Mentetsu (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

豊中 麺哲
とよなか めんてつ
Toyonaka Mentetsu

Shoyu ramen: 13 / 20

This ramen place close to Toyonaka station is quite popular, and was one of the last in the area I hadn’t tried yet. There is a long counter surrounding a relatively large kitchen space, in which you can see the cooks jumping from one giant pot to another, and preparing the bowls with four hands. I ordered the shoyu ramen – the restaurant’s osusume – but they also serve a shio broth.

Broth: An intense shoyu broth with some Western notes that reminded me of French ‘pot-au-feu’.

Noodles: They had the right elasticity, but a slightly less smooth feel in mouth than usually, because of their square section.

Meat: A (too) large slice of a very average chashu, with a small part of fat.

Toppings: Some short, sweetish menma with a strong taste. Some long negi, and a sheet of nori.

This was a really classical shoyu ramen – which kind of reminded me Strike Ken’s straight bowl in a slightly less perfect version. That’s not really my favorite kind of ramen, but if you fancy this kind of bowl and you are in the area, you may give it a try.

More info on ramendb.

Other review: Friends in Ramen (Umeda shop), Sukimatime

Hoi (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

麺屋 ほぃ
めんや ほぃ
Menya Hoi

Shoyu tori paitan: 17 / 20
(鶏白湯しょうゆらーめん)

Shio tori paitan: 16 / 20
(鶏塩白湯らーめん)

On this Tuesday evening, I met Ben to continue our Ra-Sai. This led us this time to Toyonaka at Hotarugaike station, an area I know well for having lived nearby during one year, and famous in the ramen world for the miso-ramen star Mitsukabozu. I had never noticed Hoi before though, and the ramen festival was the perfect occasion to fix this mistake. Hoi specialize in a tori paitan that they prepare in a shoyu version (that Ben ordered), and a shio one (that I took). Let’s compare.

Broth: My broth was very good, but Ben’s one was just excellent, as it had some additional fishy (niboshi and katsuo) essence in the tare – I did not recognize the niboshi, but it gave a delicious smokey twist.

Noodles: Thin and not too hard, this enhanced the general Kyoto-ramen feel of the bowl (although they were not as soft as Kyoto noodles).

Meat: OK, here those bowls go way over the top, with three meaty toppings. First, a delicious slice of peppery, smoked duck (with a thick layer of fat, in a French "magret" style). Second, a meatball with very pleasant gingery notes. Third, a nearly raw slice of chicken breast. I must say that I was less convinced by the last one (and it’s not because it was half raw - I loved chicken tataki at Junk Story, for example), although it was an interesting experience.

Toppings: My bowl had some smoked saba with aosa nori - was it a dream or did it somehow taste like parmesan? You also get some mizuna leaves for a fresh twist, and some pleasant notes of crunchy white onion. Finally, there are some very small hanakatsuobushi on the noodles, barely seeable.

In conclusion, an excellent ramen - but I recommend ordering the shoyu version.

More info on ramendb.

Rokudo (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

六道
ろくどう
Rokudou

Sappari tsukemen: 15 / 20
つけ麺（さっぱり)

I had other ramen-plans around Toyonaka station but they happened to be close on that day, so I turned towards this low-key shop with fake concrete walls (seriously??). They serve a variety of dishes, including a shoyu ramen, a tori paitan, as well as two kinds of tsukemen: kotteri (a mix of torigara and tonkotsu) and assari - I chose the latter.

Broth: A very salty shoyu-katsuo-torigara broth that didn’t inspire me so much – not enough taste could be transferred to the noodles.

Noodles: Very good eggy, thick noodles, quite chewy – it looks like they are home made.

Meat: Two large slices of smoked pork - delicious, although definitely overabundant.

Egg: Half a delicious egg, on the hard side, with a very tasty white part.

Toppings: A long branching menma, quite salty but otherwise mild (not sure it was preserved, it may have been fresh). A slice of nori - beware not to soak it too much.

Soup wari: You get some subtle dashi (with a pleasant kombu taste) that you can pour to your liking: a nice personalizable option, but even pouring the whole thing wasn't enough - the broth was still way too salty and undrinkable.

What a contrasted bowl! Too bad the broth was slightly unremarkable, as it could otherwise have been a high class-ramen. One slice of meat less and a less salty broth would have been welcome. But that place is really worth checking if you are in the area - for me, it was better than the more famous Mentetsu.

More info on ramendb.

