Isono Kazuo "Sapporo Black" Ramen — Restaurant in Sapporo

🍜 札幌ブラック / sapporo black 🇯🇵 いそのかづお / isono kazuo / susukino, hokkaido 🗓️ 07/16/2024

(@wei.oframen on ig for my ramen adventure 😚)

I bet Isono Kazuo is probably on every ramenhead's hitlist when coming to Sapporo. This is actually my 2nd visit so I learned a thing or two. One of them is that the shop is actually incredibly popular so it's best to come early. Its opening hours are from 10 PM to 6 AM so it sure draws lots of locals enjoying the nightlife nearby in Susukino. I arrived 30 minutes early this time and the queue was already 10 deep. By the time it opened, the queue quickly grew to over 20. Despite the intimidating color of the broth, it was a lot lighter than it looked. The dark color came from the dark shoyu, garlic, and veggies that the master sautéed inside a wok before adding to the bowl according to what I read on ramendb. It was incredibly fragrant thanks to the wok magic, and the shoyu has this slight acidic taste that helps brighten up the...

45-minute line to a hole-in-the-wall ramen place with only 7 seats. A master chef of ramen is at work here, ladies and gentlemen. If you've never been here, get the "black ramen" first. The broth—such depth of umami and smokiness. The noodles were perfectly al dente. All for the mind-blowing price of ¥900 (as of 02/April/2023). It truly was heartening to see Mr. Kazuo work his craft at such speed (he was a one-man show when I went). Yes, the lone is long. Yes, the restaurant is cramped. But, this place is another example of Japan's craftsmanship with its food. If you can stay up past 10PM, please go.

Inside the Asahi Building. Floor 1. Look for the glass door with the label "2•3". It is inside and not visible from the street.

Parking is relatively easy. Public Transit is close by.

Yes, the hours are indeed 10PM (22:00) to 6AM (06:00). He is a night owl operation.

Cash Only. Please try to bring smaller bills or coins as to ease the...

I got to sapporo at like 6pm and was exhausted from travel. I wanted to come here before going to sleep but I just passed out. Luckily I woke up at like 3am and was able to come here anyway

Place was great for 4am ramen. I got the black ramen (right edge of menu) + all the toppings. Noodles were chewy. Was a bit on the saltier side and the egg was above average. Overall good though. Was about 1800 yen which Is on the pricier side in Japan I would say but I got all the toppings and would choose this place over vast majority of places in the US.

Would give it like 4.5 stars but round to 5 because in the world of ramen places opening at 10 pm and closing at 6, this place has to be one of the better ones.

Store is small. Seats like 6 or 7. At 4am all but one seat was taken but no line thankfully.

Would I come here again? Probably not but only because there are way too many ramen options. My Google maps looks like it has chicken pox from all the...