Tsukemen Suzume

My tsukemen-loving friend and I were looking for somewhere to eat, and a pretty good place in America Village came to mind.  I had been to Suzume once before, and I remembered it being solid, but I wanted to refresh my memory, show my friend, and blog about it.

Last time I got the spicy tsukemen, but this time I held out and ordered the store-recommended gyokai tonkotsu version.

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つけ麺 雀
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Chūō-ku Nishishinsaibashi２丁目１１−１１
Tsukemen Suzume is in America Village, just a block south of the triangle park.

The Bowl
The noodles were, in standard fashion, thick, chewy, and curly.  The broth was a rich, medium-thickness gyokai tsukemen.  It was very flavorful, and tasted good with the very tender menma and chashu that was hiding inside.

Would I Go Again?
I was glad I went a second time, and I would go again.  It may not be the best gyokai tonkotsu in Osaka, but it was very good, and I would even say that I liked the spicy miso tsukemen better.

Should You Go?
Yeah, sure.  It's in a good location, so drop by after some shopping in America Village.  Just make sure you don't splash on any of the nice clothes you buy there.

Gunjo

Currently ranked #3 on ramendb's Osaka ramen list.  Gunjo is only open two and a half hours a day, during lunch, and is closed on Sundays and holidays.  This leaves only one possible time for me to go to Gunjo: Saturday afternoons.

I took a long walk through the Tenjinbashi arcade, and eventually ended up near Tenjinbashisuji Rokuchome Station.  I made my way to the small alley where Gunjo is located and found...a line.  It didn't look too bad, so I waited.  Eight or so people eventually lined up behind me, but about 45 minutes later, they were asked to leave by the one and only guy who ran the whole shop.  After another half hour of waiting, I was finally let in to the tiny shop that seated no more than seven, with only one or two items on the menu.  What I ordered was, of course, the tsukemen.

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群青
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Kita-ku Tenjinbashi６丁目３−２６
Gunjo is just east of the north end of the Tenjinbashisuji arcade.  It's in a small alley called Renga Dori, so you may have to do some investigation and keep an eye out for the sign.

The Bowl
The broth was a very thick gyokai tonkotsu.  It was rich and completely covered the chewy, fat noodles that came with it.  So much so, that it was almost more like a sauce than a soup, which was fine by me. The chashu, also covered in broth, was melt-in-your-mouth tender.

Would I Go Again?
Gunjo was the best gyokai tonkotsu shop I've been to in Osaka, and maybe my second favorite including Tokyo.  If I can make time on a Saturday afternoon, I'll be there again.

Should You Go?
Yes, you should.  Make time for a visit.

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.

Rakunijin

Another day, another ranked ramen place.  After another long day at work, I was hungering for some ramen, and after some research I realized that Rakunijin was actually pretty close to the office.  The shop closing wasn't really an issue, so I casually walked on over.

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洛二神
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Kita-ku Naniwachō ４−２２
Rakunijin is just off an alley off of Tenjinbashi-suji

The Bowl
Similar to Kadoya Shokudo, Rakunijin is known for their simple-yet-well-executed shoyu bowl.  Although at Rakunijin, there's a bit of a fishy gyokai taste to it as well.  As expected the soup was simple, thin, and drinkable, but the gyokai flavor added a lot to it.  There was a bit of crunchy kikurage mushrooms and a few little shrimps scattered among the thin noodles.

Would I Go Again?
Rakunijin doesn't offer the kind of ramen I usually find myself craving for, but the bowl was very balanced and given its location I could easily find myself taking a friend here some time.

Should You Go?
Yeah, it's a very solid shoyu bowl, with a good if uncomplicated twist.

Ramen Cliff

To make up for the terrible rain the day before, I vowed that if Sunday was a nice day, I would take advantage of it.  I didn't really expect that to happen, but low and behold, Sunday had fantastic weather, and I decided to go somewhere.  As usual I took a gander at Ramen Walker and found a tsukemen place that looked pretty good and was kind of far away from where I lived.  I hopped on my bike, and headed out to Ramen Cliff.

