“Dosanko” means someone from Hokkaido. Dosanko is actually a really common name for a ramen shop — there are ones all over the country — so I had never paid it much attention. Turns out this one is special.

A place like this..

It is a shabby little space. At a glance there is nothing to it, and yet it has kept going in Shinbashi for years? That means something is going on here.

The menu

This is not just a ramen shop — there is a wide range of Chinese dishes. It is mostly set meals, but it looked like a good place to drop in for a drink in the evening too.

The table

The Showa mood is almost too strong here..

The ramen

It is not a refined bowl the way Sumire’s is, but it is rustic and it keeps to the basics of miso ramen really well. The vegetables in particular are delicious.

The noodles

The noodles are pretty standard.

Reba nira

Liver stir-fried with chives, and it was the number one reba nira I have had in Japan. Looking into the kitchen, an elderly chef with thick forearms was swinging a heavy wok and cooking it through in no time. Good ingredients plus good technique — that is where a flavour like this comes from. A place like this is practically an intangible cultural asset. If you want to eat proper Japanese-style Chinese food made by a craftsman, Dosanko comes highly recommended. It is a cramped, worn old place though, so going in a big group might be a bit awkward.

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