Ramen
Tokyo has every style: shoyu (soy), shio (salt), tonkotsu (pork bone), and tsukemen, where noodles and a concentrated broth are served separately for dipping. The best shops are often tiny, with a ticket machine at the door and counter seating for ten.
Some of my favorites: Ginza Hachigou and Iruca are on the more artisanal, elevated end. Tsukemen Gonokami Seisakusho in Shinjuku is excellent for dipping ramen. Teuchi Ren and Ramenya Shima are other highlights.
Ginza Hachigou
Hachigou is the Ginza Bib Gourmand ramen counter built around a golden duck-and-chicken broth that reads more like consommé than ramen broth. Six seats. One bowl on the menu. The line forms before opening. Pay at the machine, take your seat, get your bowl fast. This is one of the harder seats in Tokyo ramen.
Must order: The signature shoyu chukasoba, Extra noodles if you want the long version, The seasonal limited bowl if it's posted
Iruca Tokyo Roppongi
Iruca is the Roppongi ramen room for shoyu broth with truffles, an open kitchen, and the kind of styling that signals this is not the after-midnight workhorse format. Counter and small tables. Lunch is the easier seat. A useful pick when the area's classic ramen counters have a wall of queue out front.
Must order: The signature shoyu ramen with truffle, Extra noodles if you want the long version, Whatever the seasonal limited bowl is
Tsukemen Gonokami Seisakusho Shinjuku
Gonokami is the Shinjuku tsukemen shop best known for the ebi (shrimp) tsukemen that put the place on the map. Compact counter-only room, fast turnover, machine ordering at the door. The broth is rich and concentrated. The noodles are thick and have the chew that defines the format. Show up off-peak to avoid the line.
Must order: The ebi (shrimp) tsukemen, Extra noodles if you have the appetite, Whatever the seasonal limited bowl is
Teuchi Ren
Teuchi Ren is the Sumida udon counter doing handmade noodles with the chew that defines fresh udon. Small room, focused menu, the kind of pacing that lets the noodle speak. Counter and small tables. Lunch is the easier seat.
Must order: The cold zaru udon to taste the noodle clean, The hot kakeudon for a warmer version, A tempura side if they have it
Rāmenya Shima
Rāmenya Shima is the compact ramen counter where the broth, the noodle, and the room have all been pared down to what matters. The Tabelog rating tells you what the line looks like at lunch. Traditional shoyu or shio depending on the day. Counter seating, beer in the fridge, no music. Show up at open or be ready to queue.
Must order: The shoyu ramen if it's the day's broth, The shio if you want the cleaner cut, A bottle of beer for the table
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