Hello r/ramen. Thank you for your tips on finding good ramen in Tokyo. They really helped. In the end, I ended up using ramen beast app to find a selection of ~5 ramen restaurants in my vicinity, and then used tabelog to get a deeper insight into each one to make the call. Ended up having 4 bowls in 4 days. Below a summary
1. Men Mitsui. Had their chicken shoyu broth with thick noodles. This was amazing. The chef really appeared as someone who found a recipe he enjoys, and now focuses on perfecting it and consistency. Menu only had 3 broths available, but they recommended the shoyu one. The highlights were the broth and the noodles. Noodles are made daily in house, and while you wait for your bowl the chef picks up a portion, and tightly packs them with his hands into a ball, and then flattens them on a counter. The result are noodles or very uneven but delicious shape. It felt like eating a string of gnocchi, and I mean it as a compliment. The broth smelled and tasted a lot like a whole chicken. It felt a bit like smelling a whole roast chicken, once again in the best way possible, and in a not overpowering way. There was also grilled pork belly that the chef grilled on a small flame while cooking the noodles. The Ajitama egg was okay, nothing out of the ordinary. The whole experience was amazing.
2. Fuji Ramen. Here I got a spicy miso ramen. They make the noodles in house as well, and you can see their noodle machine while you sit and eat. The broth was the highlight here. Very rich and tonkotsu like, with a delicious garlic oil. Heaps of pork and cabbage. This is the kind of bowl that got me into ramen in the first place, and it was very nicely put together. Loved it for its delicious familiarity.
3. Yakiago Shio Ramen. This ramen uses dried flying fish in the broth making process (yakiago). I really wanted to try a fish based broth. But to be honest it was too much for both me and my partner. The aftertaste was very fishy and bitter, nearing the acidic. I ate the whole thing, but the noodles and toppings were nothing special, and the broth was probably not for me, as I’m not that used to such strong fishy taste (although note I ate pickled squid in Japan and loved it).
4. Truffle ramen. This one (can’t remember the store name) was made by a chef that used to cook Italian cuisine, and as an Italian, I could tell that. The broth was made with chicken and heaps of vegetables. It ended up being very creamy and thick, with an amazing truffle hint. The noodles resembled a mix between ramen noodles and pasta, and it worked very well for this dish. The ajitama egg was delicious, and the bowl was topped with fresh salad, which we really enjoyed. This bowl was probably the least traditional, but one of our favourites.
Finally, thank you all for the tips! Really helpful 🙂
by MboiTui94