After the heavy rain passed, it became extremely hot, but I still decided to eat ramen! I visited Ramen Kuraitei for the first time in years. I ordered the salt ramen with gyoza and rice set (1,070 yen). The salt ramen tasted a bit different and even more delicious! It seemed to have become similar to the Salt General...

On March 26, 2022, I stopped by the Fukuchiyama branch of RaRaTei in Kashinokidai, Fukuchiyama City. I think it's been over 10 years since I last visited RaRaTei, and it must have been about 15 years since I last visited this particular branch when it first opened. RaRaTei is known for its delicious regular ramen, but you have to try the negi (green onion) ramen... so I decided to try it again after a long time. While waiting, I took a look at the menu and noticed that it had expanded a lot. They now offer dishes like Taiwan Mazesoba, Curry Ramen, and Tantanmen. After a few minutes, my order arrived, and I dug in. Negi Ramen: - Soup: The classic chicken-based soy sauce broth with plenty of back fat. - Noodles: Thin straight noodles that perfectly complement the soup. - Toppings: The fresh and crunchy green onions on top add a great flavor and texture. Rolling the green onions with the chashu (roast pork) and eating them together is especially delicious. - Menma (seasoned bamboo shoots): Soft and tasty. Overall, the negi ramen was as delicious as I remembered, although it seemed like there was slightly less green onion than before. Nevertheless, I was satisfied with the taste. I also enjoyed adding some chili bean paste from the condiments on the table to give it a spicy kick. After the meal, I had a pickled plum from the condiments on the table, which was a refreshing way to end the meal. That's all for now.

I dropped by for lunch. It was about 10 minutes after opening, but about half of the seats were already taken. I was seated at the counter and checked the menu. After some exercise and feeling hot, I ordered the cold noodles. The thick noodles were nicely chilled and firm. The soup had a sharpness from the mustard, and the coolness of the cucumber balanced out the spiciness. The chashu soaked in the soup was delicious. It wasn't too heavy, so I should have ordered some dumplings as well. The staff was as energetic and polite as always.

On the way back from enjoying the autumn leaves, I stopped by a Lawson store across the street and decided to grab a bite to eat. I was quite hungry and even though it was a bit late, the place was filled with customers, which got me excited. I felt the urge to order "ramen with firm noodles, the usual one!" but since it was my first time at this shop, I held back. Soon enough, my ramen arrived, a typical ramen like the one from "Rai Rai Tei". I took a sip of the soup, it was a bit salty, or rather soy sauce-like! It's just my personal taste, as I tend to prefer sweeter flavors. I took a bite of the noodles, even though I had ordered them firm, they were too soft! The lady with me also kept saying that the noodles were too soft!? She seemed quite knowledgeable about ramen, having tried various types like "barikata" or "harigane" that I hadn't even heard of! She must have a long history of enjoying ramen in Kyoto. I enjoyed the chashu, it was tasty and had a good texture. After finishing my bowl, I observed the kitchen and figured out the reason for the soft noodles. They used a timer to cook the noodles, but then they were quite slow in serving the dish! I didn't time it, but it definitely took more than a minute. It's important for a ramen shop to serve the dish promptly, as the taste and texture of the noodles can deteriorate if left for too long. This made me appreciate the efficiency of "Shakarashka" in Incheon, where the noodles are served within 10 seconds of being cooked. I asked the staff about extra noodles, but unfortunately, they didn't offer that service. This experience made me realize the importance of timing in a ramen shop, and I left with these thoughts in mind.

Japan Delicious Food Tour. August 1, 2016. No.518. Number of reviews: 578. As I get older, I find myself not really craving rich and heavy ramen often, but sometimes I just really feel like eating it. The "rich ramen" costs 690 yen. I also ordered some gyoza for 280 yen. There are other famous ramen shops in Fukuchiyama like "Tenkaippin" and "Fukuchi An", and there is also "Ikoku" nearby. However, this time I decided to try this place. The staff here are all very lively and energetic, which lifts your spirits. Thank you for the delicious meal.

