Kulture Kaiwa

Tokyo is filled to the brim with top notch ramen restaurants, ranging from neat ‘n’ tidy popular chains to haphazard alleyway shops, it’s pretty hard to find a bad bowl. During my 9-month stint living in Tokyo, though, Ramen Musashiya reigned supreme.

Where to find Ramen Musashiya

Okay, so this ramen joint is actually in Saitama prefecture, north-west of Tokyo. BUT, it’s only an hour away from Shinjuku on a single train, and, seeing as it can often take an hour just to get from ward to ward in Tokyo on multiple trains, I think it still counts as a must-visit for anyone in Tokyo.

Ramen Mushiya is located in Kawagoe, just a 3 minute walk from Honkawagoe Station. For about $5 AUD (¥520), you can jump on the Seibu-Shinjuku line from Seibu-Shinjuku Station all the way to Honkawagoe, the final stop on the line. Be sure to take the Express Honkawagoe train to get there in an hour as the local trains will take much much longer. There’s a few alternative routes you can take from different locations that will require some transfers. Shinjuku and Ikebukuro are the two stations that require just one train and will get you there in an hour.

I visited during the Kawagoe Festival so sadly don’t have many pictures of the Kawagoe surrounds, but enjoy the festival and ramen photos! Tokyo Cheapo has some wonderful visuals and recs for a day trip to Kawagoe though, you can check it out here.

Visiting Kawagoe

Kawagoe is an old castle town known as “Little Edo” for it’s lingering Edo Period vibes. It’s the perfect day trip location if you’re after an escape from the bustling city, although it can get pretty busy during events and festival periods. Here, you can wonder the streets lined with unique buildings from days of old, with an especially cute street named “Candy Alley” where you can find multiple stores making and selling traditional Japanese candies.

A popular landmark for local and foreign tourists alike is the Toki no Kane (Bell of Time) bell tower. A marker of time for centuries, the bell tower still rings four times a day and is one of the main attractions in Kawagoe. I visited at night and, though there were plenty of people around, there was an eerie atmosphere around the old, bellowing tower. You can really feel the history around this place.

Take a look at Timeout’s page for more fun things to do in the area: https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/things-to-do/guide-to-kawagoe-best-things-to-do-attractions-restaurants-cafes-and-shops

Kawagoe Festival

What brought me to Kawagoe on a rainy October night wasn’t actually the cosy hot bowl of ramen, it was the annual Kawagoe Festival. While most Japanese festivals are held in July and August, the Kawagoe Festival is in the fall – a nice change from being a sweaty hot mess in the humid crowds of the summer season.

I highly recommend experiencing this festival if you get the chance. The crowd vibes are lively, even when it’s drizzling and you’re battling umbrella to umbrella like we were. The evening is especially spectacular when several large and lit up 神輿 mikoshi (portable shrines) housing performers in traditional dress are carried through the streets. Amongst the beautifully decorated mikoshi, you can walk through the closed off streets with the crowd, admiring the performances and sounds of traditional instruments and song.

The stores along the famous streets of Kawagoe stay open into the evening for visitors to browse their wares. Paired with seemingly endless rows of food stalls parked up along the roads, there’s plenty to keep you entertained throughout the festival.

The Kawagoe Festival is a popular one, so if you do visit at this time be prepared for crowds. Honestly though, the crowds are what gives the festival such a vibrant and playful atmosphere. But, it does mean that you’ll most likely have a short wait time if you plan to visit Ramen Musashiya during this event like we did.

What about the ramen?

Okay okay, I’ve rambled enough about the area, now let’s talk food. Ramen Musashiya is a popular ramen spot for the locals of Kawagoe, especially among students because of it’s reasonable prices and student deals. They specialize in tonkotsu ramen, the rich, “stinky” type that’s served in the super popular Ichiran chain. While Ichiran ramen is also a winner, the Musashiya version won me over. The broth is rich and flavourful without feeling heavy, the noodles have a wonderful chew, and that chashu – my word. If there’s one thing that’ll have you coming back, it’s those juicy slices of pork. Succulent and sliced generously, it’s the perfect topping to keep you satisfied after wandering the streets of Kawagoe.

It’s a simple setup with bar stool seating for about 10 people at a time, so best to plan a visit with only a few friends and not a big group. Head straight for the ticket machine, insert your cash, and choose your ramen and any extras you’d like. There isn’t much English around the store but there are some images on the wall of each of the ramen versions you can order so you can match the Japanese characters on the ticket machine to the labelled images when choosing your order.

There are 9 versions of ramen to choose from, the difference being the toppings that the bowl comes with:

• 川越得ラーメン – the shop’s specialty Kawagoe ramen that comes with the best toppings (egg, nori, spinach, and extra chashu)
• ラーメン – the standard bowl that comes with chashu pork slices, spinach, and nori seaweed
• チャーシューメン – the same as the standard bowl but with extra chashu
• ネギラーメン – the standard with added thinly sliced spring onion
• ホーレン草ラーメン – the standard with extra spinach
• 半熟玉子ラーメン – the standard with a soft-boiled egg
• のりラーメン – the standard with extra seaweed
• 岩のりラーメン – the standard with added Iwanori seaweed (has a stronger flavour and rougher texture than regular nori)
• 旨辛ラーメン – spicy ramen with standard toppings

You can also choose from a normal (普), middle (中), and large (大) size. Simply press the button of the ramen you want and the machine will spit out your ticket to give to the staff so they can prepare your luscious bowl of noods. Since they can only serve a limited amount of customers at a time, the noodles come out pretty quick after you take your seat. The patrons can eat pretty quick too, keeping a steady flow within the shop.

From memory, I ordered the normal sized chashu ramen チャーシューメン（普）for just ¥900 (about $9 AUD), crazy cheap for such a good bowl of ramen. As if that wasn’t enough good value, each bowl of ramen also comes with a free bowl of rice that you can get topped up, also FOR FREE. Absolutely wild. You can also help yourself to toasted sesame seeds, pickled daikon, and a few condiments at the counter to personalise the bowl to your taste.

When I first moved to Japan, I didn’t quite understand the appeal of ordering rice with your ramen because it was just extra carbs, like potato on pizza, but once I started ordering it, I couldn’t stop. The rice becomes the perfect accompaniment for the rich broth that stays behind after you’ve slurped up all the noodles. I take a little scoop of rice into the soup spoon and then dunk it into the broth to have the most satisfying mouthful of flavour and sustenance. It’s not such a common offering here in Aus, but over in Japan it’s not unusual to receive a small bowl of rice with your ramen, especially as a lunch time deal. As an added bonus, they gave us lollipops at the end!

The ramen at Ramen Musashiya may not be the fanciest or absolute best in Japan (let’s be honest, that’s a pretty damn fierce competition to battle in), but when it comes to value, taste, speed, and satisfaction, the bowls here just take the cake for me.