Rekka (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

烈火
れっか
Rekka

Torigara gyukotsu gyoukai ramen: 14 / 20

Shonai is a relatively nice area on the way north to Toyonaka, with a pleasant market and a popular atmosphere. I had been to Rekka restaurant in this area a few months ago - but had not been convinced by their very contrasted kombu tsukemen. It had interesting features though, and I really wanted to try their other specialty, so it was now time for a second chance. This time, I ordred the torigara gyukotsu gyoukai ramen (which means chicken bones + beef bones + fish - yep, quite a mix!), ‘nami’ (regular) size.

Broth: The first sips of this intense shoyu were definitely too fat – they definitely have a problem with fatness in this shop... But it was mostly the upper layer, and the more I ate, the more this powerful, pungent and quite good broth revealed itself.

Noodles: A bit thicker than the usual shoyu noodles, frizzante and katame – as I asked them.

Meat: It was very crumbly, as last time, but I found it too fat this time – I had to surgically remove the fat to eat only the lean part.

Egg: Half of an overcooked egg.

Toppings: Some thin and crunchy menma, with a mild classical taste enhanced by sesame. Some negi which are a bit too powerful.

Like last time, this is a contrasted bowl - I think it could be great with some more work, although it's already quite decent. They also serve a variety of other dishes: chuka soba with torigara and gyukotsu only, or a ramen with only gyokai, a a spicy miso-gyokai ramen (the "rekka ramen"), and a yamagata karai miso. If you try any of those, leave a comment, I would be curious to know how they are but most certainly won't come back. Oh and for the amateurs: there is a jiro ramen restaurant next door. And as a note, they seem to be affiliated with Strike Ken, as their bowls are signed with the name of this restaurant.

More info on ramendb.

Shunnosuke (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

しゅんのすけ
しゅんのすけ
Shunnosuke

Chuka soba: 14 / 20

I had been at this ramen shop south of Toyonaka a few months ago to try their reimen and had been very pleasantly surprised. On my way through Shonai station, I decided to stop again to discover another of their dish. I continued my shoyu ramen comparison of the last few days to challenge my natural lack of interest for this kind of ramen.

Broth: A classical shoyu broth, not too strong but subtle and pleasant. If I understood correctly the cook, this was made using a mix of niboshi, saba and katsuo - as well as some chicken bones. I could not recognise the niboshi (which I love!) unfortunately, but that was a good broth.

Noodles: Relatively thin and too soft to my taste. They remained very hot quite a long time, so 'gambatte' with your best slurping!

Meat: Two slices of good chashu with melting fat.

Toppings: Some thin, sweet-ish and very mild menma.

Overall, a good - but not exceptional - shoyu ramen. I clearly prefered the reimen I had last time, but that may be just a matter of personal preference. If you are in the area and like shoyu ramen, it’s worth stopping by. Also, the cook is serious but friendly.

More info on ramendb.

Marusho (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

麺やマルショウ
めんやまるしょう
Menya Marushou

Taiwan mazesoba: 17 / 20 
(台湾まぜそば)

And here I am again in one of my Northern Osaka favorites, Marusho. It was time to try their mazesoba - which I had eaten in its summer, cold version - in its original, hot version.

Sauce: A very tasty, relatively spicy, and unfortunately too salty sauce.

Noodles: They had the perfect firmness.

Meat: You have to taste the ground minced meat before mixing it with the rest of the ingredients, to discover the richness of the spices. Sublime.

Egg: A raw egg, which fits perfectly well here.

Toppings: The same kind of toppings as in the cold version - minus the tomato: small nori squares, white negi, green negi - and the oh-so-subtle goma-flavored cubes (here again, taste one before mixing it with the rest, as the sauce might slightly overpower its taste).

As with the cold version, you get some rice to mix with the remainder of the sauce, for a very convincing after-experience. This mix is simple but sublime, and might even deserve in my opinion a special trip to Osaka’s northern suburbs.

More info on ramendb.

Okuya (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

ラーメン おくや
らーめん おくや
Ramen Okuya

Tonkotsu ramen: 13 / 20
(とんこつラーメン)

This restaurant next to Ishibashi station opened maybe six months ago but I still hadn’t the occasion to taste it. I was soon leaving the area so I finally gave it a try.

Broth: A relatively light tonkotsu sprinkled with sesame seeds.

Noodles: Barikata, as ordered.

Meat: The strong asset of this otherwise average bowl: a couple of small, deliciously fatty melting chashu.

Toppings: You can help yourself on a buffet at the back of the restaurant with ginger, moyashi (bean sprouts) and other usual tonkotsu-toppings.

Nothing exceptional, and Ittoryuu nearby may be better (though it is a niboshi shoyu, so it depends on your taste), but you could easily find worse than this place in the area - which, I'm afraid, offers no wonders.

