Ramen is one of the most popular, famous Japanese food and has gained popularity around the world. Although it is not very a sophisticated food, it attracts millions of people. Ramen seems to be a simple dish at a glance: Just soup, noodles, and toppings are served together in a bowl. However, the way it is prepared is not as simple as it looks.
It usually takes tens of hours to prepare the broth so all the aroma of the stocks goes to the broth. Also, ramen shops do countless experiments to make the best noodles, chashu (tender pork belly), and toppings that make a perfect combination when served in a bowl.
Here, we prepared the best ramen shops in Japan. Shops are listed in several categories based on the type of soup.
We are sorry if we make you hungry!
Tonkotsu Ramen
Tonkotsu ramen is a type of ramen that originated in Fukuoka, a prefecture of the Kyushu area of Japan, and it is known for the significant time it takes to prepare the soup. The broth is based on pork bones and other ingredients and boiled for several hours until all the deliciousness of ingredients is dissolved into the soup. Noodles are typically very thin with a bit hard texture in the center and topped with chashu. The creamy soup with rich pork flavor catches your heart once you have a bite.
1.Hide-chan Ramen
Shuchan Ramen originated in Fukuoka, and opened a new store in a business district, Akasaka.
The ramen doesn’t taste as soggy as it looks, and slices of pork belly are very tasty!
Address: Fukuju Bld. 1F, 2-17-58, Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
2.Rokutsuki
Rokutsuki got the first prize in the 15th “Tokyo Ramen of the Year”!
It is known for its delicious soup made without any chemical condiments, which makes the best of natural taste of ingredients. Despite its high quality, one bowl of ramen costs only 680 yen ($6)!
Address: 2-4-5, Asakusabashi, Taito-ku, Tokyo
3.Tanaka Shoten
Tanaka Shoten ramen contains rich, thick soup with straight thin noodles. When you pick up the noodles, they catch the soup, and your mouth is filled with a wonderful taste.
Several kinds of toppings are provided on the tables so you can put them as much as you want. And those toppings are free!
Address: 2-14-6, Hitotsuya, Adachi-ku, Tokyo
4.Ikki
You will be amazed by Ikki’s tonkotsu soup. It is very thick and rich, but it has neither a too strong porky flavor nor too oily taste.
Don’t forget to put “Karashi Takana” to your ramen. Karashi takana is a type of spicy Japanese pickles made with a leafy vegetable called “takana” and spicy seasonings. It makes your tonkotsu ramen even tastier!
Address: 8-4-5, Shikahama, Adachi-ku, Tokyo
5.Kiraboshi
Kiraboshi has evolved its tonkotsu ramen unique, so it is a bit different from usual tonkotsu ramen that you may find at other ramen shops. Unlike normal tonkotsu ramen, it has rich, thick, darker-brown tonkotsu soup with thick noodles. The soup which takes more than 30 hours to make deserves its fame for “the most with tonkotsu soup in Tokyo.”
The toppings are also unusual for tonkotsu ramen: they include moyashi and cabbage adding to familiar toppings like a boiled egg. nori seaweed, and pork belly.
Address: 3-11-13. Kyonancho, Musashino-shi, Tokyo
Shoyu
Shoyu (soy sauce) ramen has the longest history in all types of ramen in Japan. When people say “ramen,” it generally refers to shoyu ramen. It typically has a clear brown broth made with a chicken and vegetable stock (occasionally pork or beef ) and plenty of soy sauce, making it salty but light on the palate.
Common toppings include marinated bamboo shoots or menma, green onions, nori seaweed, boiled eggs, and pork belly. Black pepper is usually provided for additional toppings at most ramen shops.
6.Ramen Sugimoto
You can find Ramen Sugimoto in the Bib Gourmand section in the Michelin guidebook Tokyo. Also, it was awarded for “Tokyo Ramen of the Year” for four years in a row from 2014.
The ramen looks simple at a glance, but it is full of deliciousness. It contains clear broth and straight noodles with two slices of pork chashu and one slice of chicken chashu, wontons (Chinese dumplings), a flavored boiled egg, menma, and green onions on the top.
