Ramen Yamaguchi

The neighborhood of Takadanobaba is no stranger to delicious ramen shops of all shapes and sizes. One that's popular among the local residents, as well as ramen enthusiasts around the world, is Ramen Yamaguchi. Since its recent burst in popularity, this local ramen-ya now caters to foreign customers with English-friendly services and an English menu. There are only two choices of soba here: the tsukesoba — Yamaguchi's rendition of a regular tsukemen — and the classic tori soba — a traditional bowl of shoyu ramen. Using chicken soup and chicken oil for their tori soba, it's served with straight, thin noodles and topped off with chicken chashu. Even though chicken lacks the high-fat content of pork which can sometimes cause chicken chashu to be a bit dry, Yamaguchi has aced the craft, so there’s no such problem here. While the tori soba has only the regular option, the tsuke soba has a regular and spicy option. The soup is separated from the noodles, and the spicy version is flavored with a variety of dried chili peppers, just enough to season the bowl to an ideal spicy level. The springy noodles are soaked in a salt bath and topped with chicken and pork chashu, some bamboo shoots and sprigs of sprouts. Even though the menu options are limited, Ramen Yamaguchi’s chefs are masters at what they do, so you’ll be blown away by their bowls no matter your usual ramen preferences.