More info on ramendb.

Ichifuku (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

元祖博多屋台 一福
がんそはかたやたい いちふく

Motsumiso tonkotsu ramen: 12 / 20

I had been a couple of time already to this ramen shop, close to Handai Toyonaka campus, which serves a no-thrill, ultra-classical Hakata ramen. I wanted to try it a last time, this time with a little twist, so I ordered the ramen with motsumiso (offal miso).

Broth: A very classical Hakata broth, which totally changes when eaten with the motsumiso. It then becomes more salty and… different. Not better, just different, and in a kind of not-so-interesting-though-reasonably-pleasant way.

Noodles: Barikata, as I ordered them.

Meat: A few thin slices of uninteresting chashu, as it is unfortunately much too often the case with Hakata ramen. The offal in the motsumiso does not taste like motsu and is not especially interesting either.

Toppings: Lots of negi, no menma (as usual in Hakata ramen).

Nothing bad here, but also nothing very exciting. The motsumiso brings a kind of original twist, but it is not enough to make the ramen especially recommendable. I would rather advise to order the basic, classical tonkotsu bowl - it's solid enough for some pleasant Hakata-feel.

More info on ramendb.

Marusho (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

麺やマルショウ
めんやまるしょう
Menya Marushou

Chuka soba Yuuyake : 15 / 20
(中華そば 夕焼け)

Second visit to this not-so-famous-but-remarkable northern restaurant. This time, I ordered the chuka soba in its niboshi version (there are four different declinaisons of it), with ajitama.

Broth: The niboshi taste was not so strong, but definitely present. Subtly pleasant.

Noodles: Linguine-shaped and katame, very delicious.

Meat: One slice of so-so chashu - the fatty part was a bit too crunchy.

Egg: Not bad, but the yolk was a bit too hard, unfortunately.

Toppings: Some microgreen and negi - no menma surprisingly!

This ramen suffers a bit from suboptimal meat and egg - it is definitely not worth ordering the ajitama. But the broth and the noodles form a simple-but-delicious ensemble. The mazesoba I ate on my first visit was more remarkable overall, though.

More info on ramendb.

Ishimanji (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

Oni-soba: 15 / 20

And here I am, back to one of my favorite ramen restaurant in northern Osaka, Ishimanji. This time, I tried the Oni-soba, a soup-less dish.

Sauce: A delicious mix of fishiness and spiciness.

Noodles: Perfectly katame, as I ordered.

Meat: Two slices of chicken, not bad but nothing noteworthy.

Egg: Half a very decent hard-boiled egg.

Toppings: Some cucumber, negi, chili stripes.

A very pleasant mix. I prefered the hiyashi ramen I tried there last time though, for its awesome broth.

Ishimanji (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

石曼子

Reimen: 16 / 20

Back to my favorite ramen-shop in Toyonaka! This time, I tried their seasonal reimen.

Broth: Fresh and intense katsuo shoyu broth with sesame oil. Succulent.

Noodles: Yellow and curly, with the perfect elasticity a reimen should have.

Meat: Some thin, overcooked chashu, with little taste - not sure they bring so much to the dish.

Egg: Half a hard-boiled egg, kind of better than your usually reimen-half-egg, but not exceptional either.

Toppings: A lot of bean sprouts; some mild, thin menma; a couple of slices of lime that brought some bitterness; a few chilii stripes.

This broth was, again, excellent, although maybe not as shining as at the recently tested Tensonkourin. Reimen is starting to turn into one of my favorites, too bad summer will end!

More info on tablelog.


UPDATE 2014/09/08

Just before I was leaving Japane for a few weeks, knowing that when I would come back, the reimen season would be over, I came back to eat this reimen; except that this time, I asked them to remove the meat and egg, which did not bring anything to the dish. The result:

It was as good, if not better, than the former one. A strategy I will keep in mind when I know that the meat and eggs don't bring anything.

Hideyoshi (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

大阪らーめん秀吉
おおさからーめん ひでよし

Niboshi ramen: 10 / 20

I’m still not exactly sure how I ended up in this poorly ranked - and far from everything - ramen shop, a few minutes ago from Shonai station. I guess this had to do with me wanting to explore the ramen scene in Toyonaka... Anyway, I entered in the restaurant and there was just the (young) cook and a friend of him. While I was waiting for my niboshi ramen (the shop’s recommendations), I had a nice chat with his friend. The cook served me my ramen, with the egg as ‘service’ - a nice gesture.

Broth: This was the big weakness of this ramen: honestly, if I hadn’t known, I could never have guessed there was a trace of niboshi in that. It tasted like… well, like nothing particular, really.

