Tetsugama （鐵釜) Yokohama
OverviewStyle: Tonkotsu-style ramen from Yokohama
Overall Rating: 7.9/10.0
Location: Yokohama (origin) and Tokyo
Yokohama is a great place to be for Tokyo weekenders. The Toyoko line trains leave almost every 10-15min from Shibuya can take you there in less than half an hour. There are many things to explore. The number one attraction is most likely the Shin-Yokohama ramen museum, which I will cover in more details in my later posts. It is a fun park with decorations to look like the post war period of Japan. Inside there are many shops of famous ramen stores from all over Japan rotating on exhibition every year. It is a wonderland for ramen lovers like me. There is also a separate exhibition on the history of ramen, game shows, and a gift shop where you can buy ramen ready-to-cook pack from these famous recipe to cook at home. 
Another place to check out is Chinatown and Italia Town. Chinatown here is the biggest in Japan, with all various chinese cuisine you can imagine. The most popular here is an all you can eat and all beer you can drink buffet (my friends were saying "sweet!" they should start filing for bankruptcy now coz I'll be drinking A LOT). Italia Town is also nice. Good Italian cuisine (in my opinion) with gift shops in Italian style, gondolas on the canals around the town, and gelato and fireworks at night. When the weather is cool it's quite romantic to have dinner here near the canal with the nice light decorations that they have. It's also a good place to kill time with your significant others or your friends. There is a new town built near the new port called Minato Mirai with state of the art amusement park and a giant wheel to go up and see the scenery at night. There is also a big shopping mall called Akaren renovated from a historical wearhouse. They have an outside skating rink where you can rent skates with flashing lights under your skates! They also have very nice light decorations during Christmas and New Year.
Of course a good day trip must be accompanied with good food. Here's where Tetsugama comes in ;)
Let's not waste any more time.
The Signature Bowl
What you've got to try here is ther special ramen (which I call an "all-in" ramen because they just put pretty much all the ingredients and toppings you can choose in this bowl) for 1000 yen. Let's start with marinated pieces of pork with moderate amount of fat. It's not as fatty as other chachu pork I have eaten, and also come in cube shape and also slices. All in all I feel that the pork is a bit dry in terms of texture, but it might suit you if you are not into fatty things. Immersed in the soup is a generous portion of crispy cabbage, sliced spring onions, bamboo shoots, and various kinds of seaweed. The boiled-eggs are not to be missed. You can choose the eggs as you like it, hard-boiled or soft-boiled. You can also choose the softness of your noodles (think they have 5 different levels, which is too complicated for me given I am usually too hungry to bother lol, so I usually just go with the medium texture). The noodles are hang-pulled and made-fresh everyday. The soup is tonkotsu-base with just a hint of spice, I rate this a bit above average. Now, all these sound very good, but the secret of this is about the way to eat it to bring out the texture. Here's what you should try ;-)
Japan is the wonderland of gadgets, even for food. In front of you, you will see tons of condiments to play with. The first one is a small bowl with peeled garlics inside, and next to it you will see what I called "The Garlic Crusher". What you do with it is straight forward, just put cloves of garlic in there and push down to crush the garlic out of the small holes. I love this invention, and regret that I didn't buy it before leaving Tokyo. With this thing, I wouldn't need to hand chopped/minced my garlic with the knife no more and no leftover garlic smell on my hands for days every time I cook! Put in a little bit of the spicy sesame oil from the little pot to spice it up.
Next up the list is the sesame seed grinders. You should put the noodle or the egg in the spoon with a little bit of soup, grind some sesame just about to cover it, and then put it in your mouth, YUM! Their noodles are special for this. The texture of the noodle just goes so well simmered in the soup and the sesame.
What else is on the menu
They have a whole bunch of different ramens on the menu. You can choose the spicy or the non-spicy tonkotsu soup with various combinations of toppings. They also have tsukemen in the summer to help reduce the heat.They also have a good variety of side dishes. The star here is the pork wonton with negi (sliced spring onion) and their special soy based dressing. Gyoza here was delicious and crispy, you can choose the minced pork filling with or without garlic. Other side dishes are nigiri with mentaiko and chachu with cabbage.
Price Range
Ramen ranges from 880 to 1000 yen. Side dishes range from 300-600 yen.
Ratings
Noodle: 10/10
Freshly made hosomen type with five different textures to your liking.
Soup: 7/10
Spicy or non-spicy tonkotsu base. Sufficient but not spectacular in my opinion.
