There are thousands of ramen shops in Tokyo.
According to my homies at Ramen Beast, the estimates vary at around 6,000 to
10,000 as of 2017. Amongst those shops are also thousands of ramenyas that
offer tsukemen or solely dedicated to offering only tsukemen.
Here’s a list of some of the best (and my
personal favourites) tsukemen shops/dishes that Tokyo has to offer:
Tomita
You can’t talk about Tokyo tsukemen without
mentioning the legendary Tomita. Tomita-san’s OG shop in Matsudo has been given
the title “best ramen of the year” in Japan four years in a row by a
prestigious ramen guidebook.
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| Tomita-san |
The thick broth is stewed for 3 days. Leftover
broth from previous days is used in the daily stock. There are four different
broths combined. Tomita’s goal is to make something amazing out of something
worth ¥880.
Tonkotsu, torigara, garlic, onions and ginger
are part of his golden broth. Niboshi is added later on for smoky accent as
well as mackarel. The broth was thick and had layers and layers of flavour with
lots of umami. The shoyu tare, yuzu citrus, pepper and fish powder adds extra
complexity and depth. There’s also menma, naruto, negi and some amazing chashu.
The thick housemade noodles are made out of 4 types of flour. They are on the
bouncy side and bit chewy. One more awesome fact, Tomita-san worked under the
original legendary Taishoken founder and head chef, Mr. Yamagashi. Hands down,
this is my favourite ramen shop in Japan to date.
PS: If you don’t feel like waking up early and
lining up at 7am in the morning, they also have a shop at Mitsui Park Outlet in
Kisarazu.
Address: 〒271-0092
千葉県松戸市松戸１３３９ 高橋ビル
Hours: Open daily 11am to 3pm. Tickets
reservation from 7am.
Nearest station: Matsudo
Fuunji
Fuunji is another famous tsukemen y’all need to
check out. It is located Southwest of Shinjuku station. Minutes before opening
Fuunji’s opening time, there would be queue outside of Miyake-san’s shop. Mr
Miyake is a self taught ramen cook who has been all over the country to try all
the best tsukemen shops. Both tsukemen and ramen offerings are available at the
shop. But most of the customers come here for his signature gyokai chicken
tsukemen.
Like most shops, you buy your tickets at the
vending machine (buttons also have English translation). Once you are seated,
you will be asked for your ticket and whether you want medium or large serving
of noodles.
Their tokusei or special tsukemen (¥1000) is my go to
option, which comes with an eggy type noodles, a medium thick seafood chicken
broth topped with fish powder, pieces of chashu and ajitamago (flavoured soft
boiled egg). The broth coats the noodles a little bit and is quite aromatic. It
is full of umami with a bit of sweetness and some smoky accent.
For leftover soup, there’s dashi available (no
extra cost) to add to your soup and make it more drinkable. Beware, this shop
is quite tiny and there’s a queue of people right behind you as you eat.
Address: 〒151-0053
東京都渋谷区代々木２丁目１４−３ 北斗第一ビル１F
Hours: Mon to Sat 11:30am-3pm, 5pm-9pm. Closed
Sundays
Nearest station: Shinjuku
Niboshi
Tsukemen Miyamoto
If you enjoy the umami from dried baby sardines
called Niboshi and you want to take it to another level in terms of flavour,
then you need to visit Miyamoto in Kamata. As the shop’s name suggest, they
specialise in Niboshi and go all out with it in their tsukemen. This is a
popular shop so I suggest going before opening time.
Miyamoto’s Tokusei Tsukemen (特製極濃煮干しつけ麺, ¥1000) has the most intense fish umami flavour I
have come across. First up, the noodles were insanely good and the chashu was
almost like a peppery ham. The ajitama was perfect and on the sweet side. The
super thick niboshi tonkotsu broth was intense and super heavy on the niboshi
umami but with heaps of onions to cut through the intensity. This is not for
anyone with a low tolerance to salty and heavy umami flavours. But if you like
it intense like me, then you need to try it.
Address: 〒144-0051
東京都大田区西蒲田７丁目８−1
Hours: Open daily 11am-3pm, 6pm-9pm
Nearest station: Kamata
Tetsu
– Shinjuku station shop
Tetsu tsukemen is an institution in Tokyo.
You’ll find many Tetsu shops in Tokyo. The Shinjuku station shop tends to have
shorter lines and is quite convenient to go to.
The tsukemen broth here is quite similar to
Fuunji’s in my opinion. The difference is that I find Tetsu’s broth less sweet
and a tad more on the umami smoky side with a good balance of pork and smoky
seafood flavours. The thick noodles comes hiyamori style which is served
slightly cold. Try the special tsukemen (¥950) if you want to try all the special
toppings.
Address: 〒160-0023
東京都新宿区西新宿１丁目１０ 新宿区西新宿１丁目 南口地下街1号京王モール
Hours: Open daily 10am-11:30pm
Nearest station: Shinjuku
Men
Washo
Tonkotsu gyokai tsukemen can be quite intense.
If you want it on the lighter side, then you should try Men Washo in
Sangenjaya.
Their tonkotsu gyokai tsukemen with ajitama
(¥800) is the go to. The consistency of the broth is much lighter compared to
most tonkotsu gyokai broths but it is still umami packed with smoky and sweet
notes. The noodles are not as thick compared to most noodles used for tsukemen
but is still amazing for capturing the broth with every dip. Even for a medium
sized tsukemen, the serving is quite large.
Address: 2 Chome-6-２ Taishido, Setagaya City, Tokyo 154-0004, Japan
Hours: Tues to Sun 11:30am-2:30pm, 6:30pm-11:00pm,
Monday closed
Nearest station: Sangenjaya
Hayashida
Shinjuku
For a lighter tsukemen option with a convenient
location in Shinjuku (Behind the massive Biqlo store) y’all need to check out
Hayashida. This place is known for their shoyu ramen but their premium special
tsukemen (¥950) is pretty awesome too.
Their thick bouncy noodles, sous vide pork,
ajitama and light chicken shoyu dipping broth (made with Oyama jidori chicken)
was so damn good. The broth had this well-balanced umami, salty and sweet
flavours.
Address: Ramen Hayashida
〒160-0022 Tōkyō-to, Shinjuku City, Shinjuku,
3-chōme−33−１５−1F 新宿ペガサス館
Hours: Open 7 days 11am-4pm, 6pm-10pm
Nearest station: Shinjuku and Shinjuku Sanchome
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