LocalEatsJapan

Mouko Tanmen is a popular ramen chain with 29 restaurants all located in the Kanto Region, and its flagship store in Itabashi City in Tokyo. 

They actually may be more famous however for their cup-ramen which stems from big food producer Nissin doing a collaboration with 7-11. Except they have gotten to the point that they are just constantly being sold across the country because they are so popular (I personally have never tried them but it does sound to me that it is kind of the unanimous favourite among conbini cup ramen). 

While it is a chain, it is a bit more of a niche one in the sense that they don’t serve just any traditional ramen – they actually serve a spicy miso and spicy salt ramen which has varying heat levels to it. 

But not just any plain ramen, they serve “tanmen” which is a bowl of ramen topped with stir-fried vegetables and pork, and what Mouko Tanmen separates themselves from the rest on is that they top theirs with tofu as well (maybe to act as a combatant for the spicy soup?)

But as I mentioned earlier, it is not all super spicy ramen that they have, and to cater to the rather spice-sensitive Japanese people, they have a 10+ scale that dictates how spicy the soup is starting at 0 going up over 10 on some occasions (though I imagine this isn’t that common.)

The websites recommend spice level for beginners is 5 which sits at right in the middle, but for those that do not have confidence in their spice at all, the miso soup at a level 3, or a salt one at level 0. 

If in the event that you order something too spicy for your liking there are a TON of toppings you can choose from, so getting something like butter on top could help mellow out the taste, or if you ask the staff they can dilute the soup for you a bit with no additional charge. 

I, being a cholula hot sauce and sriracha connoisseur with absolutely no confidence in my spice abilities, went with the aforementioned miso soup at a 3. I know, it is pitiful. 

But I wanted to enjoy the ramen more than anything, and if I really like the soup I am one to end up drinking it all, so I didn’t want to have to go home and chug a thing of milk.

I don’t want to sound weak or anything, but even the 3 had a good little kick to it, and while I think the level 5 was definitely within my reach, I enjoyed it at this amount of heat. 

The soup is kind of as the name suggests – a strong miso flavour with a bit of heat to it. For those of you that have had anything miso related you know that it can be quite strong and overpowering, but Monko Tanmen managed to implement the heat beautifully, almost as if you were drinking soybeans that were spicy from the get-go. 

It was very addicting, and the various vegetables and meat topped on it made it into more of almost like a hearty meal as opposed to a more often than not ramen bowl which may or may leave you regretting your life decisions when you get your blood pressure taken at the pharmacy…

Oh, and speaking of toppings, the white powder looking stuff that you see on my bowl? That is actually seabura (or back fat) which is actually a common ramen topping in Japan. I don’t know how to describe the taste really, but just know that it gives a really good punch and I haven’t had a time where it hasn’t enhanced the soup I have been drinking. 

When looking at what people’s go-to-orders were before coming here this is what was easily the most recommended, so I took their word for it and it didn’t disappoint. 

Honestly, there are quite a few locations in Tokyo, all with pretty good access, but I found the Shinjuku one especially convenient being so close to the station, and the staff ended up being extremely friendly and actually chatting with me a bit when I entered and left. Something you don’t see from a place so busy, so It definitely made me want to go back, even if not just for the food. 

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More about me

Different types of ordering systems in Japan explained

Purchasing an onigiri to keep me fuelled throughout my journey 🍙

Planning a trip to Japan? These may help: 

🗺 Find a food tour near this restaurant — Viator

🏨 Find a hotel in the area — Booking.com