Nanakura/Shimbashi七蔵/新橋

 

Very long line - seems like this might be a bit of a tourist attraction. GOt the smallest portion size for 1000 yen. The mixed vegetables and seafood dish that comes as part of the set I did not get but I regretted it - everyone else did. Not sure what was so special about the noodles themselves as they didn't taste that different from regular somen or thin udon to me - but the duck based broth was outstanding - really rich without being too thick. I could have drank about a gallon of that. Get there at 11:20 when it opens to beat the line.

Google Maps
Bento.com Page

Yoshu Shonin/Shinbashi揚州商人/新橋

 

Updated review Nov 23 2014 - they also now have a Premium Suratanmen, at least at the Shimbashi branch (again with either thick or thin noodles) that was excellent:



A novel concept at a chain ramen shop that is known for constantly bringing out new products: Yoshu Shonin's Su-Ra-Abura-Men. This take on both suratanmen and abura soba together is creative and tasty - it has a very vinegary and peppery taste, just like the regular suratanmen that Yoshu Shonin is rightly famous for and that several people including this page have reviewed in the past. They actually started selling this last July but I just got around to trying it recently. The regular suratanmen is a good balance of the various flavors (necessary for this type of dish), and the su-ra-abura-men tastes just like the full soup dish only with the broth removed, and therefore a even a bit stronger of a taste. The pork is a bit on the scanty side, but the onions and menmas are there in full force. However the more novel (and in my mind most important) addition is that you can now choose whether you want the regular straight thin noodles (like the suratanmen) or now (as with several other Yoshu Shonin dishes) whether you want the new toshomen (刀削麺, thick hand-cut noodles). The variety of the dishes that Yoshu Shonin has means that you can actually treat a visit here like a trip to a real restaurant, have several dishes to share (I also recommend the black vinegar chahan, 黒酢炒飯) and make a real meal out of it. The Shimbashi branch has a couple of tables, but not all branches do.

Shop Home Page
Shop Product Page
Google Maps

Tenkoo/Mita天空/三田

  

Well if you are going to go to this place you might as well go to the Ramen Jiro honten. Lots of space, lots of aluminum. Shio tsukemen. Decently-ranked.

Google Maps
Shop Home Page

Kisurin/Akasaka希須林/赤坂

   

Excellent and really spicy (if you want it to be) dan-dan-men in Akasaka. Varied menu including various dan-dan-men types with breaded tonkotsu (more like paiko actually) and various shiru nashi dishes. It's across Sotobori Dori from Hie Shrine in case you are sightseeing or staying in one of the hotels in the area. Bring a handkerchief and choose your spiciness level (3 is "normal") from the menu on the table. Has other branches in Aoyama and elsewhere that are more like regular Chinese places but are rated better than average. One of those dishes that you find yourself licking the bowl for.

Google Maps
Tabelog Page
Shop Home Page

Ramen Jiro/Shimbashiラーメン二郎/新橋店

   

There used to be a Ramen Jiro in Shimbashi, a long time ago, a place that was converted into a new place called Shimbashi Ramen later, with the same yellow sign. THe old place was fairly nondescript. This new branch, in a different location in the middle of town, has a ticket machine with a video screen, a noodle machine in a separate room and a drink machine right outside. The taste was not so good, it had slightly strange taste that was somewhat different from other Jiro branches. Noodles were thinner and standard. In a new building, about a 10 minutes brisk walk from JR Shimbashi station. But not a very long line.

Google Maps
Tabelog Page

Namidabashi/Shimbashi泪橋/新橋

  

Namida ("tears") bashi is a simple shop tucked in on a street in Shimbashi south of the station near the KFC, advertising "old time natsukashi" shoyu taste. To me it was good but not spectacular. Crowded and sort of hot, however they are very friendly and will guide you to the machine and help you. Make sure to tell them if you don't want the katsuobushi on top. If you go I recommend going after 8 PM in order to be able to order the "mammoth" (マンモス) ramen, with better grilled pork and a tonkotsu base.

