Towzen — Restaurant in Kyoto

Hard to find tiny restaurant for creamy ramen

N35°2.625' E135°46.559' TowZen or Mamezen is very hard to find in the Sakyō-ku ward of Northern Kyoto near the Shimogamo-jinja Shrine. This restaurant, listed in the Rough Guide, is located in a residential street. The entrance is not visible from the side of the road and only can be recognised by the illuminated red lantern when it is open. Walk through the small alley towards this tiny restaurant with only 15 seats, 3 of them at the counter. Because of limited seating, a reservation is advised.

This ramen shop is specialized in ramen made with soymilk soup, topped with tofu skin and mushrooms. The translated menu consists of a questionnaire of six questions, such as bowl size (small, medium or large). The chef can cater for vegans. The creamy ramen tasted excellent and made our search for this restaurant in the rain worthwhile. We added excellent pieces of sushi to our menu.

The staff has limited knowledge of the English language, but a friendly guest assisted us in ordering in April 2018. Service was friendly and good, but there is a no photography policy in the small restaurant. As gaijin, they allowed us to disobey. Wi-Fi is free.

Towzen or Mamezen offers a fun dining experience with creamy...

I really wanted to like this place and went out of my way to visit.

First, service: We went on a Sunday night and they were at capacity. Since they don't really have indoor waiting space, and it was cold outside, they suggested we go to the nearest seven eleven or the grocery store to wait. They said it would be a 15-30 minute wait and they would contact us. I thought it was a bit odd but we went along with it. After 30 minutes we went back even though they hadn't contacted us and someone was just leaving then. In retrospect, they should've let us sit on the tatami near the entrance instead of basically kicking us out.

Food: I was really excited to try their ramen but honestly I was disappointed. My husband had the tan tan noodles. That was ok. I had the musashi ramen with chlorella. I had never had chlorella before. It had an interesting taste and was novel experience for me. My tongue went slightly numb from it and I lost my appetite. The eggplant sushi was ok but the rice had some extra flavoring that honestly turned me off. Overall I was not thrilled with the food.

The people were kind and the service was ok once we were seated in the restaurant, but overall the experience made me wish I hadn't gone out of my...

Tucked in a little entrance in a quiet residential area, this gem of a Ramen place was absolutely amazing!! Because of it's location, it is easy to miss, so keep a lookout for the cute signs at the entrance. The interior, albeit small, but is well lit, a bit artsy and quite cozy in a cute Japanese style setting. My husband ordered a Musashi (Yuba and Mushroom) with Chlorella soup, and I ordered the Tantanmen style spicy level 3 with Chlorella soup. We also ordered an eggplant sushi and a rice bowl. The Ramen was absolutely delicious!! We both loved our Ramen, the soup was absolutely flavourful!! This is easily the best Vegan Ramen I've had!! The Eggplant sushi was also very delicious! The eggplant was so well caramelized, it created a nice combination with the rice!! We came here again on our last day, since we loved it so much!! The staff was really sweet and friendly! Shows that these people really did put their heart and soul in the food they make and the place itself! Knowing there's such an amazing vegan food available in Kyoto is really comforting. Vegan/vegetarians or not, this place is a must visit! Absolutely recommend...