Rokurinsha is famous right now as the ramen shop with the longest line in Tokyo. It’s tucked away in a corner of a residential neighborhood in Osaki, the kind of place only people in the know go to, and yet the wait averages over an hour.
I went at lunchtime on a weekday.
There were about 40 people waiting ahead of me. Where do they all hear about it, and why are they so keen to come… Once I saw the system, the long line made sense. They let people in in batches of 12, and only when all 12 have finished eating do they let in the next 12. If you’re unlucky and the cut-off falls right in front of you, you have to wait another ten-odd minutes. On top of that, they’re only open from 11:30 to 4:30… it makes me wonder how much business they can actually do.
The tsukemen dipping broth
I hear it’s an offshoot of Taishoken, but the taste is completely different. This one is pure new-wave style. They say the soup is made from pork bones, chicken bones, seafood and so on, then blended, and the balance is perfect. That vague little sense that something was off, which I felt even at Tsukemen Tetsu — a place that deserves to be called top-level tsukemen — just isn’t here at all. That said, if you only order the basic ramen, you don’t get much in the way of toppings. Adding toppings pushes the price up quite a bit.
The noodles
Even at this thickness, they come out perfectly cooked. Chewing on the springy noodles is a joy. I ordered a large portion, and it was a bit too much. I think I’d have been better off with a regular portion of noodles and extra toppings in the broth.
There’s no doubt the ramen here is among the best-made in Tokyo. But it wasn’t worth waiting an hour in the heat for. Personally, I’d just go to Tsukemen Tetsu in Shinagawa, which is much easier to get to.
I feel like I’ve been going to a ramen shop almost every single day for the past few weeks. I’m planning to wrap up my tour of famous Tokyo ramen shops with this one. There are still quite a few places worth visiting, but eating nothing but ramen lately has really left me in pretty bad shape. Summer’s here, so for a while I’ll be focusing on a summer special of healthy, restorative food…