This is a shop located at the end of the underground passage after exiting the ticket gate at Kamiyacho Station on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line. When I visited around 18:00 on a weekday, there were hardly any people inside. It seemed like the owner was running the shop alone, and they were quite unfriendly without even a word of welcome, which made the atmosphere a bit intimidating. I had the char siu ramen, and the taste was excellent.

I had an early lunch around 11:30. It was a bit hot outside, so I thought maybe I'll have some tsukemen. I chose the five toppings tsukemen with extra ingredients, and opted for soy sauce. The amount of noodles was a bit lacking. The dipping sauce for the tsukemen was somewhat lacking in flavor. Rice was supposed to be a complimentary side, but it was not offered. Considering the location in the station in Minato-ku, the price was understandable.

I visited around 12:30 on a regular day. The restaurant only has counter seats, but you can sit down. Many customers are eating quietly by themselves. You look at the menu and order from the staff. I saw a lot of people eating dishes like ginger pork and tsukemen, but since the signboard mentioned tantanmen, I ordered tantanmen with seasoned egg. The food arrived in less than 5 minutes after ordering. The tantanmen is not spicy. The flavor is average, and the meat miso is also average. There are few vegetables and the amount of noodles is also average. Everything felt average. Lunch comes with free rice, but the price is still not cheap. If you're short on time but want to eat something other than standing soba, this place might be a good choice.

On this rainy day, I had my umbrella with me and got hungry in Kayabacho, so I ate delicious tan-tan noodles at the station. It was the same menu for lunch and dinner, so the prices were reasonable. I also felt like having some dumplings, so I had 3 of them grilled and devoured them. The owner was running the place alone, and although it was quite empty at night, I could see how tough it must be for him. The taste was just right, not too spicy or sweet, with a nice soup.

In the morning, I had a meeting at the office and in the afternoon, I went to a client's place to work. I had a short lunch break, so I decided to go to this ramen shop in the underground of the station. The shop was a bit pricey for ramen, and the quality was not the best. However, I had my eye on the pork cutlet curry for 850 yen, which came with a salad and seemed reasonably priced. The shop was almost full and only had counter seats, which made it a bit uncomfortable to sit. I sat at an available seat facing someone without a partition, which was a compromise. I ordered the pork cutlet curry for 850 yen, which was served quickly. The curry seemed like it was made with commercial curry roux, and the pork cutlet felt like it was from a commercial kitchen. The soup that came with it tasted like a typical Chinese restaurant soup base. The cost performance was good, but the quality felt like a cafeteria. They accepted payment through PayPay, and if you're in a hurry, the food comes out quickly, which is convenient. The dan dan noodles seemed popular, but both the dan dan noodles and the pork cutlet curry were not that great. If I were to go there again, I would be unsure of what to order.

I arrived at the office in Kamiyacho for the first time in August. Due to the spread of the Delta variant, office attendance had been limited. Despite being happy to be back after a long time, I found myself extremely busy. Even after a meeting ended, I had to make return calls that I missed during that time, so I didn't have lunch until around 12:30. At 1:00, I had another meeting right away. That's when I decided to quickly enter this restaurant directly connected to the station for a meal. I had been to this place about 13 years ago when I used to frequent Kamiyacho, but I couldn't remember much about it. Outside the restaurant, the menu caught my eye with black sesame tantan noodles - one of my favorite dishes. Without thinking twice, I ordered the black sesame tantan noodles for 950 yen as soon as I entered. The menu mentioned that rice could be added and refilled for free, but I decided against it to avoid feeling heavy in the afternoon. The black sesame tantan noodles arrived in 5-6 minutes, which was a pleasant surprise. The soup was gray due to the sesame sauce and black sesame, and the taste was quite delicious. The noodles were straight, which was also good, but honestly, for 950 yen, it wasn't the best tantan noodles I've had. I hate to say this, but cup tantan noodles have evolved a lot recently, and apart from the portion size, this restaurant's tantan noodles were on par with those. By the way, I noticed that a salad with tonkatsu curry was priced at 850 yen when I checked the menu again. Despite wanting to eat ramen, I think tonkatsu curry would be a better value for money option. It all comes down to the taste, though. In terms of evaluation, I appreciated that the counter seats were properly partitioned, that PayPay was accepted, and that the restaurant was conveniently close to the station. I initially considered the proximity to the station as an advantage, but later found out through Google Maps that there are even closer restaurants to our office. Nevertheless, I am grateful that I could finish my meal within 30 minutes.

There used to be an office in this area. "Uribo", directly connected to the station, was a convenient place to visit on rainy days, so I often went there for lunch and dinner. It's a famous restaurant for its tantanmen. Unlike the popular fiery red and spicy tantanmen nowadays, it was a mild orange-colored tantanmen. They also had small dishes, so my colleagues and I often had a casual drink after work. I became familiar with the chef, Chin, who is from China, as I frequented the place. I had been on business trips to Hangzhou, China, twice before. Hangzhou is a scenic city in central China famous for its West Lake and Longjing tea, with a population of 8 million at the time (equivalent to a city of 800,000 people in scale, similar to Niigata, Hamamatsu, or Sakai). Ten years later, when I visited again, I was amazed by the transformation. The tiled roof houses were gone, replaced by high-rise buildings, bicycles were replaced by motorcycles everywhere. During my first business trip, I was often approached by people speaking Chinese as I walked along a clean shopping street facing a wide road. Although I didn't understand Chinese at all, it seemed like they were asking me for directions. Even at the hotel breakfast venue, the staff would talk to me in Chinese every day. When I returned to Japan the next day, I stopped by "Uribo" for a drink. When I told Chin about my experience, he burst out laughing, saying, "Mamezou-san, that's right. In China, there are roughly three types of faces: Beijing face (north), Shanghai face (central), and Guangdong face (south). You definitely have a Shanghai face! If you were in Hangzhou, they would think you were a local person and talk to you!" It seems like my ancestors must have drifted to northern Kyushu through the ancient Tang Dynasty route. It's a nostalgic memory. When I visited for lunch after a long time, the place was still bustling despite some thinning out. The manager told me that this year marks the 29th anniversary of the restaurant. I was guided to the elevated table at the back where I used to drink at night. I ordered the "Tantanmen" (950 yen) with a half portion of rice for lunch service. It arrived in 5 minutes. Ah, the same orange color as before. The ingredients were minced meat, chopped zha cai, chopped nuts, chopped white onions, and spinach, just like before. It had a nice crunchy texture in the mouth. The soup seemed spicier and saltier than before, perhaps adapting to the times. They were happy to see me after a long time. I paid with PayPay and said thank you for the meal.

