山﨑麺二郎 (Yamazaki Men Jiro in Kyoto)

0 Reviews

山﨑麺二郎

Yamasaki Men Jiro. Don’t let the name fool you, this shop has no relation to the other Jiro. While the latter is intense pork ramen, Yamazaki Men Jiro is, as the kids say, kodawari af. Delicate, homemade noodles. Craft ingredients. If you aren’t tired of these textbook-perfect bowls, this one should be high on your list.

Ramen, shio ramen, and tsukemen. Each bowl requires a different homemade noodle. Some of them use flour meant for udon noodles for a bit more chew. The master, Kenjiro Yamazaki (山﨑健二郎さん) trained at famous Mennoya (麺乃家) in Osaka but wanted to run a shop in his hometown of Kyoto. He also wanted to kick things up, aiming for a top-class bowl.

The dashi uses seven kinds of dried seafood. It is blended with a chicken broth and rounded soy sauce blend.

Another quite excellent bowl.

Another difference between this Jiro and the other Jiro is the ranking. While the stinky garlic Jiro by default wins according to public opinion (three of the top 20 shops in Japan are Jiro shops), the Jiro here wins with the critics. Ramen Walker ranked it number two in Kyoto, just behind the unbeatable Touhichi. It’s an interesting world, the realm of ranking ramen, but getting the nod from some of the top ramen slurpers in Japan counts for a lot. As always, keep in mind that these rankings are in constant flux and really don’t matter. It’s interesting to note that the general public (or at least those reviewing shops online) tend towards thicker styles while the critics working for ramen magazines tend towards lighter styles.

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!

https://amzn.to/38hVKp6

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