Toppings: 9/10
Good variety of toppings. But I think the chachu is a bit dry and not so flavorful.
Side dishes: 7/10
The wonton and the gyoza were quite good. The rest of the side dishes were quite average.
Condiments: 10/10
Great selection of condiments. Extra points for the sesame, which successfully brings out the texture of the noodle and the soup.
Atmosphere: 7/10
Very lively, but somewhat tiny. Mostly counter seats with only a few tables.
Service and staff: 7/10
They are pretty lively (they yell enthusiastically everytime there's a new order coming). Good overall, yet again not spectacular.
Menu variety: 8/10
Some good choices for the side dishes and the noodle texture.
Location: 7/10
Various locations in Tokyo and Yokohama, but other than that you won't find them anywhere else.
Value for money: 7/10
Average, I think.
Overall Rating: 7.9/10.0
Location and access Store: Yokohama Store
Address: Yokohama subway Diamond D Area, B1, Yokohama.
Access: 2 minutes walk from JR Yokohama station east exit
Phone: 045-317-2641
Store hour: 10:55 - 22:00 (LO 21:30)
What are we eating next week?
Next week, we're going back to basics. Let's check out Kourakuen (幸楽苑), a chain-store budget ramen from Fukushima prefecture. It has great variety, opens 24 hours, and tastes quite good. The type of set menu you see here will blow you away with the great value for money. Stay tune :)Ippudo （一風堂) Fukuoka
OverviewStyle: Fukuoka-style Tonkotsu ramen
Overall rating: 9.4/10.0
Location: Fukuoka (Origin), Tokyo, and New York City
I used to work late night all the time in Tokyo (and by late, I'm talking midnight or sometimes 2-3am. It was crazy. I looked back and asked myself from time to time how I managed to pull that off on a daily basis. Anywho, my point is that when you work late, you need a midnight snack to keep you sane and/or awake, either way. So one day my colleagues and I decided we were going to take a break and eat something. One of my colleagues is a Brazilian guy who speaks fluent Japanese (crazy, right?). He's 31 years old and likes to play stuff animals with me in the office (yes my colleagues are very cool). He brought us to this ramen shop in a little corner off from Roppongi crossing. He was telling me that this was the best ramen shop in Japan, and I was like, "this is completely overrated". Apparently it wasn't, as I found out later that the owner of this store has won the ramen master title from the famous TV Champion game show, with the original Hakata style all the way from Fukuoka. The ramen is not the kind that would get you hooked on the first try, but it can grow on you. The sophistication of the broth's flavor and the soft, juicy chachu pork remind you that this is no ordinary ramen.
The Signature Bowl
The must try is no doubt the Akamaru ramen (photos above). The tonkotsu soup is boiled from pork bone simmered with Miso and Sake to give that complex flavorful taste. It is added with a trace of roasted sesame oil to give that fragrant smells spurring your appetite. ALWAYS order with boiled eggs and extra scallions. If you're like me, you will also put in a generous amount of fresh grinded sesame seed and crushed garlic to add texture to the soup. It is recommended that you eat it with one special signature condiment, the kimchi sprouts. The kimchi sprouts actually taste quite good I always snack (a lot) on it before my food comes. But lucky me (and lucky you too) it's all you can eat condiments here ;) The noodles are soft and springy, and I like its medium thickness. The "deluxe" chachu pork with a little bit of fat is soaked in a special tare (sauce) until it reaches the perfect softness and the sauce flavor is completely absorbed into the meat.
What else is on the menu
They also have quite a variety of other flavors, such as the shiromaru ramen, with the original Hakata style tonkotsu broth and hosomen noodles. The one pictured here is the karakamen, one of my favourites here. (I feel the torture writing this blog by the way lol, just so you guys know. It makes me hungry). The soup is the same original recipe tonkotsu base added with miso paste blended with various types of spices to bring out the flavor. It is strongly recommended to slowly dissolve the miso into the tonkotsu soup while letting the scallions or the sprouts to simmer in. Then when you put the scallions or the sprouts into your mouth, you will taste the excellent flavor of the broth slowly dissolving into your mouth. Absolutely ecstatic! They also have various nigiris (rice balls), fried rice, and fried gyoza. The fried gyoza here is mini, bite-size, which I thought was cute. The pork fillings inside were somewhat so-so though.
Price range
Ramen ranges from 800-1000, depending on your choice and toppings (a few hundred yen for each topping). Gyoza is about 500 yen (if I remember correctly).
Ratings
Noodle: 10.0/10.0
Hosomen type. Nice texture.
