Uemachi

Time for a break from the Tenkatoitsu Ramen Battle and return to form. On my way to a hanami event I stopped at highly regarded Uemachi, and got a bowl of chuka soba shoyu.

天下統一ラーメンバトルが終わって、普通のラーメン活動に戻りました。花見パーティーに行く途中によく評価されている「うえまち」に行って、中華そば醤油を食べました。

The Bowl
This was sharp and salty in a way that was strangely addictive. Compared to other salty bowls, Uemachi's was light, and filled with grains of green onion. The noodles were flat and thin, normally what I would expect to see in shoyu. Still, though, they had a wonderful gumminess to them, and I had to stop myself from slurping them too quickly.

何か癖になる塩の濃さでした。でも、塩辛いラーメンなりにあっさりとして、ネギのつぶつぶしたやつがいっぱい入っていました。麺は平打ちで細めだったので、塩の麺の感じがしました。もちもちさがたまらなくて、一瞬ですするのを気をつけないとダメでした。

Would I Go Again?
Yes.

また行きたいです。

Should You Go?
Yes.

ぜひ行ってください。

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中華そば うえまち

Chuka Soba Ibuki

The Rasai stamp rally has begun, and it's time to hit the ground running. Two days after visiting first shop Mugen, I visited chuka soba shop Ibuki in Tenma. They had a variety of shoyu broths, and I went with the recommended one with black iriko, a kind of Japanese sardine.

らぁ際が始まったのでこれからいっぱいスタンプラリーに参加しているラーメン屋さんに行かなあかん。無限に行って、二日後に天満にある中華そばや「いぶき」に行ってみました。いろいろな醤油のラーメンがあって、おすすめしてもらった黒イリコそばにしました。

The Bowl
This was a really simple and light shoyu. Nearly transparent, the flavor was just of a light salt, with the subtle touch of sardine. The noodles were medium and flat; easy to drink up in the clear broth. The menma had a bit more punch; it was thick and woody, and the chashu, though light and chewy, matched the theme of the bowl.

シンプルなあっさり醤油でした。ほぼ透明で、塩と微妙なイリコの風味がありました。麺が平打ちで、すすりやすかったです。メンマが濃くて、気みたいな味が強かったです。チャーシューがちょっと薄めで、あっさりテーマに合いました。

Would I Go Again?
It was solid but not my favorite shoyu in the area; I'm not sure I'll have time to make it again.

おいしかったですけど、他の好きな醤油ラーメン屋さんが近くにあるので、また行かない気がします。

Should You Go?
This is a good place for people who are into those fishy, light, shoyu bowls.

魚介系あっさり塩が好きな人にいいです。

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中華そば いぶき

Menya Hashi

Tenroku is a happening area for restaurants and ramen shops alike. There are new shops opening and closing all the time, and when I'm lucky, they are close enough to my office that I can go to them for lunch. Hashi is one such place, a new tori paitan place just around the corner. I went by to see what they offered.

天六はレストランでもラーメン屋さんでも熱い場所です。店がよくできたり潰れたりしているし、運がいいときに職場の近くに新しい店ができます。「橋」という店は最近できた鶏白湯専門店です。ラーメンを味見するために行ってみました。

The Bowl
Hashi produced a super creamy chicken soup, more akin to a cream pasta than to a standard bowl of chicken ramen. It was quite similar to another shop I'm a fan of, Bokkoshi. The noodles were long and flat, glued together by the viscous broth. Otherwise in the mixture were menma, onions, bits of yuzu, and a single thin slice of chashu.

橋のスープはまろやかでパスタっぽくクリーミーでした。好きなぼっこ志という店に一応似ていました。麺は平打ちで長くてドロドロなスープでくっつきました。メンマ、ネギ、ゆずとチャーシュー一枚も乗っていました。

Would I Go Again?
Yeah, this was close, different, and good.

近くてうまいのでまた行きたいです。

Should You Go?
I can't think of a better tori paitan in Tenroku.

