櫻井中華そば店 (Sakurai Chukasoba in Hodogaya, Kanagawa Prefecture)

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櫻井中華そば店

Top-level kodawari shoyu ramen at Sakurai Chukasoba in Yokohama. Is this Kanagawa Prefecture’s best bowl?

Yeah, yeah, there’s no such thing as the best. This shop, however, dominated the number one spot on Tabelog for some time. It should be obvious that this is a stellar bowl of ramen. Long lines and choice ingredients. Welcome to the world of best.

Homemade noodles as well.

Shio and shoyu ramen. There is a tsukemen option for repeat customers, but the shoyu is probably the way to go. Or maybe the shio. Both were excellent.

Sakurai displays their kodawari on the counter. This list of specialty ingredients is deep.

Shinshu Shamo (信州黄金シャモ) chickens are a specialty breed from the Nagano area of Japan. Noodles are made from a blend of Hokkaido and Saitama flours. Yonebishi Shoyu (ヨネビシ醤油) from a 200-year-old soy sauce maker.

This is a picture-perfect bowl. The slight yellow of a layer of rich chicken oil. The golden eggs. The vibrant green negi. Sakurai is worthy of praise.

The soup is especially deep in umami. The promotional websites for both the chickens and the soy sauce boast about the levels of umami in their products. It all blends together for just the right level of salty and savory.

Line up early, this shop usually sells out before their posted closing time.

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