We leave this ramen joint half happy, half less than satisfied.
Akihabara is world-famous for being a city within a city that’s bursting at the seams with electronics, maid cafes, and anything related to anime, video games and manga. However, in recent years, this bustling Tokyo neighbourhood has earned a reputation for something else as well: good ramen.
Now you can find a large number of old and new noodle joints drawing crowds of hungry diners in between their shopping sprees, but how do you choose between them all? One easy solution is to stop by Akihabara Ramen Center, where you can find meals on the menu for 500 yen (US$3.13).
With today’s rising prices, a 500-yen dish is always a good find, especially in the heart of Tokyo, but we wanted to know if the quality would be on par with the price. After hearing that they recently added a new miso ramen to the menu – they previously only served tonkotsu (pork bone) and shoyu (soy sauce) broth –we immediately headed over to the store to try it.
▼ This sign outside the store reads: “Sorry to keep you waiting! Miso Ramen has begun!”
Located just a minute’s walk from the Showa-dori exit of JR Akihabara Station, and a zero-minutes’ walk from Tokyo Metro Akihabara Station, the 24-hour Akihabara Ramen Center is in a very convenient spot, earning it a big tick of approval in our books for ease of access. Of course, the tiny 500-yen price point is another big drawcard, leaving us with one final checkbox to tick – taste.
▼ Oh, and if we’re factoring in appearance, there’s another tick earned right there.
Topped with green onions, bamboo shoots, and char siu pork, there was no skimping on the toppings like we feared, and it arrived about five minutes after ordering so we didn’t have to wait long for our meal. If you do want more toppings, you can always order them for an additional fee, but one thing you’ll want to note is you can’t order extra noodles.
That wasn’t a dealbreaker for us, as we weren’t in the mood for a big meal, and we were more curious about the taste. Taking a first slurp of the broth, we found that the flavour seemed rather light for a miso ramen, lacking the deep richness you might expect.
▼ However, since it was miso ramen, it still had great flavour.
Picking up a mound of noodles, there weren’t a lot of them, but what they lacked in volume they made up for in taste, as they were delicious, with just the right amount of firmness.
If you spied another dish in the corner of the photo above, that’s because we were seduced into ordering another cheap meal that seemed like a great deal.
▼ A rice set with a “half-size” serving of stir-fried vegetables, priced at 450 yen for non-ramen diners or 250 yen for diners who’ve ordered ramen.
We ordered this set, which was undeniably cheap, but if we’re being honest, it’s a meal we won’t be ordering again. Though it tasted okay, it just didn’t seem to complement the noodles in a way that was worth the added expenditure.
When you can get a bowl of noodles for 500 yen, you don’t really need anything else, especially when you’re in the heart of Akihabara, where so many shops and arcades are beckoning for your time and attention. Adding more to your order tends to take away the great-deal feel of the cheap noodles, so in our opinion, you’re better off using the Akihabara Ramen Center as a short stop to refuel on a small meal before making your way on to other places in the area.
Store information
Akihabara Ramen Center / 秋葉原ラーメンセンター
Address: Tokyo-to, Chiyoda-ku, Kandahirakawacho 4-1
東京都千代田区神田平河町4-1
Open: 24 hours every day
Photos ©SoraNews24
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