The Best 10 Ramen Shops You Must Eat in Kyoto

Ramen has become one of the representative Japanese famous foods. It’s fun to taste and to compare various ramen in each area nationwide, isn’t it? Generally speaking, the foods in Kyoto give us the impression of a relatively plain taste, but the ramen in Kyoto actually have quite a rich flavour. So, you can enjoy different types of ramen in your imagination. I will introduce the strongly recommended ramen shops in Kyoto which are full of not only Japanese but also foreign visitors. They are mouth-watering!

1. Aitsu-no-ramen Kataguruma

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The unique and popular shio(salt) ramen specialist in Kyoto is the “Aitsu-no-ramen Kataguruma”. The salt which has been used in their ramen is a natural one. Matching sea foods and the flavour of the chicken with the natural salt makes exquisite salt soup. You can enjoy it with the ramen to the full.

The rare roast pork slices as toppings are peppery and will give you an exquisite taste. The shop is close to the Kyoto station so it is easy to drop in. I’m sure you will like it.

2. Shinpukusaikan Honten

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This long established shop is said to be the birthplace of the Kyoto ramen. When you try ramen in Kyoto, the “Shinpukusaikan” is one of the most recommended shops. It has a standard soy-sauce taste of Kyoto ramen. The rich soup and the medium sized straight noodles are well matched. You can enjoy the typical Kyoto ramen, when you eat it with the topping, Shijo-leak.

Apart from this popular ramen, the other popular menu is “yakimeshi (fried rice)”. If you have ramen and yakimeshi together, they go really well! However, you need to come there with an empty stomach! The shop is a 5-minute-walk from the Kyoto station. It’s easy to find it!

3. Takayasu

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The stylish interior of the shop looks like a café which is very attractive to ladies. It is the “Takayasu”. Amongst many ramen shops in Kyoto, this is the ultra-famous shop. The ramen has a rich as well as a plain taste. The soup is an orthodox chicken and pork-bones one and the mellow flavour spreads out in your mouth.

It has no distinctive ramen smell, so it is recommended for elderly people or ladies. They offer some free rice with ramen until 18:00. You will be full up. If you are not keen on rich ramen, this will right be for you.

4. Yamazakimenjiro

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The “Yamazakimenjiro” offers the decent and beautiful looking ramen as if you are eating high-class Japanese-styled cuisine. The shop has appeared in the “Michelin Guide 2016 Kyoto”. It is a small shop with 9 seats, but the beautifully cooked ramen is exquisite! Enjoy the appearance firstly and then enjoy the taste.

The mellow looking soup has a decent taste just like Kyoto can provide. Some people finish drinking all of it. Ramen lovers can’t miss it.

5. Odashi-to-Komugi Isao

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The “Odashi-to Komugi Isao” which is attracting a full house every day is located in the popular area, Ichijoji in Kyoto. The menu of the shop looks just like an ordinary ramen at a glance, but actually, the noodles are in the new genre, “wheat noodle”.

It is a rich flavoured Kyoto ramen, but it is recommended for people who want to enjoy the plain decent flavour. The soup is made from natural ingredients and you can enjoy the transparent decent flavour just like in Japanese-styled food. Would you like to challenge the ramen in the new genre at this shop?

 
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6. Tookashun

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Plain flavoured ramens are delicious, but this rich tasting one in the “Tookashun” is recommended for people who are crazy about ramen. The soup with plentiful back-fat and a lot of garlic will may make you feel very energetic.

The best characteristic of the ramen at this shop is the heaped roast pork slices! As it looks as if the roast pork noodles are in large portions, people who have one for the first time will be surprised. Please go there with an empty stomach.

7. Ramenya Akihide

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If you are not keen about ramens which have a little smell of pork-bones, this shop, “Ramen Akihide” is recommended just for you. The ramen soup of this shop has no smell of pork-bones, even though it is a pork-bones one.

The soup which is made by cooking pork-bones and chicken-bones for long hours is creamy. Matching them with the medium sized straight noodles goes very well. Although the shop closes at different times, there is always a long queue. As it is so popular, you should go and taste this when you visit Kyoto.

8. Ore-no-ramen Appareya

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The “Ore-no-ramen Appareya” is said to be the best in Kyoto and it has received a high rating from many specialists. The appearance of the shop looks just like an ordinary detached house, but it is a popular shop where you can enjoy the exquisite salty pork-bones-soup. Many people are aware of this shops quality.

Ramens accompanied by the salty pork-bones soup for dipping are offered and limited to 20 portions per day. It is called “flavour in a vision” amongst ramen lovers. So, please try one, even if you need to stand in a queue. Compared to other popular shops, it is not easy to get to, but it is worth finding for ramen lovers even if it is a long way to go. If you walk, it is quite far, so I recommend that you should take a bus from the nearest station.

9. Menya Takei

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The popular ramen shop in Kyoto with a constant queue is the “Menya Takei”. You may not fancy being in a queue, but standing in a queue is worth it for tasting this exquisite Kyoto ramen. It is sticking to the seafood & pork-bones soup. Every menu is delicious.

The most popular one on the menu is ramen accompanied with the soup for dipping. You can enjoy the broadly thick noodles dipping in the rich soup, just like Kyoto can offer. Even if it has a rich flavour, you can enjoy the appetizing wonderful taste because of the refreshing Japanese citrus flavour. As it is the best quality ramen, I’d like you to make time for standing in a queue to enjoy the taste!

10. Menya Gokkei

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This shop is located in the Kyoto ramen congested area, Ichijoji. It is the popular shop which you may want to visit more than once. The selling point is the elaborately cooked soup which is made from the chicken broth until it becomes very creamy. It looks very rich, but it has actually a very plain flavour, so you never get fed up with it.

The thickly sliced menma (fermented dried bamboo shoots), the heaped thinly cut leak and the exquisite roast pork slices on the ramen go very well together. As it is a small shop, there is a queue for most of the day, but it is one of the strongly recommended shops in Kyoto.

Let’s eat delicious ramen in Kyoto!

What is your impression of these articles? Many visitors not only from Japan but also overseas come to Kyoto which has a lot of historic places and shrines. You may not have enough time to enjoy your meal, taking your time, because there are a lot of spots to visit. But there are so many delicious ramen shops in Kyoto that I’d like you to try one and to add it into your precious memories. Ramen has been established as one of the strongest Japanese cultures.