Soup: 10.0/10.0
I would give it an 11.0 out of 10.0 if I can. The flavor, the fragrant, the texture. Absolutely how I like it.
Toppings: 9.0/10.0
All the basic toppings are there and they did it right. But no special toppings or anything.
Side dishes: 8.0/10.0
Too few variety. The fried rice and the gyoza fillings are very so-so.
Condiments: 10.0/10.0
I love the kimchi beansprouts, self-service crushed garlic and grinded sesame.
Atmosphere: 9.0/10.0
Nice atmosphere with some tables apart from counter seats, a bit cramp though. What is funny is that their wallpapers are made with noodle spoons! Who knows where they get the idea from, but well, a little creativity in your life is always a good thing.
Service and staff: 9.0/10.0
Food is fast. Staff is friendly. They're not too whiny when you keep asking them to refill beansprouts, which is nice :)
Menu variety: 10.0/10.0
The ramen variety is quite diversed.
Location: 10.0/10.0
They have a few locations in Tokyo, many branches in Fukuoka, and a branch in NYC. Very convenient.
Value for money: 9.0/10.0
For something of this class, it's not going to be the cheapest around, but again, there's no close substitution to this.
Overall Rating: 9.4/10.0
Location and access
Store: Roppongi store
Address 4-9-11 Roppongi, Minatoku, Tokyo 106-0032
Access 3 min walk from Roppongi crossing. Take subway Hibiya line or Oedo line and exit to the crossing. The store is behind the Vodafone showroom.
Phone 03-5775-7561
Store hour 11.00am - 4.00am. Friday: 11.00am - 5.00am. Sunday: 11.00am - 1.00am
Store: Fukuoka main store
Address 1-13-14 Chuuo-ku, Fukuoka prefecture
Phone 092-771-0880
Store hour Weekdays and Sunday: 11.00am - midnight. Friday, Saturday, and public holidays: 11.00am - 2.00am
Tenkaippin (天下一品) Kyoto
OverviewStyle: Kotteri-style (thick broth gravy-like) ramen
Overall rating: 7.45/10.0
Location: Kyoto (origin), Tokyo, and Hawaii
The Signature Bowl
What you cannot miss when you step foot in this ramen shop is the Kotteri-style ramen. The broth is prepared by boiling many natural ingredients overnight with the star ingredient being "chicken collagen", which gives the soup its rich gravy-like texture and super tasty flavor. The noodles are hand pulled noodle made fresh everyday. They are hosomen type with cut edge and soft texture. The chachu pork is so so to me, but I think it's the soup that makes everything tastes really good. I love having mine with boiled egg and extra spring onions (I absolutely LOVE the spring onion soaked in the Kotteri soup. It's just so tatsy), and mixed in a generous portion of chilli garlic paste into the soup. The chilli garlic paste is perfect for brining out the flavor and add the extra texture to the soup.
What else is on the menu
They also have Assari-style (normal shoyu soup) ramen as well for anyone who's scared of collagen (but for all the girls and boys out there, regardless of what age, you know that collagen helps reduce wrinkles and crow feet, right? :). What I love the most about this place is their side dishes. They have quite good chinese-style fried rice, very good fried chicken and gyoza. I love dipping the crispy fried chicken into the thick broth. It gives a great blend of the crispy fried chiken moistened by the broth texture and the flavor of the soup. Some stores also have mentaiko (marinated roe of pollock) rice and pork with kimchi. Most people usually order the ramen with white rice. I have never tried this (it's just not my style and not my thing. I just kinda know that I'm not gonna be in love with it) but supposedly the way to eat Kotteri-style ramen is to finish everything in the bowl but leave the soup for last. Then, you mix in the white rice into the soup and eat it like a porridge. If you have tried it, let me know what you think. Price range
The price here is very economical, with the basic Kotteri ramen for only 650 yen. Topping is about 100-150 yen each (egg, spring onion, chachu, corn, etc). They have all the combinations for set menu (you can choose your ramen with one or two side dishes) for something aroun 800-1000 yen.
Ratings
Noodle: 7.0/10.0
The usual hosomen type noodles. Nothing to complain but nothing spectacular.
Soup: 8.5/10.0
The collagen is supposedly very healthy for you, and the texture of the broth is one of its kind. Quite tasty flavor, but I have to say it's quite heavy on salty and is weak to present the dimensions from other flavors. A bit too rich to drink it all up.
Toppings: 7.0/10.0
Good variety, but very average taste.
