台風ラーメン (Typhoon Ramen in Sengoku)

台風ラーメン



Another shop in my area. I was struck by the big bold signage out front.



Especially the lightning bolt coming out of the bowl.



Inside, this was a really chill place. Get some water, in these artsy designer cups.



And I have no idea what this was about. A bottle keep system with photos of idols?



I notice 祭りラーメン... festival celebration ramen. It was pricey, something like 1200 yen, but I couldn't say no to a festival... could I?



Turns out it was just extra everything. And I don't mean a little extra. It was mounds of pork, handfuls of menma, like 10 slices of nori.



My friend got the tsukemen, which was fairly normal looking.



Actually, this shop should be called Typhoon Tsukemen, not Typhoon Ramen. This is the super thick, super fishy soup that comes standard at almost all Tokyo tsukemen joints.



But seriously though, that's a lot of menma.

The noodles were skinny things, which don't match very well with the thick soup. And the toppings, though plentiful, were all rather dull.

Shop info here.

Yokohama Ya in Yokohama

横浜や



Went to this random Yokohama style shop out in... Yokohama. This one is a big chain, with lots of shops around the Tokyo area. It's traditional Yokohama style, meaning a pungent, porky broth. And of course, 3 pieces of nori seaweed. This style has the tendency to be either really bad, or really good. This one was fine. Nothing much to say. I forgot to take a photo of the storefront. My bad.

Also, I bought a new lens for my camera, which doesn't take very good ramen photos. But it's got a super close up macro ability. So instead of the usual about noodles and soup, let's look at the things we can add to a bowl.



Zasai is pickled mustard plant. It's sour, salty, and spicy. It's kind of stinky. It goes good with beer. I'd put it in a similar class as menma.



Next up is the shops special spicy sauce. Made with 32 secret ingredients. Tasty.



Rajaon? Wikipedia, Google, and my Hong Kong friend can't help me here. Well, it's another spicy sauce.



Ninniku is garlic. Straight up. It makes your breath stink and your garlic delicious. Check out the Chinese characters for garlic! Don't see that too often.



Benishoga. Red ginger. Great in your Yoshinoya beef bowl. Great in your Hakata style ramen. Adds a tangy accent.



Rayu. Spicy oil. Yeah, Yokohama style ramen tastes good kicked up with spice. The oil here is sesame.

With all these options, it can be easy to mess up what is already a pungent bowl. But thats all part of the fun.

初代けいすけ (Shodai Keisuke in Bunkyo)

初代けいすけ



Ramen blogger Nate was taking off for some ramen-less times in the States, and I had just finished a 1400km, 28 hour marathon motorcycle drive from Monbetsu in Hokkaido to Tokyo. We had to hit up something good. How about one of Keisuke's shops. Keisuke is yet another hot chef on the Tokyo ramen scene.



Shodai, as I found out, means "first generation". This Keisuke character, who is classically trained for the French foods, has to date openned 4 different "concept" shops. Turns out I went to his second generation shop, featuring shrimp to the max flavor, way back in my early ramen days. His other concepts include a lobster soup tsukemen and a fargrant soup deal in Tachikawa that looks to be closed.

But let's focus on the burnt miso.



You would certianly have a lot of room for error when you plan on burning garlic and miso to make your food. But the risk is minimized by the fact that hella dudes have made this place one of the top shops in the area.

At first taste we were speechless. The smoky, burnt flavor. The salty miso. The creamy porky goodness. And some sweet notes as well. This is up there folks. Way up there.

One thing I'm digging about Keisuke and his shops, is that they are all next to a University. Shodai is next to Todai. Nidaime is next to Waseda. And looks like Yondaime is next to Toyo. College students aren't known for having the most refined taste. When I was at UCLA, I spent many nights eating at a place dubbed "buck fifty", for it's $1.50 sandwiches. Anyone could open up some cheap eats and do quite well with this demographic. But Keisuke brings the gourmet. I'll be back.

Shop info here