The Best Ramen in Tokyo, Kyoto, & Osaka | Where to Eat in Japan

It’s crazy to think it’s now been 9 years since our first trip to Japan, when I first wrote this guide. Back in 2015, we spent 2 weeks in exploring Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, with day trips to smaller cities along the way. And while we saw a ton of beautiful places and experienced many uniquely Japanese things (I’m looking at you, Robot Restaurant), our trip was unsurprisingly guided by the goal of eating as much amazing ramen, sushi, katsu, curry, takoyaki, matcha-flavored sweets, and other Japanese food as possible. So I’ve constructed this guide around my favorite places to eat and drink while I was there, from Michelin-starred restaurants to hole-in-the-wall spots to street food to 6 person bars, along with recommendations on non-food related activities and sights nearby.

We went to a ton of places, so I’m constructing this guide into separate parts because I could probably write an entire post just on my birthday meal with Jiro’s son. I wanted to kick things off with the kind of food we ate the most during our trip: RAMEN. I did a final count, and Mike and I ate a combined total of 16 bowls of ramen during our first 2 week trip in Japan – basically more than bowl a day. But can you blame us? In a country filled with so much amazing ramen and so many different styles, we couldn’t resist trying as many as possible.

Since then, we’ve been back to Japan 7 more times, so I’ve noted which shops we’ve revisited and included some new additions.

I’ve separated Tokyo into its own guide here

Kyoto Ramen Koji

Japan has a wide variety of regional styles of ramen, so if you’re looking to try as many kinds as possible without going across the country, then Kyoto Ramen Koji is where you want to go. Located in the top floor of the Isetan department store in the Kyoto JR train station, “ramen street” has 8 shops that each offer a different style of regional ramen. They even have a printed map guide at the entrance with photos & descriptions of all the different ramens, and then you order from vending machines located outside of each shop. If you don’t have plans to go to Kyoto, there is apparently also a Tokyo Ramen Street with the same concept. We tried 7 of the 8 shops at Kyoto Ramen Koji over lunch and dinner in the same day. This self-created Man vs. Food challenge was almost completed due to 2 factors:

1. The two of us split 1 bowl of the smallest size offered, as some places do allow you to select a smaller portion
2. We took a train out of Kyoto Station to visit the Suntory Yamazaki distillery in between, which was not only an awesome experience (I’m a big Japanese Yamazaki whiskey fan and HIGHLY recommend it if you’re a whiskey lover), but the liquor also aided our hunger for dinner when we came back 🙂

One of our favorite and more unique bowls of ramen was the sukiyaki style pictured above from King of Ramen. Sukiyaki is a cooking technique that involves cooking the meat in a blend of soy sauce, sugar, and mirin rice wine vinegar, so the broth takes on this slightly sweet-savory flavor that’s super tasty. The shop also offers raw eggs at the table so you can crack as many as you’d like into your bowl of hot soup. We also loved the rich, creamy Hakata-style ramen from Ikkousha, with thin chewy noodles and tender flaps of pork chashu that hung over the sides of the bowl (note that there are now outposts of this chain around the world, including one in Los Angeles).

Skip the one that looks like it’s topped with a ton of chashu, pictured above. While you do get a LOT of chashu for the price, the meat itself isn’t as good as the rest of the shops, so I only recommend this if you really just want a lot of pork and can sacrifice on quality.

Once you’re done eating, make sure to grab a cone of green tea ice cream before exiting to the 10 story outdoor staircase that leads to a roof deck with views of Kyoto.

Karako Ramen

Outside of Kyoto Ramen Koji, we tried out Karako Ramen in Kyoto. This was actually my least favorite ramen for the price, as the kotteri bowl recommended by Lonely Planet was very lackluster despite being thick and heavy, like I was sipping oil and fat without getting much flavor in return. What made our meal worthwhile though and why I still recommend going here is their karaage fried chicken pictured above, which easily ranks as not just some of the best karaage but some of the best fried chicken I’ve had period. For about $4 you get 4 massive pieces of the juiciest, most flavorful chicken that when paired with a squeeze of lemon and some kewpie mayo hits all the right spots. If you’re gonna get a ramen to go with it, go for the spicy miso variety, which we enjoyed far better than their “featured” bowl.

Kinryu Ramen

For a quick and cheap way to get your ramen fix in Osaka, look for the giant dragon statues around the Dotonbori main downtown area. While Dotonbori is filled with street food options (and you should definitely try as much as you can), Kinryu Ramen is an easy option for a filling meal as they offer their ramen for just 600 yen in an open air atmosphere.  Their location in the heart of Dotonbori even has faux tatami seating, so you can kick off your shoes and sit cross legged while slurping down your noodles in the fresh air. It’s definitely not the best ramen, but it comes with unlimited kimchi at the counter to throw into your bowl, and the 600 yen price is just right if a craving hits.

While we had almost countless bowls of ramen during our trip, we barely scratched the surface. I’m personally planning to follow Ivan Orkin’s list for the next time I’m in Tokyo, and definitely also want to find a way to Fukuoka, which is the birthplace of many of the most famous ramen chains (hello, Ippudo!) and Hokkaido to the north where they specialize in miso ramens.

Next up in this series are my recommendations for Japan’s other noodles: udon & soba!