Tabelog Page
Google Maps

HuTongSanRaKyo/Roppongi胡同三辣居/六本木

The Chinese word "hutong" (胡同) refers to a kind of narrow neighborhood street in certain Chinese cities such as Beijing. I wasn't able to find a hutong with the above name on any Beijing map (I have a couple from trips to mainland China), but I'm not an expert and my search was by no means exhaustive. This shop HuTongSanRaKyo is actually owned by the Kiwa Group, a large holding company of numerous Chinese and related restaurants in Japan, and they also own the former Dragon Hanten, now dubbed the "HutongSiFang" (胡同四坊) in Ebisu, which is very good and does a very respectable suratanmen and Sichuan pepper chicken among other things. The only thing I had at HuTongSanRaKyo was their suratanmen and it was a different experience - extremely thick and almost sludgy, with a much darker color than other suratanmens, a large amount of black vinegar, that's their standard way of making it. Taste and consistency not dissimilar to the "black vinegar pork" dish seen at many Chinese places. It took so long to cool down (because it is so thick that it retains the heat for so long) that I wasn't able to finish it. The noodles are buried at the bottom and took some effort to excavate to the surface. Too much of an experience for me - although the place filled up very quickly at lunch time and the service was quick and attentive.

Shop Home Page
Google Maps

Kouya/Takanawadai香家/高輪台

 

Decent dan-dan men (with and without broth), some good gyoza, some good side dishes. Very cramped though. Various Chinese Shaoxing wines served from pots. Chain of several shops including one on the Gotanda TOC shop.

Shop Home Page
Google Maps

Umenoya/Shirokanedai梅乃家/白金台

  

Takeoka is a small area of Chiba on the western side of the bay, on 495 South about 15 km south of the outlet for the Aqua Line tunnel. This location has a famous shop called Umenoya that is known for its deep, rich brown broth and its large chunks of grilled pork with chopped onions, overflowing from the bowl. I can't find any evidence that Takeoka ramen (竹岡ラーメン, Google it) is yet a style in and of itself, but it certainly is distinctive enough. So this place in Shirokanedai also follows that style, if you can call it that. I also can't find any evidence that these two shops are related, or that either of them are related to any other similarly-named shop. However I can say that the ramen at the Shirokanedai shop is very good, with very thin but curly noodles, large chunks of pork (that are not quite as grilled as some of the ones in pictures that I have seen of other shops). The broth is why you would come here though - very dark brown and salty with the onions, almost like "super shoyu". So strong the noodles seemed to take on its color. I had the #23 on the machine. Also they use the same chashu on the mini-chashu-donburi. Ticket machine outside facing the street, tissues on the shelf above the chairs.

Also around the alley corner is a new shop called Muri-Tei, the orange building in the first picture above. I have not tried that place yet but it is on the list.

Amasan Blog Page
Google Maps

Setagaya/Shinagawaせたが屋/品川

  

Technically this store is in Takanawa, in Minato-ku, however I list it with the location of Shinagawa above since that is what many people will search on. The Shinatatsu Ramen Street is located just south of JR Shinagawa Station's Takanawa exit (the west-side one). It shares the distinction of being in this location with several other famous shops including Tetsu, Nantsu-Tei and Keisuke. To be honest, while Setagaya's ramen is good, it's not in my opinion up to the standards of the others and the taste was not that strong to me. The noodles are thing and not particularly special. I ordered the menma extra plate too, those were good. I know people go on and on about Setagaya, and it also has a branch in NYC, but I just can't get that enthused about it compared to some of the other places in Tokyo. It is owned by the same chain that owns the shio tsukemen place Hirugao (which just opened a branch on the Tokyo Station Ramen Street).

Shop page
Google Map

Ryoka/Tamachiりょう華/田町

 

Literally only 3 minutes walk from JR Tamachi Station is the little shop Ryoka, situated on a corner right off of the Daiichi Keihin. This is a small shop with a 6-7 seat counter and one table. This place has an excellent Shanghai sui-gyoza and chicken shio broth ramen lunch set for only 800 yen. Very good chicken broth, definitely tasted like it had been simmered for a long time, with a real chicken no less, and also pieces of shredded chicken and horenso (spinach). The gyoza were firm, with a thick wrapper, and full of meat and very flavorful. Other items are the yaki gyoza, which look just like the sui gyoza except they are fried. Other than that the lunch menu there is limited though but don't worry about that, just get the lunch set and enjoy.

