博多麺房 赤のれん (Akanoren Roppongi)

If there is one thing I love more than ramen it is art. I like to visit the Mori Art Museum when I can. This past weekend I attended an exhibit by Dinh Q. Le, a Vietnamese artist, and it nearly made me cry because it was so incredibly moving. These pictures do not do it justice as the most moving peices were video installations:

A perfect Saturday always includes ramen, but where to go in a neighborhood like Roppongi, known for night clubs, and home to many ramen chains as well as independent shops? Because it is known as one of the oldest tonkostsu establishments in Japan I decided to go for Akanoren, and this location has been around since the late 70s. You know how we get excited by expectations and reputations? Well I was pretty hyped to try Akanoren:

I ordered the tonkotsu and the gyoza. Let's start with the gyoza, it was really quite delicate with a slightly sweet flavor. Of course after being in some unbeatable Chinese and gyoza places, these don't really compare. Onto the ramen, which had a lot going for it visually. You might remember how that turned out last time! Visually amazing, orally unsatisfying. Perhaps the meat had been sitting around since the late 70's because it was neither fresh nor delicious. In fact it was quite dry! The egg was overcooked and badly cooked at that (I didn't even take a picture of the inside for fear it might offend you as it did me). Really the only thing going for it was the base, which was light and flavorful. Their customer service was also sorely lacking. Overall Akanoren gets a 3/5. It's in a good location near the Mori and they do have an English menu. However, next time I go see some fantastic art in Roppongi I will not return, but go on a search for artful ramen instead.

Here is a link to the tabelog, official site annnnd a map!

ラーメン 末廣家 (Ramen Matsu Hiroshi Hakuraku)

My apologies, long time, no noodle. I went on a hiatus during the summer and spent most of my time in Vietnam eating as much Pho as possible. But before I left I visited Hakuraku to try ラーメン 末廣家 (Ramen Matsu Hiroshi). Hakuraku is a nice little station packed with izakayas and of course ramen. If you are in the Yokohama area and looking for an authentic and interesting place to drink go to Hakuraku!

It was a busy place and to me that usually signifies popularity. I ordered the チャーシューメン (Chāshūmen) with an egg topping, but an enthusiastic staff member also convinced me to order 釜焼きチャーシューめし (Chāshūmeishi Rice). Or maybe it wasn't him that convinced me but seeing a mountain of stuff, topped with mayonnaise over rice! Who knows? Either way I really appreciated his enthusiasm, because all too often I am in chain ramen stores where the staff just seems half alive. My ramen and mountain of mayo arrived with a smile:

I really liked the base, which had a creamy fatty texture and was pretty perfect, but a major detractor for me was that both the meat and the egg were cold. Though both were cooked perfectly and I think some people might prefer them being served that way. The stand out was not the ramen, but their Chāshūmeishi rice!! Wow, it was kind of like a ham salad on top of rice, and thought it was a great optional side that I have not seen in any other shop. There were a lot of condiments available as well, so despite my preference for warm toppings I think Ramen Matsu Hiroshi of Hakuraku gets a 4/5. It helps that the staff was super excited to serve me and I felt like I could return (and probably will to get my hands on the Chāshūmeishi rice).

Here is a link to the tabelog and as always a map! Expect regular updates all of September. ;)

塩らー麺 本丸亭 横浜元町店 (Honmarutei Motomachi)

Motomachi-Chūkagai station is home not only to Yokohama's China Town, but also to an upscale shopping area called Motomachi Shopping Street. The street is lined with European, American, and Japanese designer shops, as well as adorable cafes. However if you decide to overlook the Tommy Hilfiger and take a turn, a few minutes away is Honmarutei of Motomachi:

This shop is the perfect blend of boutique and traditional because it offers a comfortable atmosphere, lovely interior and the most important part: delicious ramen! There is no machine inside, but they do supply a picture booklet of the menu options available. Amidst many cacti we sat on cushy stools to have our orders taken. I got the regular Shio (salt) and I added an egg. If you have been reading along so far you probably noticed that I love eggs almost as much as ramen and I couldn't resist the adorable sign. I also ordered the ミニマンマ丼 (Minimanma bowl) with my ramen because it was reviewed favorably on tabelog:

Noticeable right away was a chrysanthemum topping and a delicate shio base with minced negi. The pork was a thickly sliced rolled loin. This bowl is clean minimalism at its best. First I tried the Minimanma bowl, which I enjoyed because the kimichi was a nice level of spice and what I believed to be pork belly was a perfect bite of crispy rendered fat! Then I got into my bowl. The pork was almost perfect, but somehow not as good as the Minimanma bowl pork. A real standout was the chrysanthemum. It gave a unique, almost citrus taste to a  subdued shio base. I loved the texture of the noodles, which were thick and had a nice crinkle to them. I felt that the egg was a little overcooked. Because of this I give Honmarutei a 4/5, but it is definitely worth a visit. I suggest you also visit the coffee ice cream place a few doors down after you finish. Motomachi Shopping Street is a great place for a date or to bring an out of towner, and Honmarutei should be a stop on your itinerary. They also have locations near Yokohama station and Atsugi.

