Gifu, Japan｜Tsukemenhonmaru Yanaizuten

Went here for lunch for the first time last Sunday. Got there a bit early but was the first customer through the doors which was a nice surprise. This restaurant serves different types of tsukemen flavours as well as side menu items like fried rice and gyoza. What’s nice is that you can upgrade to large or extra large sizes for free. I opted for the extra large 700g spicy dipping sauce set and it was absolutely delicious. I’ve had tsukemen many times before but this was my favourite. The noodles were springy and the sauce was full of flavour as well as lots of meat and heat which gave every bite an additive kick. I will definitely be going here again, and again after that too, it really was just that good. Heartily recommended. 5 stars ⭐️

Tsukemen Honmaru is a chain of ramen shops from Aichi Prefecture, serving up mainly tsukemen dipping-style noodles, as their name suggests. I stopped by their Hongu, Gifu, shop with my friend for a late dinner. They have a few unique varieties, such as seafood, chicken and yuzu, spicy, and miso. Of those four, I opted for their large Special Miso Tsukemen for 800￥. For added value, normal and extra large sizes are also the same price. The set that arrived on my table shortly thereafter was highly impressive, with the miso dipping broth still bubbling in the pot. The portion size was more than adequate, the noodles soft and thick like good tsukemen should be. This was the first time I tried a miso-based tsukemen, as they all typically have a pork and fish (usually niboshi) base. I’ll say it was definitely a unique taste! I’m looking forward to coming back again and trying another of their varieties for the value alone.

I ate a large serving of thick seafood tsukemen. Large and special servings of noodles were free. It was very delicious. Next time I will try to eat mixed soba.