Tabelog page
Google Map

Atago/Shinbashi愛宕 ATAGO/新橋

  

Just inside the corner going right from the second light on the KFC street going south from the west exit of JR Shimbashi station is Atago. Hard to spot without the banners out in front, since it is just a black stone storefront with almost no visible sign. The map suggests that it is right on the corner when in fact it is in from the corner by one building. No markings on the building itself, unless they put out the big white banners. They had a wite plyer posted outside that advertised a new mazesoba dish sort of like the one at Miharu - more shoyu and oil than soup shiru. You will get a small dish of extra broth with it, and special ra-yu spicy oil to put into it to jazz it up - instead of the ra-yu I recommend the standard black pepper - and you'll have to be a bit generous with it. They also have a special yuzu soba, yuzu seems to be popular lately for tsukemen flavoring. You can see a picture of the evening menu here. They actually have two menus, one for hiru (lunch) and one for yoru (evening). It was a very smart spicy broth and the pork was pretty good. They also threw in a special goma-tamago, but I couldn't taste anything special over and above regular a regular yude tamago. There were lots of people coming in, the place has a a counter with 9 seats in two sections, and 2-3 tables. They have an English menu that they will come over and offer you. They also have an interesting mirror on the back wall that lets them see what you are doing behind the high counter. It's a dark black, not so well lit interior.

Livedoor Ramen page
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map

Mita Seimen Sho/Mita三田製麺所/三田

 

Mita Seimen is another shop that is capitalizing on the recent boom of tonkotsu gyoukai-based broth places, most famously Rokurinsha and Tetsu. This place just recently opened and everyone working there was very new and seemingly inexperienced, but still hustling quickly. The chashu was cold (but not rolled, instead the cut type sliced from a larger slab, decent fat-to-meat ratio) but actually pretty good after you warmed it up in the broth, which was almost an exact clone of Tetsu's broth in my opinion. A good balance of flavor and texture, not too watery or salty. This is good because this place does not have much of a line (yet) - if you are craving the Tetsu or Rokurinsha broth taste but don't want to wait, then come here. The noodles were very mochi-mochi, well-cooked and a generous portion, you can see the menu here. They even have a white lantern hanging out front just like Rokurinsha. There's a second floor and a dumbwaiter but it wasn't clear if the second floor was open yet when I went. After you finish the counter staff will bring your bill over to the register for you (there is no ticket machine). Even if you are familar with the area around JR Tamachi Station or Tokyo Metro Mita Station, I still recommend that you print out and bring the map as the shop is in an area that has a lot of narrow little streets and is a bit confusing.

Amasan review page
Tabelog page
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map

Shinbashi/Oshima Ramen新橋/大島ラーメン

 

Keiji Oshima's Ramen is a chain of about 10 stores in Japan, mostly in Tokyo (Ginza, Shibuya, Ueno etc.). The Shinbashi store is pretty plain inside and is located in the slightly seedy area east of the athletic track south of JR Shimbashi Station. Their shoyu wonton ramen has a decent Tokyo shio/shoyu taste, with a generous amount of noodles, but the wontons were just flat pieces of noodle with no filling. The menma were the good thick kind but were served cold, like they were just taken from the fridge. The ticket machine is a little hard to understand and has some really damaged buttons. It was a large portion, served very hot, but just based on regular chicken broth, shoyu, some other flavorings, since he put it together right in front of me this was obvious. It wasn't something that was lovingly boiled and fussed over for hours. The grilled pork was decent but thin. They also have 1/2 chahans and kitokuchi gyozas. Not much else to say here, typical street corner ramen shop, they also have tsukemen but nothing else notable on the menu.