Address: 4-2-3, Saginomiya, Nakano-ku, Tokyo
7.Rakkan NISHIAZABU GOLD
Want some refined shoyu ramen?
In the quiet, stylish ramen shop, you can enjoy shoyu ramen based on bonito, kelp, and soy sauce with olive oil added. The toppings include medium-rare chashu, a boiled egg, nori seaweed, menma, and chopped onions. With its beautiful visual and refined taste, the ramen is called “Kohaku,” which means amber.
1-8-12, Nishiazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo
8.Menya Saika
Simple ramen, but it has a lot to please your tongue. The chicken-based soup is made without chemical condiments, and the sophisticated flavors of chicken and soy sauce fill your mouth when you have a sip.
Address: Ground Heim Hoya 1F, 3-11-2, Higashicho, Nishi-Tokyo-shi, Tokyo
9.Homemade Ramen Mugi Nae
The cafe-like ramen shop is renowned for its shoyu ramen with delicious, soft pork chashu. The ramen comes with slices of pork chashu, nori seaweed, wontons, a boiled egg, and green onions. The chashu is medium-rare and thinly sliced and has a soft texture that melts in your mouth.
The broth is based on chicken, which makes the soup light and goes well with the noodles and the toppings.
Address: 6-11-10, Minami-ooi, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo
10.Koukaibou
The concept of Koukaibou ramen is “the ramen that everyone wants every day,” featured with the light shoyu broth based on a seafood stock. The toppings include chashu, menma, nori seaweed, and green onions. You would feel you didn’t have enough when you finish the ramen, but it is the key to bring customers back again to this ramen shop.
Address: 2-12-10, Fukagawa, Koto-ku, Tokyo
Shio
Shio (sea salt) ramen is a type of ramen that has a clear broth based on a chicken and vegetable stock, sea salt-based sauce added. The stock is lightly boiled, which makes the broth light and clear. The toppings vary depending on the shops, but common items include stir-fried vegetables. menma, boiled eggs, green onions, and fish cakes while some are topped with seafood and corn. Shio ramen is commonly eaten in Hakodate, a city of Hokkaido, as a local specialty so-called “Hakodate ramen.”
11.Menya Sho
Menya Sho’s shio ramen has the amazingly clear soup that is light but flavorful. The noodles are straight and thin, which catch a lot of soup. What makes this ramen even more amazing is a thickly sliced pork chashu, which fills your mouth with the beautiful smoky flavor. When you bite into it, it melts in your mouth right away.
Address: 7-22-34, Nishi-shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
12.Menya Kaijin
Menya Kaijin’s shio soup uses different types of fish every day, which makes you enjoy different flavors of the soup every time you come to the shop. The soup is light but rich and has a flavorful seafood taste.
The ramen is topped with a minced shrimp ball, a minced chicken ball, and thinly sliced green onions and ginger.
Address: Sanraku Bld. 2F, 3-35-7, Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
13.Tai Shio Soba Touka
Tai Shio Soba Touka is known for its sophisticated soup and beautiful presentation which evokes the fine Japanese art. The soup is based on seabream, which extracts the deliciousness of the fish and does not have a fishy flavor.
The toppings include chashu, menma, green onions and flower-shaped fu (Japanese wheat gluten), with yuzu (Japanese citrus fruit) sprinkled. When the ramen arrives, the elegant flavors of yuzu and sea bream attract your nose!
Address: Petit Fuji Bld. 8-3, Arakicho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
14.Iki na Issho
Iki na Issho’s ramen is orthodox and simple but offers an amazing taste. The soup is based on a blend of pork, chicken, and seafood and each ingredient are perfectly balanced out. You can enjoy the aroma of the ingredients by carrying the soup with curly noodles. Also, you can customize your ramen with various types of seasonings provided on the table.
