Category: Ramen

Dave and I rode the train up to Shin-Yokohama to visit the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum. The trip took less than an hour and only two trains. The museum opened at 10:30 and we arrived by 11:00. We have learned, when in Japan, always be early! 

The entrance to the museum is at ground level. The museum is marked by a giant bowl of ramen, of course! 

The two floors of the actual museum are in the basement. At the museum, there are a variety of ramen from different regions in Japan. There are a total of nine different ramen restaurants. Does the numbering of this sign bother you? Haha

The museum is decorated to create the feeling of Japan of yesterday. 

We were given an English pamphlet to help us learn about the different types. Notice there is no order to how the numbers are assigned to the ramen. 

We selected the number 9 ramen restaurant. Here is the description. 

And pictures. Dave picked the salt based ramen.

And I selected the soy sauce based ramen. 

Nom nom nom… 

Happiness is a giant bowl of ramen. 

Apparently, there was an option to buy a smaller quantity just for tasting. We were ordering using a machine and a lot was lost in translation. In the end, it was just as well because, the lines were ridiculously long by the time we finished eating. This was the line for where we just finished eating! 

I took this picture from the balcony of the second floor (B1) looking down to the first basement floor (B2). So many people standing in orderly lines! 

It was a fun experience. We went on a Sunday and expected crowds. Honestly, it wasn’t “the best ramen” I’ve had since living here. However, it would be a good opportunity to taste ramen from another region. When you visit and want to go, I will suggest we try the Okinawa ramen (#5). Another positive, we can return later on the same day because re-entry is allowed! 

Ramen is a Japanese staple dish. It is served in a large bowl with copious amounts of thin curly noodles and a pork or fish broth. The dish includes toppings such as sliced pork (chashu), dried seaweed (nori), a boiled egg (tamago), marinated bamboo shoots (menma), processed fish cakes (kamaboko) and green onions (negi). A fun note about the fish cakes, sometimes they are presented as a white circle with frilly edges and a pink spiral through the center.

Most ramen restaurants offer the choice of either soy sauce broth or salt broth. The bowl is served with a special spoon that rests nicely on the side of the bowl when not in use. Chopsticks are also served with the meal. Locals will typically use the chopsticks to grab the noodles and toppings. After placing the noodles in their mouth, they slurp. Surprisingly, this is completely acceptable. I haven’t been able to adopt this custom. I prefer to fish out the noodles with my chopsticks, place them neatly on my spoon and then take the spoon with noodles to my mouth. No slurping required.

We have tried many ramen restaurants over the past 4.5 months (3 in Yokosuka alone!). In fact, it was our first meal when we arrived in Japan on July 31st.

Many restaurants that serve only ramen are very small and have a long bar where customers sit. Typically, ramen isn’t a “relaxing” meal. Think of it as made to order fast food Japanese style! The cook sets a timer each time he drops noodles into the boiling water. It only takes 3 minutes to boil the noodles! The warm broth and noodles make ramen a perfect meal on a chilly winter day.

The condiments on the bar counter include a spicy powder, spicy sesame sauce, soy sauce and a couple of different paste items. I’m sure the sign behind them tells me what to add to make it extra delicious. Dave adds the spicy stuff, I prefer mine plain. The tissues are napkins.

The glasses are for the self-serve water.

This past weekend was the first time Dave and I experienced the walk up ordering system. Fortunately, the machine had a little bit of English and coordinating number system. Also, the restaurant server spoke a little English and helped by explaining the English and numbers. We deposited our Yen and made our selections.

I ordered a Number 2 (salt broth – second picture from the left on the top row). I pushed the matching number 2 on the second row (green), third button of the machine. Remember, they read from right to left. So, it makes sense the smaller number is to the right, right? Maybe. Dave ordered the Number 4 (salt broth with extra meat – second picture from the left on the bottom row). He pushed the matching number 4 on the second row (green), second button on the machine. And then we both pushed the beer button! Bottom row (blue), first button from the left. After that evolution, perhaps we needed a second beer!

The ramen was very good and made our bellies full and happy. The nori and green onion bites are my favorite!! No worries, when you visit, ramen will be a must eat – at least twice! You need to decide if you like the soy or salt broth the best!!