shops

Oreryu Shio-Ramen is a salt ramen shop that the company describes as born in Shibuya, and this branch in Shibuya Center-gai opens at 11:00 and serves until 7:00 the next morning, every day of the week. The basic bowl, Oreryu Shio-Ramen at ¥830, is built on a broth of chicken bones and spring onion simmered slowly over a low flame. A matured version, Jukusei Shio-Ramen at ¥850, is cooked quickly in a pressure pot so that only the sweetness and umami come through. All seats are non-smoking.

Good to know

• All seats are non-smoking.
• The official page does not give a seat count, a walking time from the station, the payment methods accepted, or whether prices include tax.
• Reservations and any age limit are not mentioned on the official page.

Fuunji is a tsukemen and ramen shop five minutes from the South Exit of JR Shinjuku Station, and one minute from Exit 6 of the Toei Shinjuku Station. The soup is made by simmering whole domestic chicken, chicken bones, kelp, bonito flakes and round herring for eight hours, straining it over six hours and ageing it for a day. The noodles are a medium-thick straight noodle made to order by a noodle maker that supplies many well-known shops. There are 15 counter seats, all non-smoking, and the shop closes when the soup runs out.

Good to know

• The shop does not take reservations.
• It closes when the soup runs out, before the listed closing time.
• All 15 counter seats are non-smoking.
• The shop breaks between 15:00 and 17:00 every day.
• The official site does not say which payment methods are accepted, nor whether prices include tax.
• There is no parking, although there are paid car parks nearby.
• The address is in Shibuya-ku, but the shop is within walking distance of Shinjuku Station.

Bukotsu Soden opened in June 2011 one minute from the Shinobazu Exit of JR Ueno Station, carrying on the methods of Menya Musashi Bukotsu as a shop specialising in tsukemen, noodles served with a separate dipping soup. As at Bukotsu you choose between three flavours, black, white and red. For the black, aromatic vegetables such as garlic and onion are slowly fried in lard until charred, then squid ink is added for extra depth. The menu also includes ra-men, mazesoba and roast pork dishes, with 17 seats in the shop.

Good to know

• The shop has only 17 seats, so you may have to wait.
• Prices and accepted payment methods are not listed on the official website.
• The shop is open every day with no regular closing day.
• The official site has an English version of the Menya Musashi shop pages.

Bukotsu Gaiden is the Menya Musashi group's Dogenzaka shop, three minutes from the Hachiko Exit of JR Shibuya Station, and it has been open since December 2006. You choose between a regular soup of chicken and pork bones combined with crab and dried sardines, and a rich version that adds thick-shaved bonito flakes. You then choose black, with a special soy sauce thickened sauce, red, with a spicy miso sauce, or white, with no sauce. The shop has 19 seats and opens every day.

Good to know

• The shop has only 19 seats, so you may have to wait.
• Prices and accepted payment methods are not listed on the official website.
• The shop is open every day with no regular closing day.
• The official site does not state the smoking policy or whether reservations are taken.

Moko Tanmen Nakamoto is a ramen shop in the basement of a building in Nishi-Shinjuku, open from 10:00 to 23:00. Every bowl on the ramen menu carries a spiciness number from 0 to 9. Shio tanmen, with stir-fried vegetables and no chilli, is level 0 at ¥1,000; moko tanmen, which the shop lists as its most popular dish, is level 5 at ¥1,060 and puts spicy mapo tofu on top of a miso tanmen; and hokkyoku ramen, level 9 at ¥1,080, is the hottest, with the shop warning first-time visitors. There are 19 counter seats and three tables.

Good to know

• The official page does not give a nearest station or a walking time.
• The shop is in the basement of the building.
• Payment methods, the smoking policy, reservations and closing days are not stated on the official page.
• Takeout and delivery are shown on the shop page.

Izuei has been grilling eel in Ueno for around 300 years, carried on by more than nine generations. Umegawa-tei is the branch inside Ueno Park itself, five minutes on foot from the Park Exit.

Dinner runs from 17:00, with last orders at 20:00. Unaju — grilled eel over rice, with soup and pickles — starts at ¥3,960.

Good to know

• Closed on Mondays.
• Reservations are taken by phone only.
• Last orders are at 20:00, so arrive with time to spare.

Moko Tanmen Nakamoto is a ramen shop on the second basement floor of the TOHO Cinemas Shibuya building on Dogenzaka, open from 10:00 to 22:30. Every bowl on the ramen menu carries a spiciness number from 0 to 9. Shio tanmen, with stir-fried vegetables and no chilli, is level 0 at ¥1,000; moko tanmen, which the shop lists as its most popular dish, is level 5 at ¥1,060 and puts spicy mapo tofu on top of a miso tanmen; and hokkyoku ramen, level 9 at ¥1,080, is the hottest, with the shop warning first-time visitors. There are 14 counter seats and five tables.

Good to know

• The official page does not give a nearest station or a walking time. The shop is on the second basement floor of the TOHO Cinemas Shibuya building.
• Payment methods, the smoking policy, reservations and closing days are not stated on the official page.
• The chain publishes a separate page listing regular and temporary closures.

A basement bar that has been open in Ueno since 2001, two minutes from the station. The room is built around a heavy black marble counter, lit to feel like daylight.

The list runs to beers from ¥1,200, single malts such as Macallan 12 and Talisker 18, and a short food menu of house-made plates.

Good to know

• This is not a show bar. The owners ask visitors to note that there are no flame shows or sword performances here.
• Reservations are accepted up to the day before through the website form; for same-day booking, call the bar.
• Closing days are not listed on the official site.

Oreryu Gyozaro is a gyoza and drinks place on the second floor of a building on Dogenzaka, open from 17:30 until 5:00 in the morning every day, with last orders at 4:30. The house gyoza, made with garlic and Chinese chives, is ¥200 for three and ¥400 for six, and there is a coriander version at ¥250 and ¥500. Boiled gyoza, bite-sized gyoza in six fillings, fried rice, noodles and a gyoza set meal are also on the menu. Smoking is allowed.

Good to know

• Smoking is allowed in this shop; the official page does not mention a non-smoking section.
• Last orders are at 4:30 and the shop closes at 5:00.
• The official page does not give a seat count, a walking time from the station, the payment methods accepted, whether reservations are taken, or any age limit.
• The menu is in Japanese only.
• The sister shop Oreryu Shio-Ramen is on the ground floor of the same building, open from 11:00 to 6:00.

A ramen shop at the Okachimachi end of Ameyoko, open around the clock. The broth is made from duck, spring onion and water alone, served with noodles milled to the shop's own order from domestic wholemeal and wheat flour.

The other thing people order is the oyakodon — chicken and egg over rice, cooked for ten seconds so it is almost drinkable.

Good to know

• Cash only — cards, IC cards and QR payments are not accepted.
• Prices are not published on the official site.
• Reservations are only taken for Monday to Thursday between 11:00 and 21:00, so late-night visits are walk-in.