Address: Chikuzen Bld. 1F, 1-27-2, Taito, Taito-ku, Tokyo
15.Sanji
Sanji’s ramen is featured with the noodles that consist of 70% of whole wheat, which makes the noodle brown and flavorful. As the noodles have a bit strong taste of flour, the soup is also made to offer you a rich flavor. The soup is based on chicken, with kelp, dried seaweed, and vegetables added.
Address: 3-25-12, Ueno, Taito-ku, Tokyo
Miso
Miso ramen is another major type of ramen along with tonkotsu, shoyu, and shio. Miso paste is a staple seasoning in Japan and used for various kinds of Japanese food.
The broth is based on a pork and vegetable stock with miso paste added, and typically served with stir-fried vegetables, boiled eggs, chashu, and corns. Sometimes butter is topped so it makes the soup mild.
Miso ramen originated in Sapporo, Hokkaido, and spread across the nation after miso ramen was sold in a large food event in Tokyo.
16.Nishiazabu Gogyo
You will be struck with the black soup, and it may look disgusting. But once you have a bite, it will amaze you with the savory, delicious taste of the soup. The secret of the black soup is “kogashi miso (stir-fried miso), which makes the miso more flavorful, and adds the savory taste.
Address: Rojiman Nishiazabu 1F, 1-4-36, Nishiazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo
17.Ooshima
Ooshima were awarded for Tokyo Ramen of the Year for three years in a row with its miso ramen. The soup is thick and rich with slight garlic and ginger flavors, adding a bit of accent to the rich miso soup. The thick, curled noodles catch the soup, and you will enjoy the perfect combination of the rich taste of the soup and the noodles.
Address: 6-7-13, Funabori, Edogawa-ku, Tokyo
18.Matador
Matador was awarded for Rookie of the Year in Tokyo Ramen of the Year in 2014 and widely covered by the media. The ramen comes with rich miso soup, thick noodles, and toppings including roasted beef, beef chashu, grounded beef, boiled egg, and some vegetables.
The soup uses the light-flavored miso so it does not ruin the beef flavor used in the broth. Also, the flavor of the beef toppings goes to the soup as time goes, making the soup more flavorful as you eat. Furthermore, chopped tomato on the bottom adds a bit of sour and fresh taste to the soup!
Address: 43-13, Senju-Asahi cho, Adachi-ku, Tokyo
19.Domiso
Domiso is a popular ramen shop that extends branches to a couple of areas in Tokyo. The ramen comes with the rich miso soup and vegetables, corns, a boiled egg, and a large slice of chashu on top. The noodles are thick and curled, which go well with the creamy miso broth.
Address: 3-4-3, Kyobashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
20.Hanamichi
Hanamichi is in Tokyo Michelin Guide Book and serves a large portion of miso ramen with creamy soup and thick noodles, loaded with stir-fried vegetables and other toppings such as a boiled egg, chashu, and menma.
The soup is based on pork, chicken, and vegetables, later cooked with lard, garlic, and miso, making it rich and creamy but still have a garlicky accent.
Address: 6-23-12, Nogata, Nakano-ku, Tokyo
Chashu-mem
Chashu-men refers to a type of ramen that is loaded with many slices of chashu. The soup is typically soy sauce-based, but it also can be tonkotsu, shio, and miso-based.
Chashu is, in fact, an important part of ramen to impress customers both by the visual and the taste. Ramen shops strive to make the best chashu by experimenting again and again. If you can’t stand only one or two slices of chashu, go for chashu-men!
21.Nikujiru Ramen Kimi
We bet you’ll say “Oh my gosh, what is it?” when your ramen arrives. The thickly sliced chashu are lined up along the edge of the bowl with loads of vegetables. The pork is well-flavored and soft enough to be easily broken down into pieces when you bite into it. It weighs about 400g only by the chashu. Don’t you want to tackle this ramen with mountainous meat?
Address: 2-25-10, Kita-shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo
22.Kita-Otsuka Ramen
The entire surface is covered with slices of chashu. Each slice of chashu is small but has a soft texture and the fat adds a bit of sweetness to it. Underneath the chashu, it has thick curled noodles that catch the light soy sauce-based soup. Also, the spicy ground meat adds the extra flavor to the soup, spicing up the whole ramen.
