This was my first visit to Hakodate, and on the way back, I remembered the curry and zangi I had last summer near this restaurant. Unfortunately, the restaurant was closed on the day I visited because they are closed during winter and will reopen at the end of April. I was disappointed as I had been looking forward to eating that curry and zangi. However, as I was heading towards Sapporo with an empty stomach, I stumbled upon this ramen shop about 5 minutes away. We entered around 2 pm, and there were no other customers. It seemed like the shop was run by two people, and it was quite spacious and stylish with decorations reminiscent of Kiki's Delivery Service. We ordered the spicy miso ramen and a rice dish, and the food arrived in about 10 minutes. It was delicious.

A ramen restaurant with a drive-in-like atmosphere located near the foot of Nakayama Pass in Kimobetsu Town. I had been curious about it every time I passed by the large sign along the national highway, so I decided to stop by for lunch during a business trip to Date. The parking space is quite spacious, even large trucks can park easily. Inside the restaurant, there are counter seats and table seats, creating a cozy and welcoming atmosphere. Looking at the menu, there are about seven different types of ramen besides the basic three flavors, such as old-fashioned and spicy miso, as well as side dishes like rice bowls and dumplings. I ordered the "Miso Ramen (700 yen)" listed at the top of the menu and the "Butabara Don (250 yen)" as a side dish. The dishes were ready in about 10 minutes. The miso ramen had a traditional Sapporo miso flavor with a soup base of animal and vegetable broth, which I found delicious as it matched my preference. The medium-thick Sapporo noodles also complemented the soup well. The Butabara Don side dish was flavorful and had a good portion size for its price. The prices were reasonable, and the ramen was tastier than I had imagined, so I would like to visit again to try different items if I have the chance.

This ramen shop is rare in this area. It is located just after crossing the Nakayama Pass along the national highway that I pass by for work. I was always hesitant to go in because I didn't know the business hours. (The business hours are apparently from 11:00 am. Closed on Tuesdays?) The inside of the shop has a somewhat American feel to it. The friendly shop owner and his wife greeted us warmly. The menu includes 7-8 types of ramen, 3-4 types of rice bowls, and gyoza. This time, I tried the spicy miso vegetable ramen (it's not on the menu, but they made it when I asked). There are also salt and soy sauce flavors available, so you can fully enjoy Hokkaido ramen. The spicy miso vegetable ramen had a rich miso flavor yet was light, and the spiciness was just right. If you like spicy food, adding some shichimi spice would make it even better. As it is a vegetable ramen, it had plenty of vegetables. Not only vegetables but also seafood like shrimp were included, giving it a feel of a mixed vegetable stir-fry. And it goes well with the soup. The noodles are Hokkaido's signature curly noodles!! They had a chewy texture that mixed well with the soup. I finished it quickly. This taste, this location, it's the best. I will definitely come back when I'm on a business trip to Lake Toya.

I stopped by on my way back from Lake Toya. I had known about this restaurant before, but I had always passed by without trying their seemingly delicious ramen. However, this time I happened to be there during lunchtime, so I decided to give it a try. The atmosphere inside the restaurant was very fancy and exciting, quite different from what I had expected from the outside. Since it was my first time, I ordered the soy sauce ramen. Despite the rich-looking broth with floating pork fat, the soup was surprisingly light and delicious without any off-flavors. My wife had the salt ramen, which had a clean and tasty flavor. We would love to visit again!

Down the pass (on the side of Kimobetsu), there is a restaurant where my child was hungry. I searched on "Tabelog" and doubted if it really existed. But as we got closer, we saw a sign for ramen. The vegetable ramen I wanted was sold out, so I'll try it next time. I ordered the normal miso and salt ramen. The medium curly noodles and rich soup were delicious and perfect for my tired body.

Visited on January 24, 2019. Ah, it's a heavy snowfall. The whiteout is intense. Heading from Niseko to Nakayama Pass. I don't like winter. Now, for a late lunch. On the outskirts of Kimobetsu, there is a single restaurant that looks like a drive-in. I can see a ramen curtain. Let's go in and try it. Lunch ends at 3:00 PM - I entered at 2:55 PM, just in time. They have various options. I'll try the "Uma Shio Ramen". Oh, it's "Uma Shio Ramen"? Interesting. Let's go with this one. Ordered the "Uma Shio Ramen" for 750 yen. [We are closing the curtain, but please don't mind and enjoy your meal slowly♪] A lady kindly said this to me. It was nice of her, especially since I entered just in time. The ramen is not the clear type, but rather has a bit of oiliness. It has a hint of garlic and sakura shrimp, which makes it delicious. The noodles are chewy. The chashu has a nice seasoning and tastes good. Finished it all. It was cold due to the bad weather, so it was warm and tasty. Thank you for the meal.

I went to Kyogoku Fukidashi Park to get a large amount of water for personal use. It was time for our household's semi-annual (unofficial) major event, so we decided to search for a nearby restaurant. We considered visiting Isshinan or Nono-kasa, both located in Kyogoku town, but since we had already been there before, we decided to try our luck with Kyogoku Ramen Izumi. However, when we arrived, we found out that they were closed on Sundays. It was Culture Day today, a significant holiday. We then headed to Taste no Sanki, but they were also closed. Feeling a bit troubled, we ended up at a restaurant that caught our attention before. It is the first restaurant you see when coming down from Nakanoyama Pass towards Sapporo. We had always been curious about their signboard, but we never had the chance to stop by for lunch in Kimobetsu. It was already past 12:30, and the restaurant seemed quite busy. We found seats at the counter and ordered their ramen. The regular ramen looked good, but we decided to try their Māyu (spicy oil) ramen. Feeling excited by the third restaurant visit, we couldn't resist ordering the large size for an additional 50 yen. The ramen arrived, and it looked a bit oily, with garlic chips and half an egg as toppings. The noodles were from Ichiryu Seimen, which I personally like. The scattered back fat topping was also nice. However, I felt that the soup lacked a bit of depth, maybe overshadowed by the oiliness around it. If they claim to be a "clear soup," I think a lighter, less oily version might be better. Overall, it was delicious, but it seemed to thrive more because of its location. It might get buried among the strong competitors in Sapporo city.

