らぁ麺や 汐そば 雫 (Shizuku in Nagoya)

 らぁ麺や 汐そば 雫

Shizuku (雫 means drop) is a popular shiosoba spot about 20 minutes south of Nagoya Station. The ingredients are all-natural, including the 10 different salts used in the tare seasoning. Specialty chicken and dried fish make up the broth. Noodles made in house. Like most premium shio spots, there is a lot of attention to detail.

I always wonder how shops come up with their many-salt blends. Many ramen shops have a blend of three or four, but 10 is quite outstanding.

The shop also serves shoyu, mazesoba, and tantanmen. I'm guessing the tantanmen is very good, though I personally gravitate towards the spicy Japanese version of tantanmen at shops that already have a good shio or shoyu ramen.

Like many good shops, this one is lunch only.

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らぁ麺 飛鶏 (Asuka in Nagoya)

 らぁ麺 飛鶏

Ramen Asuka is a popular chicken ramen shop in Nagoya. I showed up late, about 20 minutes before closing, and they were unfortunately out of the recommended torisoba, but had a few bowls of the creamy paitan left. Still a winning bowl.

Actually, the reason I was late getting to this shop was the one hour walk. They aren't so close to any station, so I figured I would walk north along Route 19, a six-lane major Nagoya road. Walk for a few minutes, then grab a taxi. In Tokyo, there are taxis everywhere. Not so much in Nagoya. Didn't see one for about five kilometers.

Asuka is known as the chicken ramen shops in Aichi Prefecture. They make their broth with only chicken and water.

Chickens of the Nagoya Kochin variety, along with other specialty chicken bones are used. A blend of shoyu is used for the tare seasoning. The master's goal is to have a bowl with the rich aroma of chicken and shoyu as the main feature.

Two kinds of spice are available on the counter. On the left, recommended for the regular bowl. On the right for the paitan. Be careful, it says, not to put too much in.

Like most shops of this caliber, they list their kodawari points.

Three kinds of chashu cooked sous-vide style and homemade noodles using wheat from Hokkaido.

Official Twitter here.

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総本家 好来道場 (Koraidojo in Nagoya)

総本家 好来道場 

Koraidojo is an epic player in the ramen world. Their style, korai-style (好来系) has given way to around 30 shops. An easy distinction is the use of ko (好) in the name. An example is Koyoken. Deep broth made with chicken, pork, and more vegetables (especially root vegetables) than you often find in ramen. It is often called yakuzen ramen (薬膳ラーメン), meaning medicinal. This is actually a misnomer. In the past, they served actual medicinal ramen but stopped. The name stayed on, and many people (myself included) write that Nagoya's korai-style is some kind of health tincture.

Only open for a few lunch hours a day, run by old men and women, I thought this one would be stuffy and serious. But after a few words with the master, he handed me some mikan oranges to take home.

Koraidojo opened in 1959. The name including the word dojo makes sense. Dozens of wannabe ramen masters came here for their training in the ramen ways. There is a list of some of these shops over on this Japanese site.

Be sure to ask for the tororo konbu (トロロ昆布) topping. It's the koraimen option on the menu. As you slurp, the konbu melts into the soup. The whole thing is rich and hearty. Feel free to add some homemade chili oil or ginseng vinegar to change the taste.

The soup's flavor is dominated by the chicken, but subtle hints of umami from mackerel (ムロアジ) make it something special.

A reason the shop is only open three hours is that all of these already strong flavors become too strong if they simmer for a long time.

When I sat down, the staff handed me a stack of origami paper, most likely meant for children. I quickly folded a crane for them. This earned me a few more mikan oranges to take home.

Be sure to check out some of the books full of old Nagoya photos while you wait.

Regarding the menu, in typical Korai-style you can choose matsu, take, and kotobushi. Matsu (松) is the standard, with the take (竹) meaning extra menma topping. From there the kotobuki (寿) has extra pork. The other items are just combinations of these with more noodles.

Looking over this late, I realize that the far left of the menu is koraimen (好来麺). This means you'll get the konbu topping. I also realized that when I asked the staff directly, after placing my order, they upgraded me for free. I seriously love this spot.

Just remember their three hour opening time could be cut short if they run out of soup.

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