Shop home page
Tabelog page
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map

MurasakiYama/Tamachi中華そば むらさき山/田町

  

MurasakiYama has very different noodles from many other ramen shops, at least for tsukemen, they are almost as thin as somen, whiter, and more stiff, sort of like the noodles you typically find in Hakata tokotsu. The broth is soy and fish, with a fair amount of oil floating to the top, and hints of sesame oil and yuzu. It's a very flavorful and rich broth, and well cut not-too-fatty pork that was lighter on one side and darker on the other, almost fillet/loin, separated by a strip of fat that melted nicely into the broth. For ramen, the "purple yukari" in the upper left of the ticket machine screen is the store-recommended one. This place also has the first "fully" electronic ticket machine with a color display and a voice even, that I have ever seen, it welcomes you with an "irrashaimase!" when you approach it. The long counter in this clean and newly opened store (Feb 08) is well-lit and comfortable. The area around JR Tamachi station is not normally known for nightlife or restaurants - it's hidden in the the back streets of Mita near Tamachi station but it is worth it.

Ikemen blog with excellent pics
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map

Iroha/Odaibaいろは/お台場

  
 

Ramen Kokugikan is another one of the "ramen theme parks" in Tokyo. I am going to be trying to go to some more of those over the next few weeks. It is located in the Odaiba Aqua City in Odaiba, one of the larger shopping areas of Tokyo, on the bay in sight of Rainbow Bridge. You can reach Odaiba by the Yurikamome (the monorail) or the Rinkai lines. I presume that this place is supposed to be named after the famous sumo tournament location in eastern Tokyo, the Ryogoku Kokugigan. There were suprisingly few people in there for a Sunday afternoon. Of the stores in the shop (a picture of the shop list on the wall is above, as well as a picture of Rainbow Bridge), I decided to go with Menya Iroha as the Toyama black shoyu "kodawari" ramen with extra pork (5 thick-cut slices, 200 g of pork total) looked quite good - a bit pricey at 1300 yen though. Kodawari = extra special ingredients and attention to detail. All of the shops have small sizes, they feel that perhaps they can get people to try more than one. The noodle portion was quite small, only 200 grams, and that was the omori size that the waiter offered as a free service. The broth was quite rich, a "grilled" or "toasted" taste, but it was a taste that took a second or two to develop in your mouth, the broth was served really hot too. There is a bottle of extra-strong black shoyu on the table and it is worth adding some more of that to your bowl. You can also get ramen kits at this store to take home and make it yourself, those are the black and white boxes above the ticket machine.

Ramen Kokugikan Home Page (English)
Menya Iroha Home Page
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map

Hokuto/Shimbashi北斗/新橋

 

The Hokuto in Shimbashi (it is a chain) is a decent place less than a minute's walk from the west exit of Shimbashi station. There were several girls in white uniforms behind the counter - the long counter, the stools, sort of it feel a bit like a diner. This ramen shop has entrances at both ends and opens up onto two streets, the sign and door look like the picture regardless of what side you come from. Just go in and sit down, don't wait to be seated. There's no ticket machine, take our bill and pay at the register when you leave. I had what appeared to be the house specialty, the goma tofu dan-dan men - the noodles were plain, but the broth was quite good - it was a dan dan style broth with a very light pinkish color, there was some ground meat in the broth and then some slightly spicy miso on top. The broth wasn't really that spicy for dan-dan men. The bowl was a decent portion and the service was extremely fast.

Amasan review page
Metropolis page
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map

Ramen Sabu Rou/Higashi Shinbashiラーメンさぶ郎/東新橋

  

Sabu Rou opens at 12 noon - there were about 8 or 9 people in line already when it opened, it is located in the back of another store called Cafe Coho that has a crown-like sign on the front. Once you enter, oshiboris are on top of the ticket machine, take one along with your glass of water before you sit down. There was a generous portion of noodles and the veggies (almost all moyashis) are yours for the taking as much as you want. The broth has a fairly strong Jiro taste, but a bit watered down, and it tasted like a bit of pepper in it. They also provide a pitcher of hot weaker broth, probably regular broth mixed with noodle water. There are various signs on the wall indicating the proper way to order, along with a sign saying that if you ask for the extra veggie size, you have to pay 500 yen if you don't finish it. However they couldn't do the tsukemen noodles as katame for whatever reason, I have seen this before. The broths are available in miso or shoyu style and both of these can be requested in spicy versions. Noodles can also be requested in thicker or thinner widths.

URach92 review
Ninniku Yasai review
Tabelog review
Diddlefinger Map (English labels)
Google Map