Rock and Noodles

Okay! Went to a cool raamen shop that had things most places don't have (at least raamen shops don't have.) First, a menu for kids. Smaller portions with orange juice and a cheap toy. And, rock music on the speakers. Not pop music, rock. As in loud guitars. Great place but a little pricey and the noodles were over-cooked. But worst of all, I forgot the name of the place! This affords me the opportunity to go back and a) take a photo to share with you all and b) see if it was just that day the noodles were over-cooked or if it's a regular thing. And to check out the music some more.

There is currently a raamen boom here in Japan. Raamen shops are springing up everywhere and they're starting to get away from frumpy old 'traditional' designs and going with trendy new 'modern' designs. At least for the building and fixtures. This results in Euro-trash modern settings for ancient food. It's both sad and amusing. I have a feeling someone's going to upgrade the food to 'trendy' new heights soon, too. Maybe a vegetarian tofu California raamen (I'm sure there must be one) or a caffeine-free 'lite' raamen. And jazz on the stereo. Maybe a Bill Frisell greatest hits CD.

The Nation's Biggest Noodle....

...Chain.

Set for 600 yen. A bowl for 490 yen. And up, plus build-it yourself (i.e. add the few ingredients they have available - egg, onions, etc. for about an extra 100 yen each.)

Yes, I did it. I slurped some tonkotsu (豚骨) raamen at the nation's largest chain: Kourakuen. 幸楽苑, which could be translated as Sweet Fun Garden. It's transliteration is Kourakuen, 'ko' (幸) meaning 'sweet,' and 'raku' (楽) meaning 'fun,' or 'enjoyable,' and 'raku' (苑) meaning 'garden.' However, the food was good and plentiful. The service was quick and didn't shout at the customers like Samurai no Michi (侍の道) did.

The big surprise, though, was that it was quiet: neither loud waiters and waitresses nor loud music. In fact, the music was definitely muted but I think I heard some Bill Frisell guitar work. The music was jazz, I might add. Plus, no here's the surprise, the entire restuarant was Non-Smoking. Non-smoking, I tell you, in a land where the cigarette warning says: "Don't smoke too much."

In the heat wave Japan is going through right now, though, raamen shops aren't doing so well. According to one source, Korakuen Raamen's sales are down 10% over last summer. I guess when it gets hot, people try to avoid hot food. (Although everyone sells a zaru- something. Zarusoba or zaru-raamen. ざるそば. Cold noodles.)

What I've found out about Korakuen - mostly from their menu: They've been in business since 1954. However, if you want more info about this chain of nearly 200 restaurants, you can check out this link: Korakuen.

Enjoy Your Raamen!