ラーメンニッコウ

Nikkou is one of the highest-ranked, most talked about ramen shops in Japan. It’s also a trek to get to. But if you have some time on your way out west, you might as well pop in for some top-level noodles.

All along the shores of Lake Biwa there are free spots to camp. Parking and toilets included. Imagine waking up to this every morning. Sure, the noisy road one block away has the random bosozoku gang throughout the night, but earplugs fix that problem.

The mountains around Biwako are beautiful. Sometimes it is hard to imagine that you are only an hour from Kyoto.

Nikkou is next to some beautiful rice fields, and only a couple blocks from the lackshore.

Toripaitan (鶏白湯), Clear shoyu (日香麺), and Kokuni Black (湖国ブラック) are the main choices. What makes a critique of Nikkou so hard is that they have a constant limited menu as well. Check their Instagram for more info on that. Being my first time I went with the tsukemen.

Damn, the limited Sanma Ramen (さんまラーメン) sounds pretty nice.

Craft beer? It’s uncommon for a ramen shop to have anything besides your run-of-the-mill Japanese draft beers. Here at Nikkou, they have Japanese craft beer from some of the country’s best breweries. I could drone on about the craft beer situation in Japan. Long story short, the big producers of generic beer also make and distribute generic craft brews to restaurants around the country. No thanks. Nikkou, on the other hand, procures kegs from my favorite Shizuoka brewer, West Coast Brewing.

Accolades cover the walls. Best Ramen 2009? These were the only ranking lists back in the day and were very useful to my early ramen hunting adventures.

The tsukemen takes a bit of time to cook.

The paitan soup at Nikkou is a 100% chicken deal.

The master is a well-traveled ramen hunter and uses his shop to give the locals a taste of the vast world of ramen. Judging by the quality of the standard menu, I can guess that those limited bowls are a real treat.

Thick noodles are enhanced with a bit of yuzukosho spice for an added kick and bit of aroma.

Top-level. Five out of five if you don’t mind the journey.

North of Biwako was a bit foggy, so I headed south.

This is the Miho Museum. One of the most spectacular ones I’ve seen.

Walk through the tunnel into paradise. Shangri-La. The story of Shangri-La tells of a traveler washed ashore on a river. He spies a hidden cave. Emerging on the other side if the most beautiful valley he has ever seen. I won’t spoil it with too many photos, but this building designed by I. M. Pei is spectacular.

The ramen at Nikkou is spectacular as well. Maybe it’s served in Shangri-La.

Ramen Adventures

Ramen Shop Reviews from Japan and Abroad

ラーメンニッコウ (lamen Nikkou in Shiga Prefecture)

煮干そば藍 (Niboshi Soba Ai in Kyoto)

鳥そば真屋 (Makotoya in Gifu Prefecture)

凪 (Nagi in Shinjuku's Golden Gai)

ラーメン ニッコウ (lamen Nikkou in Shiga Prefecture)

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煮干そば 藍 (Niboshi Soba Ai in Kyoto)

鳥そば 真屋 (Makotoya in Gifu Prefecture)

凪 (Nagi in Shinjuku's Golden Gai)

ラーメンニッコウ (lamen Nikkou in Shiga Prefecture)

煮干そば藍 (Niboshi Soba Ai in Kyoto)

鳥そば真屋 (Makotoya in Gifu Prefecture)