Noodles: Nothing special here.

Meat: Two thin slices of very average chashu, with a (too) large part of fat around.

Egg: Without contest, the strong asset of this bowl: it was a very high-quality ajitama, with a tasty, salty white part and a nice creamy yolk (slightly on the runny side).

Toppings: Some mild, sweet-ish menma. You can help yourself with ageing, hard dry garlic on the side, in case such a strange idea would cross your mind.

This bowl was saved by two things: the casual and pleasant atmosphere of the shop, and the surprisingly good aji-tama. I’m afraid this is not enough for me to recommend the place, but in case you happen to be in the area, they also have a mazemen that got one (only one, I’m afraid) good review on ramendb.

More info on ramendb.

Mitsukabuzu (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

味噌らーめん みつか坊主
みそらーめん みつかぼうず
Miso ramen Mitsukabouzu
"Special kansai daitayama": 16 / 20

And here I am again in Mitsukabose, back to Osaka’s miso-ramen star, to make it discover to a friend. We both tried the Special kansai daitayama (not sure of the name again!) with ajitama, that I had noted last time.

Broth: A quite liquid broth with a subtle miso taste, not too strong, and flavored with many herbs - parsil, coriander…

Noodles: That was a surprise here: overcooked. Seems that I’ll have to clarify a few things next time before ordering…

Meat: A slice of firm, lean chashu with some fat veins in the middle.

Egg: It was remarkable: perfectly cooked (gooey yellow, hard white), nothing to say - a model of an egg.

Toppings: A couple of tofu slices and two pieces of non-fermented bamboo - a nice change from the usual menma!

Interestingly, I had a better impression of this soup when I tasted it from my friend’s plate last time (but it I understood correctly this is a special dish, whose composition might vary over time?). Although the broth was very pleasant, the egg fantastic and the bamboo parts brought an interesting twist, the relatively uninteresting meat and overcooked noodles spoiled a little bit the experience. With just a little work, it could easily become a 17/20 though.

More information on ramendb.
The restaurant's website.

Other review: Friends in ramen.

Shunnosuke (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

しゅんのすけ
しゅんのすけ
Shunnosuke

Hyashi tantanmen: 16 / 20

This restaurant close to Shonai station on Takarazuka line specializes in a variety of chicken-based soup. I was ready to order one of them to challenge my natural lack of interests for chicken-ramen, but then realized that they were also serving a cold tantanmen. I love tantanmen, I love reimen, I had to try this.

Sauce: No real broth, but a white tantanmen sauce with a light but subtle taste.

Noodles: Perfectly cooked, katame in a kind-of-elastic-but-oh-so-pleasant way.

Meat: As usual for tantanmen, there was some ground meat, but this one had an interesting braised after-taste. On top of that, there were two slices of firm chashu. They had the same nice braised after-taste - but otherwise kind of bland (like some average cold roastbeef?), and a part that was way too fat.

Egg: A raw egg topped the whole thing. Mixing it to the sauce it made it pleasantly thicker.

Toppings: A little bit of salad.

I would have given it a 17 without the two relatively uninteresting slices of meat (the ground meat was far enough). It is a very good ramen though; if you like tantanmen and don’t mind raw egg, it is really worth trying.

More information on ramendb.

Marusho (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

麺やマルショウ
めんやまるしょう
Menya Marushou

Hyashi Taiwan mazesoba: 17 / 20 
(冷たい台湾まぜそば)

What a nice surprise to discover a ramen shop specializing in mazesoba not too far from Osaka University! This restaurant has an impressive variety of specialties, also including different kinds of ramen. On this hot summer evening, I ordered the cold mazesoba.

Sauce: No broth obviously, but a very tasteful, slightly spicy sauce, that you can spike with some garlic (not fresh, alas) and vinegar.

Noodles: Very enjoyable al dente noodles.

Meat: Some flavorful ground meat.

Egg: Half of a boiled egg, with a pleasant, slightly creamy yolk.

Toppings: A profusion of toppings: goma(sesame)-flavored menma cubes, white and green negi, nori bits and even a cherry tomato. Mix well the whole thing and you get a fantastic combination!

I also got as a side-dish a small bowl of white rice. I was a bit skeptical (why not bread and potatoes also?), but the rice actually proved to be a very tasty way to soak up all what remains at the bottom of my bowl after I finished the noodles (I don’t know if that’s very ‘kosher', but that’s how I ate it). The flavour remained during many minutes in my mouth as I was finding my way back home. So far, this is with Misukabose and Ishimanji my favorite ramen restaurant in Toyonaka (although in Osaka, Cliff’s mazesoba may have my slight preference: I think that a raw egg fits better with mazsoba - but of course maybe not with a cold one).