After exiting the ticket gate at Kamiya-cho Station and walking for 30 seconds, you will find an old ramen shop where you can stay dry from the rain. I ordered the salt ramen (850 yen) as shown in the menu photo, and the classic "The Salt Ramen" from the Showa era arrived. There was nothing to complain about, nor anything particularly outstanding about the noodles, soup, or toppings - it was a safe choice. I remembered when looking at the menu that "tsukemen" used to be called "zaru ramen" in the past. Comparing it to those days, I think tsukemen has really evolved. You can imagine the taste even if it's jade-colored noodles. This is a good place for a quick lunch when you want something warm. Thank you for the meal.

I visited for lunch. It was just before 1:00, but the restaurant was almost full. Since there are not many lunch options in Kandayacho, it was understandable. There were various recommended items, but due to the intense heat, I opted for a simple and light taste. I was intrigued by the cold noodles, but as it was my first time at the ramen shop, I ordered the Salt Ramen for 800 yen, which had a clear base soup. (I was curious why the Pork Cutlet Curry was cheaper at 780 yen than the ramen) I also ordered a mini curry for an additional 100 yen. In conclusion, the ramen was nothing special. It was a traditional ramen with a chicken bone-based soup and a burnt onion accent. The chashu was a bit tough and meaty. The curry tasted like it was from a retort pouch, about medium spiciness. Of course, the curry was tasty, but nothing extraordinary. Personally, I find these kinds of ramen shops, which you occasionally come across amidst the trendier ones, very useful. This type of ramen is great for the day after drinking too much. When something ordinary becomes less common, it becomes special, so I want to cherish it. A ramen shop with a classic style.

Wednesday. Toranomon. It's 12 o'clock exactly. Let's have lunch here. As soon as you leave the ticket gate at Kamiyacho Station, you'll find this place right away in the direction of Toranomon. Once inside, you'll be guided to a counter for one person. From the lunch menu, you can choose between ramen and the daily mini rice bowl for 980 yen. Today's daily special is a Chinese rice bowl. In about 5 minutes, the food is served. The ramen is a light soy sauce-flavored Chinese noodle soup with chicken broth. The noodles are soft, the char siu is decent, a bit thick and ham-like. The Chinese rice bowl is a normal dish with topping sauce. It's quite enjoyable overall. The impression is light and slightly unsatisfying. Well, it's better to have it light than too salty. Enjoyed it quickly, thanks for the meal. Now, let's head to the next location.

Most of the lunch menu consists of noodle dishes, with tantanmen being particularly recommended. However, today I wanted to eat rice so I ordered katsu curry. The katsu was hot and crispy, surprisingly delicious. The curry was probably a commercial one. If I have the chance, I would like to come back to try the black tantanmen.

It's been a long time since I last came here, and I casually ordered the spicy tantan noodles. Looking back at what I had last time, it was also the spicy tantan noodles. Maybe my preference is in a rut? The restaurant has a slightly dim interior, with both counter and table seating, and quiet staff. It's an unusual quiet atmosphere for a ramen shop. One notable feature here is that the noodles are on the lighter side. However, they offer free refills of rice. The portion comes with half a serving of rice, so I was able to get a normal refill. The tantan noodles have a sesame flavor with spiciness as the main element, which pairs well with rice. It's a good place for those who like to eat heartily. However, in terms of spiciness, despite being labeled as spicy, it was actually quite mild, which was a bit disappointing. I wonder how mild the non-spicy version would be. Since it's tantan noodles, I thought it would be better if the spicy version had a bit more kick to it. I'd like to try the other option with black sesame next time. Despite feeling somewhat underwhelmed, it was a satisfying lunch that left me full.

This place serves delicious tantanmen with a mild level of spiciness that most customers order. It is topped with dried shrimp and crushed nuts, and comes with a side of service rice. However, the quality can vary greatly from day to day. The soup's taste, richness, and contents can be inconsistent. On this day, they forgot to bring the service rice at first (now you have to ask for it when ordering, and they no longer provide pickled vegetables). Then, the soup was lacking in flavor - it tasted half as salty as usual. To make matters worse, there were no dried shrimp in the dish! This mistake made the whole experience unsatisfactory, especially considering the high price of 900 yen. This kind of disappointment happens about one out of every three visits. Despite these flaws, the tantanmen can be incredibly delicious when made correctly. Please pay attention to detail when preparing the dishes.

Connected directly to Kaguracho Station, this ramen shop located underground offers a variety of menu options such as shoyu, miso, tantanmen, and tonkotsu. I wasn't sure what to order, but based on reviews, I decided to try the tantanmen. It was pretty delicious, with a good balance of sweetness and spiciness. However, the service was lacking. Some tables didn't receive water, there were no paper aprons even though many people in business attire were dining, and the seating was cramped.