汁なし担担麺と魚介そば sirusi (Sirusi in Sangenjaya, Tokyo)

汁なし担担麺と魚介そば sirusi

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Shops in Tokyo come and go. When a soupless tantanmen spot opened in trending Sangenjaya, and said shop gets the nod from most respected ramen critics, I was in!

Unfortunately for a blogger who blogs eight or nine months late, the ramen here was good. Unfortunate because they have shut down.

Spicy and numbing. They stepped up a regular tantanmen with the addition of ocean umami. Dried fish and kelp vinegar.

Good gyoza as well.

Sorry, folks.

Even had some sansho liquor. Sansho gives those numbing, aromatic, bitter flavors to this kind of food. Spicy ramen with a shot of booze anyone?

Looking at Google Maps, it appears to be a bakery now. Sorry about that.

Well, I still think Lashohan is a stand out choice, so head there if you want a bowl of quality soupless tantanmen.

猪一 離れ (Inoichi Hanare in Kyoto)

麺屋 猪一 離れ

I secretly wanted to hate this one. Inoichi Hanare is one of those shops with more foreign tourists in line than local Japanese. Not to put the palate of the Japanese above that of anyone else, but I'm usually more satisfied with the spot that isn't in the guidebooks unless it is my own. Yes, this place is in the Michelin guide, not that it matters.

But Inoichi is good. It's the kind of beautiful, refined bowl that food writers default to in their guidebooks. The broth, made from dried katsuo, is accentuated by a handful of freshly shaven flakes. The high-quality, meaty menma bamboo shoot. The perfect egg.

They also offer, in tourist-friendly fashion, some kind of wagyu ramen.

Of course, as I waited in the inevitable line, a foreigner showed up, cut in front of a local, and said in English, "It's okay, I was already here." So yeah, the situation in Kyoto is (was) still (circa summer 2019) full of tourists behaving badly.

I heard rumors of Inoichi Hanare opening a shop in Tokyo and possibly overseas.

梅花亭 (Baikatei in Shiga Prefecture)

梅花亭

Baikatei is one of Shiga Prefecture's most celebrated shops. If you narrow your search down to Nagahama on the east side of Lake Biwa, this is the one to hit. I went for the sake kasu ramen (酒かすのらーめん) as recommended by the staff, but found out later they are better known for their snapper dashi ramen (天然鯛だしそば). I can assure you the one I ate was excellent.

Baikatei is a consistent winner on both Tabelog and Ramen Walker's annual grand prix. 

Very, very good. I am a sucker for well-made sake kasu ramen, as the number of places using it as an ingredient can fit on one hand.

The shop's teppan fried rice looked good, so I found room in my extra stomach for an order. Basically, you "cook" the egg yourself. Gyoza, homemade karaage fried chicken, a few kinds of rice bowls, even anindofu dessert are all on the menu. 

Though the shop feels ancient, it has only been open since 2008.

And though I am obviously a fan of this one, I have to warn you that it is kind of a pain to get to. Lake Biwa is cool and all, but it's over an hour to Kyoto and over an hour to Nagoya, making this shop a positive pain for non-locals.