More information on ramendb.

Rekka (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

'Kokon' tsukemen: 13 / 20(濃昆 つけ麺)

This ramen restaurant two stops north of Juso has a large variety of slightly unusual dishes, including a mazesoba and three sorts of tsukemen: a clear-broth tsukemen, a chicken-based chinese tsukemen, and a spicy miso tsukemen. I was tempted to try the mazesoba but being in a tsukemen-run, I went with the clear-broth one.

Broth: A clear broth served sizzling. Not so much taste (it somehow reminds chicken?) and a bit fat. Does not coat so much the noodles, and the soup wari was a bit too fat and salty (they also add a yuzu peel to give some additional taste, but it went unnoticed when I ate it with the rest).

Noodles: Relatively thin compared to what you would find in a tonkotsu gyokai tsukemen, but this makes sense, since the broth is much lighter in taste.

Meat: A couple of slices falling apart as soon as you touch them with your chopsticks, melting in the mouth, fat but excellent. Something quite novel here.

Egg: Half of an OK egg.

Toppings: Unusually, the broth included a slice of kombu. Some menma with a mild taste, flavored with sesame.

Difficult to give a rating here. The whole thing was definitely too fat and I felt slightly nauseous half an hour later. However, the crumbly meat was excellent and original. I would not order it again, but this was an interesting experience. I have to come back to try their other specialties.

More information on ramendb.

Ishimanji (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

石曼子
Ishimanji
いしまんじ

Black tonkotsu ramen: 18 / 20

For some reason, you won’t find this ramen place on ramendb. I cannot explain that, as it is located in the big commercial center of Senri Chuo, amongst plenty of other restaurants. And it’s good, very good. I went there several time and tried most if not all all of their recipes (they have 5 or 6 different styles), but this review will be about one of my favorite, the black tonkotsu.

Broth: A relatively assari tonkotsu with some black sesame juice, extremely pleasant and tasty, flavored with good dry garlic (yes, I said 'good' one – most of the dry garlic around does not taste good, but this one is an exception)

Noodles: Thin, straight, barikata (at least if you order them so). What else?

Chashu: Two slices of an absolutely delicious chashu, slightly braised, alternating firm lean part with melting fat.

Toppings:  Crunchy soy sprouts, kikurage, red chili stripes. Also, two menma - one large and one thick -  both a bit sweet and quite tasty.

I’m probably biased here: this is exactly the kind of assari tonkotsu broth that I love, very Ippudo-like. Combined with great chashu, this is not far from perfection to me. I should try again the egg some day, to see how it fares. This is your best ramen choice if you are in Senri Chuo, and an excellent one in northern Osaka.

UPDATE (2015): Finally, it can be found on ramendb!

More information on tabelog.

Mitsukabozu (Osaka-fu, Toyonaka-shi)

味噌らーめん みつか坊主
みそらーめん みつかぼうず
Miso ramen Mitsukabouzu

Red miso ramen: 17 / 20
(赤味噌らーめん)

In the isolated suburbs of Hotarugaike, not too far from Itami airport, you willl find one of the most highly-rated miso ramen of Kansai (actually, it is currently the most highly ranked miso ramen of Osaka on ramendb). Mitsukabozu (or Mitsukabose, as they rather seems to like to be called) looks more like a restaurant than like a local ramen joint, with many tables, as well as two counters, and a simple but pleasant atmosphere. They specialize in both a red miso and a white miso ramen. I had the red miso ramen.

Broth: A rich, heavy (but not so heavy compared to other miso ramen) and tasty broth. As often with miso, there is an after-taste that some people may find unpleasant, but it was bearable for me (compared to the slightly overwhelming taste of e.g. the famous Kururi in Tokyo).

Noodles: Slightly curvy, middle-sized.

Meat: A couple of slices of a very firm chashu - a bit salty, but good. A couple of not-so-remarkable meatballs also.

Topping: Some thick, crunchy menma, with a surprising peppery taste - quite good.

This is definitely a high-quality miso ramen. My friend ordered the seasonal "special kansai daitayama" (I think, not sure about the name anymore), supposedly "healthier". It was even better than my bowl, with a slightly more fishy broth flavored with coriander, very umami. The taste was more complex and lasted longer, and the noodles thinner. Next time, I will try this one if it is still on the menu.

More information on ramendb.

Other review: Friends in Ramen 1 (for the KANSAI bowl), Friends in Ramen 2 (for the Umeda shop)

The restaurant's website.