天六にあるもっとおいしい鶏白湯屋さんはきっとありません。

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麺屋 橋

Men Factory Jaws

Yay, a new shop! I haven't been to Tanimachi Rokuchome besides to eat ramen and today would be no exception: just an excuse to try new tsukemen shop Men Factory Jaws. A strange name for a strange shop. From the outside it looks like any normal shop, but inside it's vaguely Hawaiian themed. I never thought of Hawaii being associated with tsukemen, but here we are. I sat down and ordered the tsukemen with an egg.

やった、新店！ラーメン以外谷六に行く理由は全くなくて今回もそうです。「麺FACTORY JAWS」は変な名前で店もちょっと変わっていました。外観は普通ですけど中身はちょっとハワイっぽかったです。ハワイとつけ麺は関係ないはずですけど。入って味玉つけ麺を頼みました。

The Bowl
One bowl, filled with a deep brown sauce and onions, another with thick, grainy noodles, an egg sliced in two width-wise, and a thick slice of juicy chashu waiting to be slathered in the sauce. The soup matched its main topping: it was a solid tonkotsu gyokai, but it could not hide its loud onion overtures. Everything lived up to its expectations here, but only the chashu soared above them.

とろみがある茶色なスープとオニオンが入っているボールともちもち踏めん、味玉、とでかいチャーシューが入っているボールがおいてありました。スープは普通にうまい魚介豚骨ですがトッピングのようにめっちゃネギの味がしました。全部おいしかったですけど、ジューシーなチャーシューがさらにうまかったです。

A little thank you note

ありがとう！って

Would I Go Again?
Eh, it was good, but there's plenty of good tsukemen in this city.

おいしかったですけど、ほかにおいしいつけ麺屋さんがいっぱいあります。

Should You Go?
If you are around Tanimachi Rokuchome, this is a place you can count on. Otherwise you can skip it.

谷六にいるなら、ここはおすすめです。

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麺FACTORY JAWS

Yottekoya

I was pretty hungry after leaving work, and was in the mood to try something good.  One of my coworkers had told me a lot about Tokiya, a shop in Nishinakajima Minamikata, north of Umeda that has very good tsukemen.  Ramen Walker and ramendb agree.  I had looked it up beforehand, so I knew there would be no problem, and I headed north.

By now, if only because of the title of this post, you've probably realized that I didn't make it to Tokiya that night.  A mere three days earlier they had changed their hours; they were no longer open at night.  Well, my bubble was burst, and I knew it would be hard for me to get there what with work five days a week.  I stopped in a nearby bookstore, browsed through some magazines and discovered Yottekoya, a shop with a branch by Tanimachi Rokuchome.  The magazine advertised a deal that involved curry ramen, which is all I needed to know to be on my way.

I got there and looked at the menu.  No curry ramen.  This wasn't the first time this happened, and as previously, I was saved by tantanmen.

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よってこや
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Tennōji-ku Uehonmachi１丁目１−１８
Yottekoya is on the southeast corner of the intersection between Nagahori Dori and Uemachi-suji.

To start I had the original tantan-gyoza.  I've never heard of such a thing before, so I had to order it.  They were solid gyoza, and the tantan-flavor, onions, and sesame really did make it taste like a weird blend between gyoza and tantanmen.

The Bowl
It was no curry, but it had been a while since I had some good tantanmen, especially the standard kind where the noodles are already in the broth.  The soup was a thick and oily tantan soup; it tasted very similar to the gyoza and clearly was made with the same kind of tantan sauce.  There were meat and green onions littering the bowl, entangled by the curly, chewy noodles.  The egg was especially good; tender and a little spicy like the soup.

Would I Go Again?
The tantanmen was pretty good, and the gyoza were wacky, so I'm curious to see what kind of ramen they're offering up next.  Yattekoya is a chain, so if I go again I'll probably check out a different branch.

Should You Go?
It's not on my list of the best places in Osaka, but it's solid and worth stopping by if you're in the area.