February 27, 2013
On a dull, drizzling day in Tokyo I set out for my second-ever bowl of tsukemen (ramen dipping noodles). After its introduction in the early 2000’s, tsukemen has boomed in popularity, rising to a crescendo a few years ago and still going strong. Many, many shops in Tokyo offer both standard ramen and tsukemen, and the consensus […]
February 26, 2013
London is currently undergoing a ramen boom. In the past year alone, five new ramen bars are opening its doors to a public clamouring for some hearty B-kyu Japanese grub. It’s a ramen war, baby. Compared to what was available before, these are serious noodle bars with a tight focus on all the accoutrements that […]
February 14, 2013
Yakitori at a cramped stall in Omoide-yokocho (Memory Lane) in Shinjuku. The skewer came in a weird soup. Master called it “henna soup”. It was tonkotsu-ish.
February 12, 2013
Although I’ve been writing for Umami Mart for almost three years, I have yet to meet any of my fellow writers as most of them live across the Pond. But a few weeks ago I received a lovely surprising. Anders, a Danish designer who writes the Skankynavia column for UM and was crucial in designing […]
February 1, 2013
*Nahoko Morimoto is a Tokyo-based photographer. Her work has been featured in Brutus and Vogue Japan.
January 31, 2013
Ramen has always been big in Japan, and since the mid-2000’s it has exponentially grown in popularity and trendiness, with younger entrepenuers trying their hand at making the nation’s most beloved B-kyu (B-Class) food. B-kyu foods are defined as “comfort foods” like curry, ramen, gyudon (beef bowl) and yakisoba. In contrast, A-kyu (A-Class) foods are […]
January 30, 2013
I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. Not exactly a ramen mecca, but times change. Ramen’s profile is ever-growing and in 2011 “celebrity chef Jonathan Sawyer” (that’s according to his bio, I guess he’s on tv or something) opened NoodleCat, Cleveland’s first ramen house. Hometown ramen! I couldn’t wait to try it and finally got […]
January 24, 2013
I woke up on January 1, 2013 ready to shred on the tatami mats at my husband’s parent’s house in western Tokyo. After a great workout I took a walk and saw Mt. Fuji in clear view. It was a memorable Jan 1 already. At 12 o’clock, my in-laws and I all piled into a […]
January 16, 2013
If I gave you several options for dinner and you knew nothing about the restaurants other than their names, and one was called “Junk Garageâ€, you’re eating there, right? I’m going with Junk Garage every single time. I heard about this shop through the usual ramen fanatic-suspects and was fascinated by their namesake ‘junk’ ramen, […]
January 9, 2013
Cream anmitsu at Nakamuraya on the 9th floor of Tokyu department store (west wing) in Shibuya.