Links Links Links, tabelog, their site, and a map!

武蔵家 日吉店 (Musashiya Hiyoshi)

After being at a few upscale places I decided that I wanted to get back to the basics. When I moved to Hiyoshi a few months ago I scoped out many of the ramen shops, trying to see which were more popular than others based on the number of people patiently queuing outside. I decided on 武蔵家 日吉店 (Musashiya Hiyoshi) because it is ALWAYS crowded. Fortunately I went at a strange time and I got a seat right away, but after I sat down I noticed that their waiting area was quickly filling up. Musashiya is decorated with polaroids of many happy customers and has quite a comfortable atmosphere:

In fact the staff were some of the most friendly that I have ever met. I want to blame fatigue on not seeing the giant signs above the machine that explain you can pick the cook of your noodle and the type of soup (thin, regular, oliy & fatty, regular, thin) in English no less! But, I didn't see them and a friendly staff member helped guide me through the process. I chose noodles cooked regular, and regular for both options on the base. He also explained that I could get rice with my ramen and I noticed that the students next to me had rice and it was in never ending supply. I enjoy the idea of a never ending rice bowl!!

The ramen itself was super tasty, especially the egg, which was cooked at a perfect soft boil. Its pork was nicely cooked and very tender (I think I noticed them cutting it to order). I like it when spinach is a factor and the selection of condiments was really good. Never ending nori? Don't mind if I do! Garlic, ginger, hot pepper paste, sesame, check! The noodles were perfectly cooked and satisfied my predilection towards thickness. The base was good, but a little too salty. I think I want to go back and try the thin base to see if there is less salt, but the same amount of meaty flavor (EDIT, I totally just went back and ordered light and thin, which was less salty, but maintained flavor). I also liked that there was water available at a tap and of course had my fill of rice, though you don't really even need it! When in Rome, or this case Musashiya! When I finished, the same helpful staff member gave me a choice of lollipop, which was a nice touch but also made me feel like one of the students I was sitting next too. Overall, because I found the base too salty, Musashiya gets a 4/5 (though maybe a 5 if I had ordered thin and light base). However, I will return to try the thinner base because the customer service was really top notch as well as everything else.

Here is a link to the tabelog for the Hiyoshi location and of course a map!

AFURI 中目黒 (Nakameguro)

I have walked by AFURI quite a few times during visits to Nakameguro, a popular area for strolling and shopping. Maybe I'm really an old man inside, because the ramen shops that I enjoy are usually small, slightly crowded and full of old men and/or teenage boys. AFURI is anything but that. It is clean, modern, and as its sign boasts "fine ramen":

AFURI is adorned with bare bulbs and an expansive natural wood counter encloses a spotless stainless steel kitchen. This is the kind of place that looks like it belongs in Manhattan, or somewhere that isn't exactly Tokyo. As I have learned, this kind of shop attracts a more varied clientele and I observed fashionable young ladies as well as mother and son. Your general salary man ramen shop this is not. However, this atmosphere encouraged me to use my new camera and try interesting angles to capture their ramen in all of its beauty:

Beautiful right? Of course beauty does not make the bowl. I ordered the yuzu ramen. For those unfamiliar yuzu is a citrus fruit popular in Japan that has a sweeter lemon taste. It is really lovely.
The yuzu was the real standout of this bowl, elevating a simple, light base. Apparently this is their signature dish and have been doing it from their flagship in Ebisu for over 10 years. AFURI uses a nice grainy tonkotsu style noodle and I was excited to see some mizuna (a japanese mustard green) as a topping. Delicate as it was I should not have been surprised that there was only one half of an egg and a very thin slice of chashu. I can understand aesthetic, but I think this was all just far too delicate for me! Despite the hip atmosphere and great yuzu taste I'll have to give AFURI a 4/5. There was just something lacking that I can't put my finger on. Maybe I truly am an old man, more comfortable in a back alley shop than anywhere else!