Side dishes: 8.5/10.0
Good variety, and the fried chicken and fried rice are done quite well (although not top-notch).
Condiments: 7.0/10.0
They have chilli paste and chilli garlic paste as well. Once you mix it in to the Kotteri soup, there is nothing like it! But other than that the condiments are pretty standard here.
Atmosphere: 6.5/10.0
Nothing special here. Mostly counter seats with a few tables with somewhat very limited spaces for my legs and my belongings.
Service and staff: 7.0/10.0
The staff is quite friendly, but again, nothing impressive and it's quite average when you think of the great service standard in Japan.
Menu variety: 6.0/10.0
There are pretty much only two types of soup bases, then the rest of the variety is from your own combinations of toppings. It's a bit boring I have to say.
Location: 9.0/10.0
Very convenient with over 300 stores in Japan and also a Hawaii store.
Value for money: 8.0/10.0
The set menu is quite cheap. But to get a satisfied bowl of ramen, I felt like I have to add so many toppings (extra chachu (the normal bowl only comes with two thin pieces of chachu), egg, spring onions) that it ended up become a 900-1000 yen ramen sometimes.
Overall Rating: 7.45/10.0
Location and access
They have over 300 locations over Japan and one store in Hawaii!
Store: Kyoto store
Address Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 94 Shirakawa Maison 1F
Phone 075-722-0955
Store hour 11:00AM - 3:00 AM
Store: Shibuya store
Address Building, 30-3 Udagawa-cho Shibuya-1F Umeyoshi Building
Access 3min walk from JR Shibuya Station
Phone 03-5428-3650
Store hour 11:00AM - 3:00 AM
Store: Hawaii store
Address 617 Kapahulu Avenue Honolulu, HI 96815 (map)
Phone (808) 732-1211
Store hour 11:00 AM - 22:00 PM
Bakudanya （ばくだん屋）Hiroshima
OverviewStyle: Spicy tsukemen and ramen.
Overall rating:
Location: Hiroshima (origin), Tokyo, and Taiwan(!)
Hiroshima and a nearby breath-taking island called Miyajima are not to be missed. Hiroshima is the site where the Americans dropped the A-bomb back in WW II. Today it is an interesting historical site where almost all the constructions that the eyes can see are new and built after the devastating destruction, except for one government building which you can still see remnants of it. There is a museum complex dedicated to documenting the terrible effects of war and nuclear bombs on humanity, which is a must visit. How nuclear and radiation create genetic disorders looks scary enough in the movies, but when you can see what actually happened in real lives, those movies are not even half as terrifying. The museum is called the peace museum, for an obvious reason, because I'm sure anyone with some heart would not be able to drop any more nuclear bombs on our planet if you have seen what has happened.
Other than that, Hiroshima and Miyajima will be a pleasant to visit. It's famous for foliage leaves in autumn. Miyajima is also famous for its floating red tori-gate and the floating temple, where you can walk to the tori-gate when the tide is down. Around the area there are many deers walking around. You can rent a bike to ride around the island. The must-try cuisine in miyajima is the oyster, on top of the ramen of course :)
The Signature Bowl
Something you've got to try is, no doubt, this authentic Hiroshima-style spicy tsukemen. The noodles are hand-pulled made fresh everyday, and served cold. They come in a plate topped with generous portion of boiled cabbage, cucumber, sliced spring onion, and sea weed, and two thick pieces of lean chachu pork (it's not quite fatty as the normal chachu). You can choose the four different portions of noodles, which is perfect for someone who perfers not to eat lots of carbs like me. Do not miss to add the hard-boiled egg topping. The broth is made with the store's secret chilli paste, and you can choose the level of spiciness. Here are the levels on the menu and it was quite funny I'm gonna have to translate it for you guys.
0 : Even babies can handle it1 : For people who can usually handle a bit of spice
2 : Where do we go from here!!??
3 - 5 : For people who likes it spicy
6 - 10 : Sweat sweat sweat! falling from your face
11 - 15: I can see fire coming out of your mouth! (this is my level)
16 -20 : WAGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
The way I like to take it is to dip every single bite into the broth before eating it (egg, vegetables, noodles, pork, everything). When you soaked it in the broth, everything just tastes about a million times better. I also put in extra sesame into the spicy broth, or dipped the noodle in to the spicy broth then sprinkle the sesame over before putting everything into my mouth. The soft noodles soaked in the spicy soup, covered with sesame, really give a good blend of the spice and the extra texture and smell of sesame seeds.
