Fugu, a fish that has many names: torafugu, pufferfish, tiger blowfish, blowfish, porcupine fish, or globefish. Regardless of what you call it, you probably know that it is the fish that one could die from if it is not handled properly. Nowadays fugu farmers in Japan have figured out how to raise poison-free fugu. As for…
Category: ramen
Tsukiji Chuka Soba Inoue
UPDATE – Tsukiji Chūka Soba Inoue is currently closed due to a fire at Tsukiji Market. (Aug. 2017) Our favorite ramen at Tsukiji is Inoue. This tiny stall that has standing only tables for dining has been in business for fifty years. There is only one bowl that is made from (I believe) chicken…
Shibuya Hayashi Ramen はやし
On the back streets of Shibuya, a short walk from Mark City and the Inokashira line is Hayashi ramen. There are only 10 seats at a counter overlooking the open kitchen. The ramen at Hayashi is a rich blend of pork and seafood. Meaty and smoky aromas from the bowl are accented with a fresh green…
Shinjuku Kaijin 海神
Kaijin literally means the God of the Seas, a perfect name for this ramen shop that does not use meat. The seafood soup at Shinjuku Kaijin changes daily based on what seafood is in season. The broth, while rich in flavor, is light and refreshing on the palate. The fish that goes into the broth is…
Mugi to Olive Clam Ramen at Manseibashi
Mugi to Olive has been on my ramen radar for a while. The chef behind the restaurant is trained in French cuisine. Ramen bloggers and Japanese media, both print and television, rave about the clam soup ramen. But it jumped to the top of my list after seeing it mentioned in this great piece in…
Ginza Kagari Ramen 銀座篝中華そば
My favorite ramen at the moment is Kagari in Ginza. The shop does a tori paitan, creamy chicken ramen. This is perfect for those of you who don’t eat pork. 🙂 I come here mostly for the thick, rich soup made with lots of chicken fat. The noodles are thin, which I prefer. Recently Kagari has…
Oyster Ramen at Tsukiji Yajima 築地やじ満
Tsukiji Market breakfast options abound and oyster ramen (1,200 JPY) is one can only be had this time of year. Creamy oysters are a unique topping for ramen and are served with nira (garlic chives), onions, bamboo shoots, and fresh wood-ear mushrooms. The noodles are straight and thin, a nice contrast to the large oysters. It’s a…
Vegetarian Ramen in Tokyo Station – T’s Tan Tan Restaurant
I have a new friend in town who is a vegetarian. A while back when we got together for lunch I told her I would love to find a spot that we could have for lunch near her office. It was so frustrating to find someplace that was 100% vegetarian. While Japan has a rich…
Tokyo Ramen Street’s Rokurinsha Tsukemen 六厘舎
Rokurinsha’s tonkotsu tsukemen is one of the city’s most sought after bowl of ramen. Tsukemen is an interesting way to eat ramen if you are not used to dipping noodles in a broth. In Japan we often eat soba, udon or sōmen with a smokey soy dipping sauce, so the concept is not too wild. Unlike the traditional bowl…
Ramen-ya 69’N’ROLL ONE Akasaka – Rock’N’Roll One Ramen CLOSED
So sorry, but a kind reader of the blog has just informed me that this shop is now closed. I will update this post when I hear of news of a new shop opening in central Tokyo. Rock’N’Roll ramen is spelled out with numbers 69, or “roku” in Japanese. So, in Japanese we call…
Harajuku Afuri
“Regular or extra fat?” asked the guy behind the counter when I handed over my ticket from the vending machine for Afuri’s yuzu shio (yuzu and salt) ramen. No brainer. Extra fat (ōi instead of futsū for regular). A few minutes later I could smell the yuzu as he placed the bowl in front of me. You can…
Nihonbashi Sapporoya – Hiyashi Chuka Goma Dare
Tokyo has been unseasonably hot this week. My favorite bowl of cold ramen noodles in the whole city is a great little dive called Sapporoya.The ramen shop happens to be across the street from one of my favorite kaiseki/kappō restaurants, Nihonbashi Yukari. I love that on this narrow street you can find two contrasting meals,…
Kokubunji Menya Rikyu 国分寺 麺屋利休
Menya Rikyū is a ramen shop in our neighborhood. It has been on television as a recommended ramen shop. There is sometimes a line, but not always. A few friends in the area also recommended it. The ramen is very good here. While it’s known for its tsuke-men we tried the shio (salt) ramen. The noodles are…
2013 Best Shio Salt Ramen in Tokyo
Tokyo ramen restaurants are constantly being ranked. Following is a list from a recent survey of the area’s most popular shio (salt) ramen restaurants. I’ve included a link either to the restaurant’s site or to the Tabelog site so you can see photos of the ramen. 1. はじめ Hajime: Kita-ku, Jujo 2-30-9 (opened February, 2012) 2. 金時 Kintoki:…
Tsukemen Momiji in Kokubunji 国分寺 つけ麺 紅葉
Tsukemen Momiji in Kokubunji is a popular shop that almost always has a line outside of its shop. We went recently to the shop 15 minutes before it opened and joined the queue. Most of those in line looked like college students, and all were men. The sign above the shop says that the noodles…
Tsukiji Market Cheap Eats
There are so many great places to grab a cheap and delicious bite at Tsukiji Market. And don’t worry if you can’t stomach raw fish first thing in the morning. Most of these places open early in the morning and close after lunch. Here is a short list of some of my favorites: Tenfusa 天房…
Ivan Ramen
Dreams can come true. In the cold winter months, perhaps the most satisfying dish to be had in Japan is ramen. With almost 9,000 ramen shops in Tokyo, it is not hard to find one, but rare is the one where the noodles are handmade from scratch and where the chef is a graduate of…
Chef Q&A with Ivan Orkin of Ivan Ramen
Ivan Orkin is the talented chef-owner of Ivan Ramen and the recently opened Ivan Ramen Plus. A Culinary Institute of America graduate who has worked with the best including Andre Soltner of Lutece and Bobby Flay. Ivan has been very busy with the opening of his second ramen shop as well as working on what…
Ramen Trends for 2011
The food trends with ramen are interesting this year. Most of it is evident by the recent posts on popular and new shops in Tokyo. To wrap it all up, following are a list of five trends that Shokuraku magazine (February 2011) issue highlights below. I have included the name of some of the restaurants…
2011 Top Ten Best Ramen Restaurants in Tokyo 2/2
The February 2011 issue of Shokuraku magazine lists not only the top ten new ramen shops in Tokyo, but also their top ten ramen shops in the metropolis. As most of this information only appears in Japanese I hope by including it in this blog that more people can come to explore these popular ramen…
Food Sake Tokyo 