Links to the tabelog, Time Out Tokyo's review of their flagship in Ebisu, and a map to their shop in Nakameguro!

太陽のトマト麺Next サンシャインシティ (Taiyo Tomatomen Sunshine City)

Along with Japan's myriad of ramen shops are its malls. Yes, I said malls. It seems as if every station of substance has a mall attached to it or near it and the larger the station the more malls it has to offer. Ikebukuro is no exception. Many people say that Ikebukuro is kind of like an undervitsited area of Tokyo, but it is also known as female otaku hotspot, and hosts one of my all-time favorite malls, Sunshine City, which houses two sections of mazelike shopping adventures. Recently a friend of mine wanted to check out Taiyo Tomatomen in Sunshine City. Tomato...men? I had no idea what that meant because most traditional ramen is made with meat stock. My curiosity piqued, I went with my friend to Taiyo Tomatomen before shopping at some of my favorite places in Sunshine city. Taiyo Tomatomen is a boutique ramen chain. There aren't many if any salarymen hunched over on stools to slurp ramen here:

Despite the decoration cans of tomatoes and wine bottles in a wooden crate, the prices remained standard. With a set you can choose one out of six kinds of ramen (one of them being pesto), and if you so desire you may also add gyoza and rice. I decided on the cheese tomatomen with a full set of gyoza and rice. We ordered from the laminated menu outside of a fairly busy lunch rush. Once seated in a comfortable diner like booth I noticed that this was indeed, no ordinary ramen shop. There were families and teenage girls along with people on dates. Boutique for sure! The perks of such a place are excellent customer service, and a whole pitcher of delicious jasmine tea.



I think part of the appeal of this kind of shop is also that the stock and ingredients are considered healthier. The stock is a tomato and chicken stock, and it is also served with chicken instead of pork. I think the clientele also reflect Sunshine City's normal patrons.

We didn't have to wait long for our ramen to be served and I was excited to have a new flavor of ramen:

The closest thing I can compare this to is chicken cacciatore with wavy capellini noodles (if there are such a thing). That's not bad, but the flavor profile screams Italian. The cheese also melted really quickly, so it wasn't easy to evenly distribute it. I kind of wished there had been some oregano and red pepper flakes on the table. Overall I think that this was very tasty, but very strange. I am still not sure what to make of it. Taiyo Tomatomen is really good for a date before or after shopping at Sunshine City, but it might make you crave Italian food! Overall a 3.5/5 because of my confused taste buds and the sticky cheese.

This is a chain and all of their shops can be found on their official site! Here's the map!!

つけめん あびすけ 日吉店 (Tsukemen Abisuke Hiyoshi)

This is rated as the number one ramen place in Hiyoshi according to Tabelog, but before I knew that a friend of mine suggested going there. Going in I had no idea what to expect. My friend had described a tsukemen place where you cook your own soup and one of the options was curry. It was a curious description so before I had to run to my アルバイト last week I decided to check it out. This was a strategic move because Abisuke is usually packed when I walk by. The machine had many options, but I decided that I wanted to try the black sesame and I added an egg from the extra toppings available.

I took my seat and the only staff member working seemed a little annoyed at trying to explain what I should do with the hotplate in front of me. I assured him I was ok in the best Japanese that I could muster and turned on my hotplate when he brought my soup out. Initially I was not impressed by the cold soup, but as it cooked I was getting more interested. Stirring the bubbling soup I noted that the white chunks on top dissolved. I beleive they were corn starch because as they melted the soup became more viscous. Then my noodles arrived. They looked way more like udon than any tsukemen I have ever seen, but because of their thickness they held the soup quite well:

The black sesame had a nice salty flavor and, after adding pepper flakes, a desired level of spice. It was a very rich taste, wtih a texture you might expect from ground black sesame. Because of the thickness it was perfect for tsukemen, as it would have been way too heavy for any kind of "normal" ramen. What impressed me most was the egg! WOW! It was perfectly preseasoned and soft boiled, so the yolk ran out after I busted it open. They are probably able to keep them cold too because of the way the soup is served and individually cooked. INGENIOUS! Abisuke's pork wasn't all that impressive and I felt they could have done more with it. It was just a thick slab of meat swimming in the soup. They have a point card system and I plan on coming back to try the curry flavor. Overall because of the unimpressive pork and sort of unfriendly staff (I want to go back when it's more busy because this is based on only one guy helping me) Abisuke of Hiyoshi gets 4/5. There are other locations as well in Shinjuku, Sumiyoshi, and Higashiyamata. 

Links to tabelog, their official site, and a map!