Takano is a ramen place with a lot of hype around it — among many, many other accolades, they’ve been featured in the Michelin guide.
So of course — surprise surprise — you’re going to have to wait in line to get in. I showed up about ten minutes before their 11:30 opening on a Tuesday morning, and the line was already pretty impressive. I wound up waiting about an hour to get in.
I was afraid that it might turn out to be overhyped. As it turns out, the hype was absolutely correct. Takano serves some seriously amazing ramen.
They have a few different varieties, but they’re known for their niboshi shoyu ramen, which is made from chicken and dried sardines.
It’s so good. It’s easily one of the saltier bowls of ramen I’ve had recently; it seems like it should be too salty. But it’s not. It really works. There’s a deep smokiness, a subtle fishy funk, and a nice hit of meatiness from the chicken that all somehow feels simultaneously assertive and subtle. It’s hard to describe. There’s an impressive subtlety and depth of flavour here that belies how surface-level in-your-face and salty it initially seems. There’s a lot going on.
Another noteworthy element of this bowl is the fact that they make their own noodles here, and they are absolutely perfect. You can see dark flecks in the noodle strands from the whole wheat flour that they use, which also gives the noodles a distinctively nutty flavour. It’s a perfect match for the very flavourful broth.
And the texture is amazing. The noodles are distinctively chewy, with a nice firm bite despite being fairly thin. But they never feel too firm — they’re just right. They might be the best ramen noodles that I’ve ever had.
Plus, there’s the chashu, which is luxuriously tender and absolutely crammed with flavour.
A more deluxe bowl is also an option, but the ordering is done via the usual vending machine; I wanted to be positive I got the right thing, so I ordered the basic ramen for 700 yen. And as it turns out, the bowl was absolutely perfect as it was.
Plus, that’s an absolute steal — considering the quality and the quantity contained in this bowl, I don’t think you’ll find a better deal on ramen in all of Tokyo.
Location: 2 Chome-15-１０ Nakanobu, Shinagawa-ku, Tōkyō-to 142-0053
How to find it: There’s no English, but look for the rustic wooden sign with black lettering (and the line, of course).