Address: 1-14-1, Kita-otsuka, Toshima-ku, Tokyo
23.Ramen Manrai
Manrai’s chashu-men is served with a huge pork belly that comes out of the bowl. The thick pork block is so heavy that it is hard to pick up with chopsticks, but it is tender and flavorful.
The soup is soy sauce-based and light, which doesn’t make the ramen heavy and it goes well with the chashu.
Address:1-4-10, Nishi-shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
24.Ramen Furin-kazan
Ramen Furin-kazan is particular about its chashu, being proud of the biggest chashu in Kanto area and three different kinds of chashu. “Deka-deka Chashu-men” comes with a slice of chashu that is large enough to cover the entire surface. The chashu is a bit crispy and savory on the outside but soft on the inside.
Address: 1267-1, Koinaba, Isehara-shi, Kanagawa
25.Kiboken
Kiboken’s chashu-men features the dark brown soup and thinly sliced chashu that is presented around the edge of the bowl. The soup is soy sauce-based but doesn’t taste strong despite the visual, and you can feel the nice aroma of chicken used for the soup base.
The chashu is soft enough to melt in your mouth and goes very well with the soup. Make sure to try chashu both by itself and by dipping in the soup!
Address: Marunaka Bld., 3-7-3, Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo
Tsukemen
Tsukemen refers to a style of ramen that the soup and the noodles are served in a different bowl, and you dip the noodles in the soup when you eat. The noodles are typically thick and the soup is prepared rich and concentrated compared to regular ramen so the noodles catch it well. After finishing the noodles, some ramen shops offer additional broth to dilute the soup so customers can enjoy it until the end.
The toppings range from shop to shop, but familiar items are the same as normal ramen such as chashu, menma, nori seaweed, and boiled eggs. The toppings are either served in the soup bowl or the noodle bowl, sometimes garnished with wasabi or yuzu.
26.Menya Warito
Warito offers different types of tsukemen for lunch and dinner. During the lunchtime, it serves tsukemen whose soup is based on pork and noodles are thick, while during the dinner time the soup is chicken-based and the noodles are a bit thinner than those of the lunchtime.
Warito is worth trying both daytime and nighttime!
Address: 3-7-10, Aobadai, Meguro-ku, Tokyo
27.Michi
Michi’s tsukemen comes with the creamy seafood and pork-based soup, thick noodles, and toppings including nori seaweed, boiled eggs, chashu, chicken, and minced-chicken balls. If you want to make changes in the subtle sweet-flavored soup, make use of seasonings that come along with ramen.
Address: 5-28-17, Kameari, Katsushika-ku, Tokyo
28.Menya Ittou
Menya Ittou is widely known and lots of people from around the world come to this ramen shop. Its most popular menu is tsukemen which comes with rich seafood-based soup and noodles topped with green onions, menma, minced chicken balls, a boiled egg, and three different kinds of chashu.
The chicken balls contain yuzu, adding the elegant fruity aroma to them. Also, the soup has a rich and thick texture that can go very well with the thick straight noodles. According to the gourmet review website, “you can never forget this ramen once you had one!”
Address: 1-4-17, Higashi-shinkoiwa, Katsushika-ku, Tokyo
29.Gonokami Seisakusho
Gonokami Seisakusho is a famous ramen shop that serves unusual tsukemen and expands its branches in overseas including Korea, Taiwan, Spain, and so on. As the signboard has a large shrimp decoration, this ramen shop offers tsukemen whose broth is based on the shrimp. The rich shrimp flavor is concentrated in the soup, but it doesn’t taste fishy at all.
The menu also has “Tomato shrimp tsukemen,” which includes the shrimp-based soup with tomatoes and the noodles topped with basil paste, making it Italian-ish tsukemen. It will be interesting to try Italianized ramen!
Address: 5-33-16, Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
30.Fu-unji
Fu-unji serves tsukemen that comes with delicious soup. The soup is based on the seafood and chicken stock and takes more than 35 hours to perfectly prepare, which fills your mouth with rich flavors of seafood and chicken. The savory fish powder is topped on the soup, which adds extra flavor to the soup.
