Old school shio ramen at Takumi in Tokyo

2 comments

1. Ramen Takumi (らーめんたくみ) is the king of late night ramen in the Azabujuban area, open 9pm to 5am, right next door to the infamous Roppongi district of Tokyo. Ramen Takumi is run by the eccentric Takumi-san, who serves an old school style of chacha-kei ramen in a number of variations.

   Takumi-san was originally running a shop of Kazuki, a household name of chacha-kei ramen. Chacha-kei is defined by the pork back fat that is sprinkled all over the ramen through a strainer, which makes a “chacha” noise. That’s where the style takes its name from. The soup is mainly a mix of chicken and pork with some dashi elements. The noodles are old school thin noodles, which are served in bowls and generous portions. Compared to other styles of ramen, the soup is quite light, but gets a nice buttery and creamy quality due to the topping pork back fat.

   The ramen at Takumi can be ordered as shoyu, shio, miso or tantanmen. I was made aware that the tantanmen and shio versions are the most popular ones, so maybe go for one of those during your first visit.

   For some more info about this bowl and this ramen shop, check out this short video: https://youtu.be/2CHjYHsCKN8

2. Now that the country is opening up again, I’ll gladly go there in March!