I had never been to this area of town before, and I was excited to find that there was a really nice park nearby, even with a small beach area where a bunch of kids were playing (in October, though, really?).

The inside of Cliff was very new looking, with a nice wooden counter that I tried to avoid spilling on, though that was really a lost cause.  I ordered what I had read about; the white chicken tsukemen.

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らぁ麺 Cliff
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Miyakojima-ku Katamachi １丁目９−３４
Cliff is right near Osakajokitazume Station, on the north side of Tosabori Dori.

The Bowl
As expected, what I got was a very chicken-y bowl of tsukemen.  It was fairly thin and very drinkable, especially with the thin, flat noodles that were served with it.  It wasn't as thick as some of the chicken ramen I've before, and it was a bit salty, but the menma and chashu were extra delicious.

Would I Go Again?
It's a bit out of the way, but it's the only place like this I know in Osaka.  I'd try the chicken tsukemen again, but they had a number of other bowls I'd like to try too.

Should You Go?
If you ever make it to this area, it's worth a stop.  Check out the park just a bit north, too.

Kadoya Shokudo

Kadoya Shokudo is one of the most highly rated ramen shops in Osaka.  After going to Yashichi on Friday, I grew a desire to hit up a bunch of the top shops from ramendb.  It was a rainy Saturday, but I was not to be stopped.  My friend and I met up in Namba and braved the weather all the way to the (relatively) far-off Nishi-ku.

Kadoya is known for their shoyu ramen, which is what I ordered, while my friend got a seasonal pork mazemen.

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カドヤ食堂
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Nishi-ku Shinmachi ４丁目１６−１３
Kadoya is on the north side of Nagahori-dori way west of Shinsaibashi, close to Nishihoribashi station.

The Bowl
This was, as advertised, a very simple shoyu bowl.  Light broth, and flavorful without being too salty.  The medium, long noodles' taste reminded me of soba noodles.  The soup was also full of thick, long menma, and some standard but decent chashu.

Would I Go Again?
I get why some people love a simple soup like this, but I'm more interested in richer or more experimental ramen.  If a friend from abroad comes to down and I want to tream him to a very solid shoyu, I'll come here.

Should You Go?
If shoyu's your thing, this is a good place.  It's kind of out of the way though, unless you just came from a Buffaloes game at the Kyocera dome.

Yashichi

Ah, the elusive Yashichi.  One of the most critically acclaimed shops in Osaka, and the second highest ranked on ramendb at time of writing, Yashichi can be hard to get into.  It's only open on non-holiday weekdays, for lunch.  If you have a fulltime job, you'd better take a day off if you want to eat here.  Luckily, it happens to be walking distance from work for me.  Unfortunately, the line is normally long enough to take well over an hour, and on a normal day, Yashichi is not an option.  One fateful day, though, it rained and it poured and the line was pretty short!  I had eaten ramen as my previous meal and didn't have my camera on hand, but I could not be stopped, and after waiting on line for a short time, entered and ordered the Shoyu ramen.

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らーめん 弥七
Ōsaka-fu Ōsaka-shi Kita-ku Toyosaki ３丁目４−８
Yashichi is right down the road from exit 1 of Nakatsu station.

The Bowl
As mentioned above, I didn't have my camera, but luckily I was able to get my coworker to take a photo for me with his smartphone.
One of the reasons that shoyu is not my favorite kind of ramen, is that many shoyu bowls are thin, salty, or not that rich in flavor.  This is not the case with Yashichi.  The broth was rich, fatty, boiling hot, and covered in pepper.  The medium-sized noodles were long and very easy to suck down.  The chashu and the egg also shined, both extremely tender flavorful.

Would I Go Again?
If I ever see the line that short again.

Should You Go?
If you're ever free when it's open.