Address: Hokuto Daiichi Bld. 1F, 2-14-3, Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Hot! Ramen
Noodles and toppings are floating on the RED soup...that’s “hot” ramen. In Japanese, this type of ramen is called “Geki-kara ramen.” “Geki” means “super,” and “Kara” means “spicy” or “hot.”
Regular ramen such as tonkotsu or shoyu is popular, of course, but hot ramen is also a popular kind in Japan. Hot ramen is not just hot, but it has rich flavor of stocks used for the broth. In most ramen shops, customers can adjust the level of hotness. They can start from the least hot and go to the next level.
Let’s go into the sea of red soup!
31.Moko Tanmen Nakamoto
Moko Tanmen Nakamoto is a popular ramen chain shop that has several branches around Tokyo. It mainly serves “Tanmen,” a Tokyo style ramen served with salty broth and sauteed vegetables. Nakamoto’s hot tanmen is available in supermarkets and convenience stores in the cup noodle version.
As Nakamoto offers various types of tanmen in different hot levels, you can try this ramen shop whether you be a fan of spicy food or not. Its signature “Moko tanmen” is adorned with “spicy mapo tofu” along with sauteed vegetables, which adds richness to the ramen and makes a perfect combination with the soup. Nakamoto is the best place to your first try on hot ramen.
Address (Kami-itabashi shop): Asaka Bld. 201m 4-33-3, Tokiwadai, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo
32.Soryu Togyokudo
This hot ramen definitely gives you a shock...only the smell knocks you out. A mountain of chili peppers is floating on the extremely red soup.
You feel the sweat running down from the forehead right after you have the first bite. It is so spicy that you would feel pain on your tongue, but it does have rich flavors of the broth.
For those who would never ever like to try this ramen, don’t worry. Togyokudo offers various menus that aren’t spicy at all. A Hollywood movie star, Keanu Reeves has come to this ramen shop a couple of times, and he loves its tan-tan men!
Address:7-17-16, Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
33.Geki-atsu! Menzo
This ramen shop serves hot ramen loaded with lots of toppings including thickly sliced chashu, menma, vegetables, nori seaweed, and tofu. The hot level ranges from “1-kara (hot)” to “3-kara,” and those who have ever finished “3-kara” can order the hottest one, “10-kara.”
Address: 2-3-14, Tokumaru, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo
34.Hoozuki
Hoozuki specializes in “Tan-tan men,” a type of ramen that has curled noodles in spicy, creamy miso-based soup topped with ground meat, leafy vegetables, and sesame. Hoozuki’s tan-tan men has four different levels of hotness.
It is spicy, but the shrimp mixed in the noodles makes the ramen flavorful and delicious. Also, creaminess of the soup gets the hotness mild.
Address: 5-52-1, Nakano, Nakano-ku, Tokyo
35.Yamara
Yamara’s has fame in its very hot ramen. The hot level ranges from “American,” “Normal,” “5-kara,” to “10-kara,” but the least level still has a very spicy look.
The thick soup is made of a mixed stock of meat and vegetables and topped with diced chashu, chopped Chinese chive, and bean sprouts. The noodles, toppings, and soup go along perfectly in this ramen!
2-29-3, Nihonbashi Ningyo-cho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
Unusual Ramen
There plenty of ramen shops that invented unusual but delicious ramen to offer customers unique, fun ramen experiences. From blue-colored soup, lemons covering the noodles, to mozzarella cheese topped, their creativity goes on. Which cool ramen do you want to try?
36.Kipposhi
The stylish cafe-like ramen shop “Kipposhi” serves unusual ramen that you may have never seen. That’s the signature of this shop, “Clear Chicken Soup Blue.” It literally has the blue-colored soup based on chicken, topped with chicken chashu and a boiled egg.
It doesn’t look tasty at all, but has a rich flavor of chicken in the broth and goes well with thin, straight noodles. This blue ramen won’t make you regret!