I sometimes go there when driving late at night. The taste is consistently delicious, so it always comes in handy.

I went on a business trip to Fukuchiyama and decided to have lunch at Raitei using the local branch's car. It was very crowded at lunchtime. I ordered the fried rice set meal. The fried rice was really good, even better than the ramen. The flavor was quite rich and delicious.

From Fukuchiyama Station, take Route 9 towards Tottori. Past the Aeon, you'll see the restaurant on your left after a while. Is the parking lot the same as the one next to Fukuchiyama Shimokawara Shokudo? There were quite a few cars parked ignoring the white lines. I arrived just after lunchtime, and there were quite a few people, making it seem busy. There was a wait, but no one asked for names or confirmed the order. It was unclear who was in line. Maybe it's not usually this crowded? I ordered the fried rice set with soy sauce ramen. I asked for the noodles to be firm, everything else normal. I waited about 15 minutes. The ramen came out first. I took a sip of the soup. There's a lot of back fat floating in the soup, but it doesn't feel too greasy. However, the first thing you notice is the strong saltiness. It's quite salty. The noodles are thin and cooked firm. Despite asking for firm, they felt normal. The toppings include bamboo shoots, green onions, and about 5 slices of thin pork. The bamboo shoots have flavor but get lost in the strong soup. The green onions are the typical pre-cut kind, lacking in flavor. The thin pork slices are tender and tasty. The soup was too salty for me, so I left it and waited for the set fried rice. The plan was to finish the soup with the fried rice. However, despite waiting, the food wasn't served, and I didn't hear any cooking sounds. Meanwhile, dishes for people who came after me were being served. The lack of order tracking led to this delay. After a long wait, it finally arrived. It had a very dark soy sauce color. It tasted very salty, as expected. No crunch, just a soggy texture. It was salty and it was hard to identify the ingredients. Overall, the dishes were on the salty side. I remember the Anjo store not being this bad... There may be variations in taste and menu depending on the store's strategy. I have not factored in service for the evaluation. I will simply say that the service was "quite bad".

Today's lunch was at Ramen shop "Ra Ra Tei Fukuchiyama branch". I ordered the Pork Kimchi Set. This shop's noodles are cooked to be soft, so this time I ordered them to be firm. I asked for light soy sauce, no pork fat, and extra green onions. After a short wait, the ramen set with rice arrived. I added all the green onions to my dish (laughs) and started eating. The noodles were just right in firmness and the soup, with no pork fat, was light and tasty. Just as I was enjoying the ramen, the Pork Kimchi with a soft-boiled egg was served. Mixing the soft-boiled egg into the Pork Kimchi made it milder and even more delicious. The service by the staff was polite, and the interior of the restaurant was clean and recently renovated. The Fukuchiyama branch's noodles are slightly softer than at other branches, so it's recommended to order them firmer to suit your preference. Thank you for the meal.

Ryuryu-tei Fukuchiyama store. This time, I ordered the fried chicken set meal and changed it to char siu ramen with firm noodles and plenty of back fat and green onions. First, I ordered ramen. I think I ordered firm noodles... The ramen looks quite different from the menu photo. The small char siu and plenty of green onions were served separately, which was a nice service. The fried chicken was hot but lacked juiciness. Maybe it was double-fried because it came out so quickly? Come to think of it, most ramen shops these days have a kitchen timer sound, but this shop didn't have any sound. Maybe the noodles were overcooked? The service from the staff and the soup were good, but something felt disappointing...

