Koganei, Tokyo, Japan｜Kujira Shokudo

Amazing ramen, visited it frequently when I lived in the area, and was one of my favorites among all the shops I’ve tried in Japan. The hand massaged noodles have an extremely unique texture and are just fun to eat and hold on well to the soup!! The broth is complex and flavorful, although I do really miss their 特製醤油つけ麺 (special shoyu tsukemen) which I had a few years back, didn’t find it this time around.

This place is conveniently located just outside the Higashi Koganei-Shi JR station. Like many ramen restaurants, the seating is pretty limited, musically just at the bar and six seats at a table. Fortunately the table is setup so that it can be used by more than one group. Like most ramen restaurants in Japan, you purchase your ramen ticket from a vending machine, then hand it to the shop attendant. The ramen was server petty quickly and it was very hot. The age-tama (egg) was perfectly cooked, as was the pork loin. The broth was very slightly oily, but not over powering. The flavor of the broth was very pleasant. The noodles were a bit unusual, sort of like western egg noodles, but thinner. They were actually very nice. As we were looking to have ramen before we left from Japan, I’m glad that this place was recommended.

Probably one of the best tsukemen restaurants I've ever been to. They incorporate both a fish and chicken stock broth to their soup which pairs perfectly with their homemade noodles. You can watch as they prepare your bowl, but because of the water content and density of the noodles, they almost tenderize the noodles before boiling them. As a result you end with an amazingly chewy noodle. Highly recommend, worth every bit of the train ride from central Tokyo!