What else is on the menu
I usually order a set lunch of spicy tsukemen with either Onigiri (rice ball wrapped in seaweed), Karaage (Crispy fried chicken), or Gyoza. The fried chicken is very well done here, with only breast meat, no bones, and the fried batter is just about right to give that crispy crunchy feel without being too oily. It came with a pepper-salt dip, but I bypass it and dip the fried chicken into the spicy broth instead, hmmmm!!! I also like the nigiri here, because they use the Korean sylte seaweed for the wrap. It is very crispy and has a fragrant smell of sesame oil. They also have tsekusoba, a few other types of tsukemen, and ramen, which is also a good alternative if you like it hot rather than cold. Available toppings are eggs (3 different boiled levels), bean sprouts, extra vegetables or chachu pork, and seaweed. For dessert, they have almond tofu, which sweet almond taste and soft creamy texture to calm you down after all the spices.Price range
750 - 1000 yen, depending on noodle portion. Side dishes are about 400-500 yen (gyoza, karaage). Toppings 100-300 yen each. Set lunch is a good deal where you can add gyoza or karaage, and onigiri for only 200 yen.
Atmosphere
The shop has mostly counter seats with some tables, but the moment you walk in, there will be something that will definitely catch your eyes. It's the wallpaper made from wishboard! Now you may ask, what the hell is wishboard? Can I eat it? (No...). If you have been to temples in Japan, I'm sure you have seen the big bulletin board where people hang a smaller wooden board with their written wishs on it. It is always fun to read them and look for people you may know (I have successfully and coiincidentally found a board written by my friends in English from the states!). Here at Bakudanya, it's pretty much the same concept, although people pretty much draw or write whatever they want on it, not necessarily wishes. At your table, you will see a few empty wooden boards with color markers, and from here, only your imagination is the limit. They also play contemporary Japanese karaoke songs, which remind me of countless crazy karaoke allnighters with my friends.Ratings
Noodle: 9.0/10.0.
I like the texture overall. They also have a thin soba type noodle if you don't like the hoso-men type.
Soup: 10.0/10.0.
I applaud the secret chilli paste with the sesame, they compliment the taste real well.
Toppings: 10.0/10.0.
Good variety, and they all taste pretty good.
Side dishes: 10.0/10.0.
The taste of the side dishes is just perfect, with good variety to choose from. The fried chicken is really crispy and it goes so well with the spicy dipping.
Condiments: 9.0/10.0.
They have all the right condiments here (shoyu, vinegar, chilli oil) and of course the all you can sprinkle sesame seeds, love it!
Atmosphere: 8.0/10.0.
The usual small place, but I love the fun idea of the wishboard (it keeps you busy when you're waiting for your food).
Service and staff: 9.0/10.0.
It's clean and quick, though there isn't anything I feel exceptionally impressed with.
Menu variety: 8.5/10.0.
The variety of the side dishes is superb, but the noodle menu itself has only about 3 or 4 choices on it. Extra points for the flexibility of the spicy level.
Location: 9.0/10.0.
Only 3 stores in the west of Tokyo, but they do have about 11 stores in Hirosima and also taiwan.
Value for money: 9.0/10.0.
The set lunch is a really good deal, but only two pieces of chachu will not satisfy meat eaters.
Overall Rating
9.2/10.0
Location and Access
Nishi-shinjuku store:
Address 7-7-27 1F Nishi-shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Access 10min walk from JR Shinjuku station
Phone 03-5338-7569
Store hour 11:00 - 23:00
Hiroshima store:
Address Miyauchi Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, 4489-1
Phone 0829-38-4251
Store hour 11:30 - 24:00
Katsumaru (勝丸) Roppongi, Tokyo
OverviewStyle: Chinese-style Tonkotsu soup with freshly-made noodles
Overall rating: 8.4/10.0
Location: Meguro and Roppongi, Tokyo
This week let's start with something good and not easy to miss (in later weeks we'll visit the hidden jems in one of those allies my Japanese friends took me to). This is one of my all-time favorite ramen shops. Not only because it's right in Roppongi Hills, but also because there's this one ramen that I'm LITERALLY addicted to (my friends always joke that they must have put some kind of weed in my bowl every time I went there to make me get addicted). It also stays open until very late. Let's not waste any more time.
