[RAMEN] 金龍菜館 Kinryusaikan and 砦 Toride (from March 18, 2002)

Ramen This Week: 金龍菜館 Kinryusaikan and 砦 Toride

This is going out in spite of Hideki Ishibashi's warnings. Man, this distribution list is getting big.


金龍菜館 Kinryusaikan

The theme for this week is simple, simple, simple. First of all, I have to comment on my visit to this honorable Mito (Ibaragi prefecture) establishment two weekends ago.

Kinryusaikan is the foremost proponent of Mito-han ramen. To put some historical context behind this, apparently Kyushu and Ibaragi have been warring for years over which is the Japanese birthplace of ramen. Kyushu's earliest example is a serving of chinese soba in a plain broth, which is about as close to the current state of ramen as the chimpanzee is to a human being. Ibaragi counters with a version brought to Japan by the legendary Mito Komon. (As a matter of fact, within Ibaragi's borders, Mito Komon is responsible for just about everything. He also discovered electricity, unearthed the lost city of Troy, sparked the American civil rights movement, and manufactured the first portable multi-region DVD player -- all after the age of 85!)

The Mito-han ramen at Kinryusaikan is presented in a wide but shallow bowl, with five small dishes organized somewhat decoratively carrying garlic, ginger, and spring onions, among other things. These can be added to your liking, which in my case means throw the whole damn thing in there. The noodles are standard but good, very smooth and yellow with ample firmness (there's something I like about that phrase). The charsiu is one nice slab that -- thankfully -- does not fall apart or melt away. The soup is a very simple, clear and extremely assari torigara broth with some pine nuts and those little red micro-tomato-looking things they put in Chinese food. By the way, the broth would be equally suited to the task of complementing some equally simple but delicious suigyoza (which would be only pork, nira, and onion); the extra order of Mito-han gyoza is a good substitute. This is suigyoza with a hint of ume -- a great idea.

I find this all very tasty. The flavors in every element are extremely subtle, but everything blends together quite nicely. Ironically, this kind of assari ramen is almost an acquired taste after the many dense bowls of tonkotsu and 55-ingredient boilfests one encounters in Tokyo. All in all, I like the place and have been there 4 times.

That said, the last time I went I had the tsukemen instead. But tsukemen is always lukewarm and I've never really liked it all that much. Stick with the regular.


砦 Toride

Toride is on the original list prepared by the TV Champion Ramen-O Assistant Professor guy from Tokyo University. I finally broke my 7-day ramen probation by walking into this good-looking and spacious wooden interior with some nice design accents, such as the artificial grasses shooting out from the middle of one of the dining tables. Nonetheless, in the Homer Simpson spirit of "less artsy, more fartsy" (from the Springfield Chili Cook-Off episode), we got right to ordering. On the menu you can get (i) a Toride Ramen, (ii) nori and moyashi, (iii) extra veggies and half-boiled egg, or (iv) the more meat. This ramen expedition of four people opted for one of each.

This is no-frills, milky white tonkotsu. This was one well-sized bowl of simple pleasure. Take advantage of the beni-shoga, tsukemono, and the garlic press (one medium-sized clove should be perfect). You can also select thickness and firmness of noodle, and I went with the firmer version of the standard thin noodle. This was right on, baby. The charsiu did not stand out by any means. Nonetheless, there is only one way I can only describe the wholesome feeling of walking back to the station after our meal:

Num num num num num.

It's not all that crowded, and looks like a nice place to hang back later at night. Beer and cocktails (?!) too. 神泉町 20-23. The professor wins again.