中華そば先崎

Popular shops in the countryside of Japan, like Masaki near Mito, Ibaraki, can be a real pain to get to. This was my third attempt at Masaki, a shop that many other local ramen chefs from just north of Tokyo cite as their number one. All I can say is check Twitter, arrive early, and make an offering at your local Shinto shrine.

Success! I actually rented a car, drove up here the night before, and arrived 30 minutes before opening just to be safe. Overkill, yes, but when I get a spot in my sights I can’t diverge.

The menu changes frequently, so you’re on your own when you go. There is a common thread of creamy chicken toripaitan, niboshi dried fish, and oysters. A rudimentary internet search shows around a dozen different iterations. On this day we had chicken and hamaguri clam, straight toripaitan, oyster and niboshi, and one with some kanji characters I’d never encountered before. 圧搾 (assaku) means pressed. So the 圧搾平子煮干そば is pressed sole niboshi soba. I think. I didn’t try it so I’ll remain ignorant. It seems like the master just gets random, high-quality dried seafood and makes different, rad ramen bowls.

The oyster niboshi was indeed rad. Refined and elegant, with a bit of oomph from the oysters. The kind of bowl that niboshi nerds love. Yes, this style at this level is becoming common these days, and maybe you don’t need to drive a few hours outside of Tokyo for it, but I left extremely satisfied.

My friend had the toripaitan. Another excellent slurp paired with a mushroom and truffle flavor-enhancing spoonful. This is the kind of shop to come hungry and crush two bowls. And then come back and do it a week later.

As expected, the ramen here is excellent. Five stars. Ten stars. 100 points. Whatever your scale is, I put this one up at the top.

Official Twitter here.

Still reading? Did you know that I released a ramen cookbook? It’s available wherever fine cookbooks are sold, aka Amazon. Can’t wait to see what recipes you come up with!

Click here!

Ramen Adventures

Ramen Shop Reviews from Japan and Abroad

中華そば先崎 (Masaki in Mito, Ibaraki)

ジラフ (Giraffe in Tochigi Prefecture)

麺や蒼 AOI (Aoi in Tsukuba, Ibaraki)

ラーメンスミス (Smith in Sendai, Miyagi)

中華そば 先崎 (Masaki in Mito, Ibaraki)

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ジラフ (Giraffe in Tochigi Prefecture)

麺や 蒼 AOI (Aoi in Tsukuba, Ibaraki)

ラーメンスミス (Smith in Sendai, Miyagi)

中華そば先崎 (Masaki in Mito, Ibaraki)

麺や蒼 AOI (Aoi in Tsukuba, Ibaraki)