Wajoryomen Sugari — Restaurant in Kyoto

This place is an experience.

I ordered a regular sized yuzu noodle tsukemen with char siu and their seasoned egg. And I have a lot to talk about.

To spare you, I'll give you a summary ahead of time:

If you visit Kyoto and don't eat here you might as well not have come. This is an honest maximum 5 stars from me. Just make sure to account for a potential wait.

Now, let me bring you on a journey.

You walk through a small, fragrant, alley and order at a simple ticket kiosk before (hopefully without much wait), handing over your tickets, and being seated in a cosy bar area with self-serve tea as you await your food. People come and go through their meals quickly hear, but feel no rush to down your meal (although once you get a taste you might find it gone before you realize). After a very short wait after being seated, you'll be passed your meal and your idea of tsukemen will change forever.

Presentation, you get two light and tastefully simple dishes, one metal carrying the broth and options and another with the main meat, noodles, and a light topping of saffron.

Starting at the faint yet present yuzu in their perfectly cooked, springy noodles- before you even get into any other aspect of the dish, I recommend just enjoying a few of the plain noodles. Each bite is springy and satisfying with just the right chew- which due to the separated nature of the dish- won't change even if you take your time. When you get to the char siu you might notice their interesting choice of meat. They purposefully choose mid range pork belly to give you a perfect balance of rich fat and slightly chewy meat. This allows for you to enjoy the occasional bites of meat and noodle thoroughly, making each bite satisfying but addictive. If you choose the seasoned egg, you'll find it bobbing around in your broth, soaked full of flavor. On your first bite you'll get a small taste of the heavenly broth to come in the whites, but as you make it to the yolk you'll be soothed by the rich creaminess as it spreads throughout your mouth. In all honesty, the eggs themselves could carry the shop alone, but that gives a disservice to the true culprit of the terrorism that will destroy your expectations of good noodles.

The broth. If you've ever been to any restaurant (especially from the States) claiming to have "rich yet light" broth, the moment you sip- no, the moment you properly smell this broth you'll be disgusted at their false advertising. This broth is what you imagine "rich yet light" to be. Fragrant, flavorful, its impact will leave you stunned- but not for long. Although its flavor is rich, it barely skims the borderline of being too much. It's a complex mixture of spices, vegetables, and their meats that I can only assume I'll get in trouble if I elaborate too deeply on it. Just sipping it will warm your body and could potentially pass as a meal on it's own with how easy it is to drink. From the start you can tell the time and precision it took to make and perfect the broth and whoever is the main chef deserves a few Michelin stars for that alone. This is also assuming you're just having the broth.

Mixing the two together gives you a perfect explanation of when obnoxious food reviewers describe, "a full symphonic orchestra in your mouth." Ignoring the irony and potential inappropriate joke in the previous statement, the combination is on par with some of the most venerated and costly places I've had the honor of eating at in my life. Bite by bite you'll pass by in a comfy bliss that drags all the feelings of warm and happy dreams you've had, forgotten or not, and washes them through your body. The serenity from the meal is surreal and when it's over, I won't blame you if you stumble out in a daze.

And perhaps the best part? For a meal of this high caliber, one to which I spent a solid hour composing this rant-

It was only 1,250 yen.

Oh, and forgive the poor photo quality. I was salivating and a...

A solid, filling meal with good flavor balance, but be prepared for a long wait. Solidly rated by Japanese people on Tabelog.

The entrance is a nook on the side of a wooden door, that most have to duck throuh to get through. The line was up to the door, and my group waited over an hour to be seated. They use an electronic ordering system during the lineup, so take your time ordering, and think about drinks and your sides, as once you get into the restaurant, there is no changing your order. There is an English option available as well, making this quite attractive of an option for foreigners.

The line consists of an inner area, followed by an outdoor garden, and then finally four seats within the restaurant before you are seated. Seating approximately 10 people, the amount of people who may be served at a time is very small.

The atmosphere of the restaurant was warm; it is particularly nice after waiting out in the Japanese winter for about an hour. Having to sit just within the entramce to the restaurant helps to whet your appetite, as you smell the rich broth simmering and food being prepared.

Most of the toppings are made in bulk, to accommodate for their popularity, but the noodles are cooked to order.

I paid ¥1580 for my meal, which came with beef, beef intestines, saffron, soft boiled egg, and extra citrus noodles. I chose the Tsukemen option (to have the noodles and broth served separately). Try to save some of the broth for after the meal, as they will add some dashi to it, for you to finish your meal off with.

The broth had a medium strength, was creamy, and not too oily. The components melded quite nicely together and no individual ingredient stood out among the rest.

The beef and intestines we're cooked well, though in quite small portions. Rich in flavor that differed from the broth. I would recommend either doubling the portion from your order, or adding another non-carb component.

The egg was a tad overcooked, but the yolk did ooze somewhat after I opened it.

The noodles were cooked well, though a touch past Al Dente, but the citrus base helped to cut through the heaviness of the broth and add some freshness to the meal. My friend had the regular buckwheat noodles, and they were definitely overcooked though. They do not time their cooking of their noodles, so do allow for some inconsistency here.

Overall a pretty solid meal. Especially for a place that is foreigner-friendly. I highly recommend for ramen lovers and especially with those who have some time to kill and want a good warm meal in winter. The flavors are well thought out and mostly well reproduced. I would make a follow up visit when I come...

Most intimate and warm atmosphere for a bowl of ramen at this inconspicuous restaurant. I happen to walk passed this street at night and saw some diners what looked like a bar top for sushi but they all had a bowl of soup of some kind. Ended up seeing them eat ramen and tsukemen so I thought I'd give it a shot since I was getting hungry and everything else didn't appeal to me.

To get in, you have to walk through a hobbit door on the left and go straight to the back of the restaurant. I made the mistake and I thought you make an immediate right to get to the counter, but that's how the diners exit. So don't make the same mistake I did and make a fool out of yourself. Once you're at the end, there's a machine for you to order and you choose what type of noodles you'd like (ramen or tsukemen). Proceed through the wooden doors to the garden of the restaurant to wait to be seated. Once they're ready for you, you'll be greeted and you'll hand your ticket to the chefs.

Unfortunately for me, I'm not an intestine person so I only ordered the roasted pork ramen, which was amazing. The broth is on the thicker side in my opinion but it's very unique and the taste was worth every drop. The noodles are different from other ramen restaurants that I've eaten locally; more texture and chewy but that's a good thing for me. What really stood out for me is just the vibes of the whole interior and how attention to details. When you get your chopsticks, you'll notice four stainless steel contraptions for spices. I honestly wanted to steal all four because it looked so cool but it would be no use for me back home. You'll need to check this place out and understand how chill this place is while eating a hearty...