LocalEatsJapan

Located along the marunouchi line, Daruma is both a local and nationally loved ramen shop.  

The area it is located in is a big residential area, so it will often be filled with regulars that are within walking distance, so there is not really a specific time for when it is busy, as it could be anytime throughout the day. 

I have gone in the summer before, and the owner has umbrellas you can borrow to protect yourself from the heat a bit which is really appreciated. 

The shop is run by just the owner himself, and whenever I have eaten here I sense the passion he holds towards his ramen making. He is also just a very nice person. 

The “teuchi” part in the name refers to something being hand-made, and this is because the owner makes all the noodles from hand. In the picture I have of the outside of the restaurant, there is a little window on the left, and through there you can see the chef making the noodles throughout the day (usually at night). 

Whenever I see something like this at a restaurant it almost makes me want to try it, even if just to support the owner(s). 

The shop itself is quite spacious and very clean. I have seen very few ramen restaurants this clean actually, but it again speaks to the pride the owner has for his shop. 

All the seats are along the counter, but they have very generous spacing so you don’t need to feel cramped at all. 

The ramen is a soy-sauce base, but not overly salty or with an overly-strong soy sauce flavour either. It is super rich while at the same time not super filling. You can tell that the owner has perfected it, and while I wish I could know just everything that he puts into it, that info is by no means going to allow me the knowledge to replicate it. 

The aforementioned noodles are likely the star of the show though, and they are super thick with a really good elasticity to them. They are a bit al-dante, and soak up the soup really nicely. It is also cool because you usually see thin noodles paired with a soy-sauce based soup so this is quite unique. 

The chashu is also amazing – perfectly flavoured and super tender. Speaking of which, they have チャーシューごはん (chashu gohan) which is essentially a few different cuts of the chashu pork served on top of white rice and this was incredible. 

It is almost as if the pork was glazed with something before being served, but it was so good I have contemplated going just for it alone sometimes. It is also only 270 yen, an incredible deal. 

With the closest station being under 20 minutes from Shinjuku station and relatively close to areas like Nakano, I highly recommend you come here to check it out. You will not be disappointed! 

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