. In other words, it's the flavor that I love. Chicken, bonito flakes,A refreshing soy sauce soup made with dried sardines,Chicken oil is floating on the surface. The soup here is different from "Hachigo".It is made by diluting soy sauce with soup. It was so delicious that I drank it all, knowing that it wasn't good for my body, thinking, ``It's not good for my blood pressure.'' No, it's amazingly delicious. The noodles are thin, straight noodles from ``Asakusa Kaairou'' that coat the soup well, have a chewy texture, and are exquisite with a strong wheat flavor. The menma, chashu, naruto, seaweed, and green onions are all carefully selected and of the highest quality. In particular, the pork shoulder roast has a sweet, porky aroma.

The beauty of the appearance and the balance of taste are totally wonderful. As a traditional ramen, it can be said to be almost perfect. It's the kind of ramen that leaves you feeling deeply euphoric and energized after eating it. I'm glad that even though the management has changed, the taste hasn't changed in the slightest. The fact that they are open throughout the day is also wonderful.

Chinese Soba Katsumoto (Suidobashi store)

Misakicho SS Building 2F, 15-5-XNUMX Kanda Misakicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
Opening hours: 11: 00 to 20: 00
Closed: Sunday, Monday (irregular holidays)

Special Chinese noodles 1300 yen
Flavored egg Chinese noodles 1100 yen
Chinese noodles 950 yen
Various large servings 150 yen

Be prepared for long lines.
“Ramen” from “Benten” that you still want to eat

First of all, you have to be prepared to wait in line. It used to be located in Takadanobaba, and was extremely popular with long lines of people lined up every day. The closure was missed by many fans, but one day it suddenly appeared on a back street in Narimasu, Nerima Ward, and reopened.

Actually, I don't know anything about Baba's era. When he first visited Narimasu, he was shocked by its taste. It is soy sauce ``ramen''. In recent years, stylish ramen has been on the rise, and the appearance is, well, rugged. The taste is straight forward, without any flattery. It's my father's ramen, made with twisted headbands.

First, I have to try the homemade noodles. It's medium-thick and straight, and even though it's thick, it's smooth. It has a rich wheat flavor and is quite delicious. As I went there several times, I was struck by the number of customers who ordered a large serving of just noodles (in other words, no soup). I sprinkled vinegar, chili pepper, and chili oil on the hot noodles and ate them with abandon (kind of similar to how you eat gyoza). Is this guy okay? That's what I thought, but it's not hard to understand why I love these noodles so much that I want to do that.

Noodles, soup, fried pork, menma...
perfectly delicious ramen

I like that soup. It's a double soup of seafood and animals. Generally speaking, master chefs say that soup is best made on rainy or cloudy days when the atmospheric pressure is low. Incidentally, it seems that noodle making is also very dependent on the weather.

I feel like the soup here was delicious whether it was a rainy or sunny day. I wonder if you could call it a soft and relaxing type with rounded corners. Perhaps its biggest feature is the richness of the soup, with a touch of ginger. The thick chargrilled pork and seasoned menma are also exquisite. The seasoned green onions sprinkled with chili pepper are also delicious. Not only are the parts delicious, but there is a sense of unity when put together, creating a perfectly delicious ramen. Ah, just remembering the fresh spittle...

I think the seasoned egg topping is a must. Half-boiled, melty and delicious. I like the taste and texture of menma, so I always add toppings to increase the amount.

One thing to note is that the amount of noodles is large. For women, even average weight (250 grams, medium weight 350 grams) may be difficult. I once ordered a large serving without thinking (I missed the 700g mark!), but despite my best efforts, I ended up with only XNUMX/XNUMX of it left. ``I'm sorry, I underestimated you,'' he once apologized to the shop owner, Segare. He's been criticized a lot on the internet for his attitude, but he just grins and laughs it off.

Benten

3-25-2 Asahicho, Nerima-ku, Tokyo
Business hours: 11:00~ (usually sold out after 14:00 p.m.)

Ramen (average/medium) 850 yen
Salt ramen (average/medium) 950 yen
Tsukemen (average/medium) 900 yen
Seasoned egg 100 yen
Menma 300 yen

*Number of seats: 11

I was ecstatic at how delicious it was.
“Chicken soba” from “Ramen Yamaguchi”

When I watch YouTube and other sites, I see foreigners visiting Japan saying things like ``Japanese ramen is amazing!'' but I wonder where they eat it. I'd really like people to visit a store like the one I introduced this time and exclaim, "Wow!" (I've never met a foreigner before).

``Ramen Yamaguchi'' is a regular restaurant listed in Michelin, so there is no need to introduce it, but it must have been almost 10 years ago when I first tried ``Tori Soba''. I would like to mention this restaurant because I was ecstatic with its deliciousness.

Gives you a lasting impression
clear soup

No matter what you say, the clear soup will completely blow your mind. It feels like your brain wakes up with just one bite. This chicken is made from three types of chicken: Aizu Jidori, Sansui Jidori, and Kibidori. This year marks the 10th anniversary, and everything has been renewed. I doubled the amount of Aizu chicken and added the Rausu kelp soup stock. For the soy sauce sauce, combine three types of soy sauce in a bowl. Ten years ago, I was impressed by how delicious soup could be if I made it seriously, and this time I was no different.

Of course, what I ordered was the ``Special Chicken Soba,'' which includes flavored eggs, chicken wontons, and four pieces of pork chashu. Straight thin noodles are also good (if they are smoother, even better). The wontons are delicious, and the chargrilled pork belly is carefully heated by placing it next to the boiling pot before cutting it into pieces and serving it. It's a soft and very delicious fried chicken. Shinachiku is also thick but soft and delicious. Despite the fact that more than 100 bowls of ramen are served each day, the quality is amazing. It's like an a la carte dish at a Japanese restaurant.

All I can say is that there is a lot of soul in each donburi. A restaurant of this caliber is completely different from a typical restaurant in terms of the seriousness and delicacy they place in each cup. After all, that's what the Ramen Way is all about. Long live the ramen! I feel like Japanese ramen is something we should be proud of to the world.

Ramen Yamaguchi

3-13-4 Nishiwaseda, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
TEL: 03-3204-5120
Opening hours: 11: 00 to 21: 30

Chicken soba (1050 pieces of pork chashu) XNUMX yen
Ajitama soba 1200 yen
Special chicken soba (flavored egg + chicken wonton + 1480 pieces of pork chashu) XNUMX yen

*Please be sure to check each store's business days/hours and prices as they may change.

What does "If you don't eat this, your life is ruined" mean?
Bassey, an editor with over 40 years of food-loving experience, is rumored to be a Reiwa-era Brillat-Savarin, or even the return of Furukawa Roppa, who rushes west and east to eat every time he hears there's something delicious to eat. A heart-wrenching gourmet essay.

Author profile

Bassey is a foodie who has been eating around for over 40 years. In addition to Japan, he regularly goes to Hong Kong to eat Chinese food at his own expense, and also travels to Taiwan, Singapore, Bangkok, and Seoul for delicious food. During his time as the editor-in-chief of a travel magazine, he visited many Michelin-rated restaurants around the world, especially in Europe, and later on in the World's Best 50 restaurants. We want everyone who loves food to try ``Crab Miso Bean Paste Noodles'' from ``Tenkorou'' (Hong Kong). Actually, I like the Chinese food at this restaurant the best in the world. Another example of the best Western food is "El Seger de Can Roca" from Girona, Spain, which was ranked number one on the World's Best 50 list. Ah, I want to go there again.