つけめん金龍

Kinryu is the fourth shop in the Koike group, run by Mizuhara-san. Almost every shop he is involved with (Ramen Koike, King Seimen, President, Nishino, Koike no Iekei, Aidaya) has received accolades from both Japanese ramen critics as well as Michelin. The cool thing is that each shop has a different concept and a different vibe. Here at Tsukemen Kinryu (the golden dragon), it is all about the tsukemen.

The one to get is the katsuo konbusui tsukemen (鰹昆布水つけめん). Konbusui (昆布水 lit. kelp water) is a viscous liquid made by boiling kelp down. It is jam-packed with umami and a bit of a trend in recent years. I’m not sure who came up with the concept, but Uchoku in Ogikubo (now closed) was seen as the one that made it a thing. The noodles for the tsukemen are served in konbusui. When you dip them into the soup, the two liquids slowly mix. Flavors change, umami increases, taste buds celebrate. Tsukemen Kinryu takes things further by adding katsu (dried bonito fish) into their konbusui for extra umami synergy.

Noodles are made in town at King Seimen, another shop in the Koike group. When Mizuhara-san opened King Seimen, a big part of it was building a noodle room to supply his other shops with custom noodles. The flour is a special blend from Karakida (柄木田製粉) flour company in Nagano.

As always with tsukemen these days, they have a special way to eat it.

Eat the noodles straight
Eat the noodles with a little sea salt
Dip the noodles in the soup
Add some tare into the soup to make it stronger
When the noodles are finished, add some dashi soup and drink

The dipping soup at Tsukemen Kinryu is pure fish dashi. Dried fish is incorporated into the dashi as well as the flavor oil. The only meat is the low-temperature cooked pork chashu on top and the meat in the wontons. Speaking of those wontons, they are the best I’ve had in Japan. Mizuhara-san specially orders them thick so they can be stuffed extra plump. Get the mixed wontons. The shrimp wontons are bulked up with ground chicken to help hold them together. I know someone who loved them so much that he returns a few times a week, orders the wonton soup (ワンタンスープ肉4個、海老3個) without noodles, orders five or six extra wontons, and has his protein load for the day. Make sure you order the wontons as an extra topping.

They also offer ramen and ramen with numbing sansho oil as well as a spicy tantan tsukemen. Any of these are great choices and reasons to return. There is often a short line, but it moves surprisingly quick for this seven-seat shop.

Official X here.

Ramen Adventures

Ramen Shop Reviews from Japan and Abroad

つけめん金龍 (Tsukemen Kinryu in Kanda, Tokyo)

らぁ麺飯田商店 (Iidashoten in Yugawara, Kangawa)

麺創庵砂田 (Sunada in Sugamo, Tokyo)

コオロギラーメン (Cricket Ramen at Antcicada)

つけめん金龍 (Tsukemen Kinryu in Kanda, Tokyo)

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らぁ麺 飯田商店 (Iidashoten in Yugawara, Kangawa)

麺創庵 砂田 (Sunada in Sugamo, Tokyo)

コオロギラーメン (Cricket Ramen at Antcicada)

らぁ麺飯田商店 (Iidashoten in Yugawara, Kangawa)

麺創庵砂田 (Sunada in Sugamo, Tokyo)