Japan Ruined Tsukemen For Us
If it wasn’t obvious enough, both of us love ramen; specifically tsukemen. It’s something that we connected over during our first date and it’s something we constantly crave on cold nights (or even hot nights) here in L.A. When we planned our trip to Japan in the beginning of 2016, we knew that we were about to get our minds blown by authentic ramen, but we were so completely unprepared for how incredible the ramen actually was in Japan and how it would completely change our view of “good” tsukemen ramen back home.
GINZA OBOROZUKI
On our second night in Ginza, we did a quick Google search of tsukemen spots in the area and discovered a tiny little ramen shop just a 5 minute walk from our hotel. The bowl of tsukemen we had our first night was less than desirable, so we had to make up for it ASAP. When we got to the ramen shop, we had no idea what to order from the vending machine because everything was in Japanese (of course). Luckily, a nice gentlemen behind us noticed the sweat beads rolling down our foreheads and frantic use of Google Translate and offered to help us out. The ramen shop had 7 seats total and after we took our seats, we watched the chef prepare our bowls right in front of us. One of the highlights of this tsukemen was the chashu - the chef literally blow torched them right in front of us and it added such a nice smoky depth to the dish.
The presentation was simple, elegant and minimal with no unnecessary flare or adornment. The broth was deliciously salty and creamy with a touch of seasoned oil to garnish the top layer of fat. The noodles were cooked to perfection - thick, springy and the perfect hardness. If we had to pick one word to describe Ginza Oborozuki, it would be: perfect.
FU-UNJI
Fu-unji was one of the places we had really been looking forward to since planning our trip to Japan because we had read so much about it online while doing research. To put it simply: it did not disappoint. Despite all the hype and regard surrounding Fuunji, however, we decided that Oborozuki was just as good as Fuunji, which was a 5 minute wait versus the typical 1-2 hour wait at Fuunji. Fortuitously, we arrived just in time at Fuunji before the huge line started to form outside the restaurant right after us. Because this place is so famous and well-known, Fuunji has their customers not only wait in one line outside, but also an additional line inside. You literally wait behind a row of hungry people slurping on their tsukemen in front of you and stare at the floor, ceiling or wall - anything to distract you from the anticipation of finally getting seated. The broth at Fuunji is seafood-based; very rich, dank, fishy and deliciously pungent. Along with the broth, the noodles were also a highlight — cooked to a perfect doneness so that they were “al dente” but still perfectly chewy and springy. The chashu, however, definitely wasn’t shown as much love as Oborozuki and was served as chunks next to the noodles rather than sliced, charred rounds.
Japan ruined tsukemen for us. But, it’s okay. Luckily, Tsujita is relatively close to us (40 min drive vs 10 hour flight) and is probably the closest we’ll get to authentic tsukemen here in the LA area. It’s not Oborozuki or Fuunji, but it’s pretty damn close.
Ginza Oborozuki
6-3-5 Ginza
Chuo 104-0061 Tokyo, Japan
Fuunji
2-14-3 Hokuto Daiichi Building 1F
Yoyogi, Shibuya 151-0053 Tokyo Prefecture
