I had been hearing for ages that there was a great ramen shop right by the south exit of Shinjuku, and I finally got around to going.
The front entrance
It is really close to the south exit. Practically a stone’s throw away. The shop is on the second floor, and the stairs up are a bit narrow.
The kitchen
It is a small space, but neatly kept, and the staff were friendlier than you would ever expect from a place this size. The staff are on the young side, and the customers range from salarymen to high school students. Some light jazz was playing inside.
Today’s fish trimmings, the ones the soup was made from
They are using some pretty good fish bones.
Shio ramen
The broth is made from seafood stock, and it is wonderfully clean and refreshing. The noodles are neat too, and the whole thing is at a really high level. On top of that, the default toppings, a shrimp dumpling and a chicken dumpling, have great flavor.
Egg
I ordered it separately, and it came out beautifully done.
Heshiko yaki onigiri
Dipping the lightly seasoned grilled onigiri in the spicy sansho pepper makes for a fun change of pace. And since the broth is so good, dropping the onigiri into the leftover soup after finishing the noodles and eating it ochazuke-style is fun too. Just as the rumors said, this really is a top shio ramen shop.