Address: 3-1-17, Azumabashi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo
37.Linsuzu Shokudo
Linsuzu Shokudo is renowned for the lemon ramen and widely covered by the media. Sliced lemon covers the surface and underneath there awaits thin noodles and delicious soup. The soup is made by blending soy sauce-based broth, chicken-based broth, and vegetable-based broth, creating a distinctive flavor. The sour taste of lemon perfectly matches the soup!
Their another specialty is the chicken tempura. It is served freshly-fried and hot, having a crispy texture on the outside and juicy texture on the inside. It goes very well with the ramen, so be sure to order the chicken tempura along with lemon ramen!
Address: 5-7-3, Oshima, Toshima-ku, Tokyo
38.Due Italian
What do you think would happen when Italian food is incorporated into ramen?
Well, it creates an elegant food that consists of shio ramen decorated with mozzarella cheese, prosciutto, and a boiled egg. The noodles have a spaghetti-like texture and taste perfect when eaten with melted mozzarella cheese. It will never go wrong with the combination of noodles, creamy cheese, and salty soup, won’t it?
Due Italian is the first ramen shop that appeared on the Tokyo Michelin Guide Book. That shows how much this ramen shop is unique and special!
Address:4-5-11, Kudanshita-minami, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
39.Kachi Kachi Yama
Kachi Kachi Yama’s specialty is “Yukimi ramen,” which comes with a mountainous decoration of melange atop the noodles with fried Chinese dumplings. It may take you a minute to think of how to tackle with it.
Address: 3-10-2, Maruyama cho, Toyota-shi, Aichi
40.Aroma
Aroma is actually a cafe situated in Tokyo, but it offers unique ramen that uses coffee for the soup and noodles. The ramen is served either hot or chilled topped with unusual ingredients including fish cake, sausage, kiwi, bacon, smoked cheese, boiled eggs, ice cream, and coffee beans. Each topping is placed so it looks like a face.
What does it taste like? Is it delicious?
It depends on the person. Some people like it, but others don’t. How about you?
2-19-16, Takara cho, Katsushika-ku, Tokyo
41.Men Baka Ichidai
Whoaaaa! Look at this fire!
Men Baka Ichidai is a ramen shop in Kyoto that is famous for its crazy performance. Surprisingly, most customers are tourists from overseas!
The only menu it offers is “Negi (green onions) ramen,” which contains light soy sauce-based soup and noodles loaded with green onions and chashu. What’s special about this ramen is a performance which is done right before served to the customers.
After putting all the toppings, the customers are told to put the water glass under the table and remain seated with both hands folded at the back. Then… you will see it!
This performance will definitely be the unforgettable experience. Make sure to have this ramen shop in your plans when traveling in Japan!
Address: 757-2, Minami-iseya cho, Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
42.Soranoiro
If you would like a healthy option, Soranoiro is the best choice. This ramen shop has five locations in total, four of which are in Tokyo and one of which is in Nagoya. Aside from regular ramen, it offers vegetarian and vegan options, which are called “Veggie-soba” and “Vegan veggie-soba,” respectively.
The soup is based on the vegetable broth using cabbage, carrots and other vegetables and red bell peppers are mixed with the noodle, adding the red color to them. On the top, it has loads of vegetables including cabbage, carrots, broccoli, and so on. Different shops serve different menus, so it will be fun to try several locations!
Address (Hirakawa cho store): Blue Bld. 1B, 1-3-10, Hirakawa cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
43.Toroke no Daidokoro (Kitchen Troquet)
Toroke no Daidokoro is a bistro that serves Teishoku-style menus and tomato ramen. It has more than 15 kinds of tomato ramen including regular menus and seasonal specialties.
Tomato ramen looks like a mix of ramen and pasta, consisting of tomato-based soup and straight, thin noodles, topped with meat, cheese, and basil sauce. As the soup contains three whole tomatoes, you can get beauty benefits from this ramen!
Address: Excel Nakameguro, 1-4-3, Kami-meguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo
Which ramen would you like to try? Please tell us in the comments!
Also, share this delicious food porn with your friends!