Fukuchiyama City, Kyoto Prefecture, 2015 Ramen 70th Bowl (1st time this year, 1st time overall) On this day, it's a holiday but I had to go to work again. I had controlled my drinking at the previous day's drinking party, so I was able to go to work without any issues and left in the morning. By lunchtime, I had arrived in Fukuchiyama and decided to have lunch with W and a person from the manufacturer before heading to the site. We decided to try this place for a specific reason. This restaurant had received mostly negative reviews on Tabelog, which made me curious as to why. While other locations of the chain had ratings, this one did not. So, we decided to visit and see for ourselves. We arrived at around 12:00 and the place was almost full, but luckily there was one table available. The service was typical of a chain restaurant, with loud greetings and no issues with ordering. The menu had a wide variety of options, including the signature ramen as well as other variations like miso and spicy ramen. I decided to try the salt ramen and also ordered a set with fried chicken. The ramen arrived in about 5 minutes. The ramen had slices of pork, white leeks, bamboo shoots, seaweed, yuzu, and grilled leeks. The pork slices were thin and tender, but lacked in flavor. The noodles were thin as usual, but despite ordering them firm, they were quite soft. The salt soup had a strong flavor, with a hint of yuzu, but was a bit too salty for my taste. The grilled leeks added a nice touch but had a slight bitterness to them. The fried chicken in the set was crispy but lacked juiciness. Despite specifying our preferences for the noodles and rice portion, they were not prepared as requested. It seemed like there was a lack of coordination between the kitchen and the servers. Overall, while the service was good, the inconsistency in the food quality was disappointing. It made me understand the negative reviews on Tabelog.

Last day of Golden Week. On my way home, I entered Fukuchiyama City and came across a sign for "Rairai-tei"! It's been a while (a few years) since I last went to Rairai-tei. So, I decided to make a sudden visit. I had the basic ramen as usual, without any special additions. The ramen had a light soup that tasted somewhat nostalgic. The toppings included green onions, char siu, and a slightly generous amount of lard compared to other shops. It's not a uniquely distinctive ramen, but it's a comforting one that you can enjoy without getting tired of the taste.

On the way back from the countryside, my eldest son, who shouldn't be hungry after a late lunch, suddenly said, "I want to eat ramen." Not wanting to eat at a service area and feeling too lazy to cook at home, I remembered there was a place nearby that served ramen sets. Despite it being the weekend, we arrived before 6 pm so there were only a few customers. The restaurant seemed family-friendly with child seats, hand wipes, and paper aprons readily available. After some consideration, we ordered a char siu ramen with karaage set, ramen (with extra negi and no back fat) with fried rice set and mini kimchi, and a mini ramen (without chili) all with firm noodles. We planned to share them among the four of us. The mobile phone was running out of battery, so I didn't check the reviews on Tabelog, but as more customers started coming in, I felt reassured that it was a good choice. The dishes arrived quickly. The ramen had a slightly sweet soy sauce base with a lot of back fat, which added to the sweetness. However, the soy sauce flavor was a bit strong, possibly due to the char siu. The noodles were a bit disappointing as we had asked for them to be firm but they turned out soft. They had a decent chew but were too soft and didn't hold up well with the rich soup. The fried rice was visually dark and tasted strongly of soy sauce, matching the ramen soup's flavor, which made it overwhelming after a while. The fried chicken was generous in portion but also had a strong flavor. If the ramen soup was like this, I think a salt and ginger-based seasoning without garlic would have been more enjoyable. The kimchi was not bad for a ramen shop, with a mild spiciness and a refreshing sourness that helped cut through the soy sauce-heavy meal. Overall, the service and atmosphere were good, but the disappointing noodles were a letdown. I don't think we'll be returning as a family unless my wife approves. Thank you for the meal.

This is a story from the time when I loved ramen and used to eat at various places. The date is just approximate. I visited a ramen shop that had no break between lunch and dinner service and always had a long line. I tried their ramen and fried rice. The ramen was very ordinary, nothing special about it. It was easy to eat but lacked any impact. The real issue was the fried rice. The rice was dry and tasteless. It almost seemed like they cooked it wrong. It also had a bad smell. This was the opinion of my whole family. We haven't been back since then. I wonder if the taste has improved now?