The Signature Bowl
My favorite is the cabbage ramen. It's one very unique ramen that you really cannot find
in any other ramen shop out there. The side-kick is from the sweet crisp cabbage quickly stir-fried with cut up Chachu (pork) in the store's signature sauce, Chinese style. The pork (I heard) is speically ordered from Kyushu, with its politically correct ratio of fat and meat to yield the soft-mushy texture and the sweet-salty taste. If you love vegetables in your food, this bowl presents a good alternative to bamboo shoot most shops put in the ramen. The noodle is quite soft and springy and medium-thickness, round-cut, with a unique pale-ish yellow color since they're made from egg-white only. The soup is Tonkotsu (pork bone) based which made the texture thick and white-ish, but what makes the soup taste quite special is the trace of the sauce and the smell of sesame oil used to stir-fry the cabbage that dissolves into the soup. I usually ordered with hard-boiled egg topping (the yolk is still soft and liquidy, but the white egg is hardened. I like it this way better than soft-boiled egg (onsen tamago) which is too soft for me), and sprinkle some chilli powder to spice it up. This bowl is only available in the Roppongi store only (namely the only place on planet earth!). Price is 900yen.What else is on the menu
They have all the traditional styles ramen, with full-piece chachu
pork (quite fatty, but to me that's what makes it good) and all types of soup base you can choose from (Shio=salt base, Shoyu=soy sauce base, and miso base). They also have quite a variety of toppings: hard-boiled eggs, soft-boiled eggs, seaweed, spring onion, bamboo shoot, etc. My faourite topping is the pork wonton. Add it on top of a normal miso ramen and, yum!! You can choose the soup base you want and add any toppings you like. They also have all the above variations as tsuke-men (the noodles and the soup are separated. When you eat it you dipped the noodles into the soup first.), and pretty good fried gyoza. The variety of the side dishes is not too great here, lacking my all time favorite like karaage (deep-fried chicken). Price range
600-1000 yen. Extra toppings on average is about 100 yen each. Gyoza is 300 yen for 3 pieces, 500 yen for 6 pieces.
Atmosphere
This is another reason why Katsumaru is never going to be like other ramen shops you will see in Japan. The shop is decorated in the US 70's style and plays old-style records from the 70's in the background (the only thing missing really is one of those old jukeboxes. I'm sure they take requests too). The seats are mostly counter seats with two small tables. Not too noisy. Around lunch time this place will have salary man standing in lines around the block, but the turnover is high enough that you should be able to get seats within 15-20 minutes. And the fun of course is when you have to buy the ramen tickets from the vending machine.A little history
The shop is about 32 years old (hence the 70's theme). The owner Kotou Masahiko is the runners-up in the TV Champion gameshow in 1999. The shop was also featured in the Osaka Ramen Museum for a limited one-year period in 2002.
Ratings
Noodle: 8.0/10.0.
I like the texture overall, but it lacks the variety. I do prefer to have the option of choosing the softness and the thickness of my noodles (call me picky).
Soup: 10.0/10.0.
The taste blends really well with the pork and the noodles, and not too oily. I always drink it up.
Toppings: 10.0/10.0.
Good variety, and they all taste pretty good.
Side dishes: 7.0/10.0.
The gyoza is good, but nothing spectacular. Lacks variety.
Condiments: 8.5/10.0.
They have all the condiments which go well with their noodle style (chilli oil, chilli powder, vinegar, ginger) but I think they should also have grinded sesame and freshly crushed garlic. It would have been good w/ some of the noodles.
Atmosphere: 8.0/10.0.
A bit small, but cozy. It will not give you the Japanese feel, but extra points for the 70's creativity.
Service and staff: 10.0/10.0.
It's clean, it's fast, and the staff is very nice. They will enthusiastically help you if you have problems with the ticket vending machine and give free toppings to loyal customers (like me :).
Menu variety: 6.0/10.0.
Could have used a little more.
Location: 8.0/10.0.
Both locations are quite convenient, but only two stores on the west side of Tokyo.
Value for money: 8.0/10.0.
A bit on the expensive side, but not something that you can find a substitute.
Overall Rating
8.4/10.0
Location and access
Meguro Store:
Address 2-8-10 Meguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo Meguro Bldg 1F Urban
Access 8 min walk from Meguro station, JR Yamanote line
Phone 03-5434-5320
Store hour 11:00 - 4:00am daily (Last order 3:30am) (yay to all the late nighters out there!)
Roppongi Hills Store:
Address: 6-2-31 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo Roppongi Hills-B1F
Access Walk from Roppongi Station, Hibiya subway traffic 0 min (directly at the Concourse)
Phone 03-3746-2731
Store hour 11:00 ~ 23:00 (Last order 22:30)
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