I've been curious about this ramen shop so I decided to stop by.

Miso Chashu for 950 yen. There are 6 counter seats and 10 tables for 2 people each.

Visited on December 2, 2021! Ma-yu shoyu ramen for 750 yen, small rice for 50 yen.

Today, I went on an exploration trip by car to a place called Higashihana in Kyogoku Town. The road turned into a gravel downhill slope, and my brakes barely worked. The road was also starting to crumble in places. After finally making it down, I arrived at a place called Sakae in Imakane Town, on Route 230 towards Jozankei. A little further along, I found a ramen shop called "Shimizu Ramen Furai." The interior was stylish and modern, with various trendy items. I checked if they had the limited "Chashu Ramen," but unfortunately, it was sold out. So, I decided to go with the "Miso Ramen." When it arrived, it looked delicious. The noodles were cut short, not my preference for slurping, but probably for the elderly and children. The noodles were tasty. The hot soup almost burnt my mouth, but the miso flavor was excellent. The chashu was also delicious, and I definitely want to try the "Chashu Ramen" next time. The warm and friendly atmosphere of the staff made it a recommended place. Thank you for the meal!

Ramen (soy sauce) with grated garlic on rice bowl.

Every time I go out, I always noticed a ramen shop with a sign that says "Shimizu Ramen," but I never had the chance to visit during lunchtime. Today, I finally passed by around 12 o'clock and made my first visit. It's the middle of a long weekend, so the parking lot was almost full, with about 10 customers ahead of us. We entered as a group of three and there were about 6 customers waiting. The shop is run by a friendly couple, and you can feel the warmth in the atmosphere. Maybe because it's a long weekend, the pace seemed a bit slower today. But there's no boredom in the scenery inside the shop (scenery is subjective, so you should go and see for yourself). And to top it off, you can get a large serving for an extra 50 yen. Is the pork bowl for 250 yen also okay? The soy sauce-based broth was a bit on the rich side, and the noodles were medium-thick curly noodles. Where are these noodles from? Homemade? This was a first for me. I love the length of the noodles, it's like nothing I've had before! The chili oil and salt were rich in flavor. The miso was more on the traditional side. The pork bowl had great seasoning and at 250 yen, it's a steal! I definitely want to come back again.

I had lunch at Kimobetsu. When I was looking it up on Tabelog, I was worried if I could find it, thinking "Was there a ramen shop here?" But oh, there's that huge sign. It's so big that I had forgotten about it. It's like a drive-in ramen shop. As I entered the store, The Beatles' "Cry Baby Cry" was playing, which got me excited. In the end, I couldn't figure out what was good even after looking at other people's reviews. I decided to try the miso vegetable ramen. Oh, the presentation looks nice. As for the taste, the miso is not predominantly white miso, which I prefer because it's not too sweet, but that makes it difficult to have richness. I understand (laughs). The vegetables include seafood like shrimp and scallops, as well as snow peas, wood ear mushrooms, and Chinese cabbage, giving it a chowder-like vegetable mix. It seems like it would be perfect with firm noodles and some back fat added. When I look at photos of regular ramen, it looks like there's back fat floating on top. Did I make a mistake? Also, based on the feel of this soup and looking at the photos, the soy sauce ramen looks delicious. While I'm thinking about these things, the song "I'm So Tired" comes on. I'm seriously tired from driving from Hakodate, but my mood is getting better. Am I enjoying feeling down? Well, at least John's voice doesn't quite fit in a roadside ramen shop. And that's also good. I'll probably come back five more times to listen to The Beatles.

When passing by, it always seems crowded with cars. They adjust the taste intensity and noodle firmness upon ordering. Since it was my first time, I didn't say anything. ☆Miso Ramen with Ma-Yu Oil Ma-Yu oil with garlic floating on top. The noodles were slightly soft, medium-thick curly noodles. The chashu was tender, with 2 pieces and some shredded ones, I think. ☆Chashu Shoyu Ramen Tender chashu with 5 slices, and a seasoned egg included. There was some oil floating, but the taste was gentle. Both were delicious. The interior of the restaurant was very clean. The kitchen staff and servers were friendly. It's great that this place is located here.

The weather wasn't great, but I decided to take a walk towards the Nakayama Pass area. I had some free time after getting my car serviced, so I set off. I initially thought about going via Lake Shikotsu to Lake Toya, but I ended up stopping at Fukidashi Park in Kyogoku for lunch. It was a weekday, so the park was not crowded. I tried the salt ramen, and if it was delicious, I would definitely come back. The interior of the restaurant had a Ghibli-like atmosphere with various small decorations. The ramen had chashu, egg, menma, green onions, nori, and maybe some dried seaweed on top. The soup initially seemed a bit lacking in flavor, but as I continued eating, the umami taste started to come through. The soup was strong enough to stand out even with added garlic. Some people might think it's too light at first, but the richness gradually builds up, making it very satisfying until the end. The chashu had a good balance of chewiness and tenderness, and I enjoyed changing the flavor by adding garlic, dried seaweed, and more nori. I finished the bowl completely satisfied and am already thinking about trying the rich salt ramen or soy sauce ramen next time. I'm also curious about the spicy oil ramen.