Keyaki — Restaurant in Sapporo

During my recent visit to Sapporo, I made sure to check out a highly recommended ramen shop that was a must-try according to travel books. As soon as I arrived, I was greeted by a long queue of eager customers. While I was contemplating the wait, a staff member approached me and spoke rapidly in Japanese, leaving me completely clueless. However, observing that people in front of me were entering the shop to buy a ticket, I decided to follow suit.

Inside, a ticketing machine caught my attention. It was entirely in Japanese, and I couldn't read a word. Taking a chance, I selected the option in the top left corner since it seemed to be the popular choice among those ahead of me. After waiting for nearly an hour, it was finally my turn to enter.

When the bowl of ramen was placed before me, I immediately noticed the difference from the ramen I usually eat in Tokyo. The broth had a distinct richness and spiciness, with bits of minced meat floating on the surface. The oiliness of the broth took me by surprise, as it was far more pronounced than what I was accustomed to.

Although the richness and oiliness of the broth were not my personal preference, I could appreciate how it catered to the local taste. The impeccable texture of the noodles was undoubtedly the highlight of the dish, and I thoroughly enjoyed...

The line-up during dinnertime is quite long. They only have around 8-10 seats in total inside. You first have to place an order with the machine inside before lining up. There is some English on the machine buttons so foreigners can order with ease.

I ordered the butter corn ramen, their number 1 ramen. I added a piece of chashiu for only ¥150. The portion for the regular size was still pretty big! They have 2 different spoons, with a metal one having holes in it so you can easily eat smaller foods without having to drink soup.

The ramen was really tasty! Butter corn ramen is a highly recommended specialty in Sapporo, and this one does not dissapoint. Despite having butter and oils from the soup broth, it didn't feel too heavy. The other toppings were great as well. It hit the spot very nicely during a cold winter night. It was a bit salty for my taste, so I couldn't finish drinking the soup.

The chashiu pork was a very chick cut. It did have a slight cured taste, similar to ham. It was tender, but more that it just broke apart, kind of like if you pressure cooked some honey ham. Definitely different texture from regular chashiu. I'd give the ham a 4/5 stars.

Service is quick, since it doesn't seat many. Parties up to 2 can be seated, but any more and they will ask if you can...

Even not worse for one star but to write my experience I need to give them one at least... I went there with my husband and he isn't Japanese. Our conversation is basically English, sometimes Japanese and Chinese mixed. We were very excited to have their famous ramen and tried to take a picture of that restaurant. Surprisingly, in one sec after I took a picture, the male cooker's face changed and made a bloody rude hand gesture to me! I was upset because I am JAPANESE and he can talk nicely if he didn't want me to take any at all. But I guess, he judged me as foreigner and told a server not let me take a picture in the kitchen. Regarding what she told me was customer only can take their ramen bowl's pic, not the inside of the restaurant. I understand their point, because I know some of the JP restaurants have their secret recipes and they didn't want to share. If so, HOWEVER, they should write notification for remittance of the photo (WITHOUT ANY GUIDANCE BUT THEY WILL GIVE YOU F HAND GESTURES), and not behave immature attitude to their customer especially foreigners. They can't speak English doesn't a matter, how they react is the value of their restaurant. NO WORSE TO SPEND ANY PENNY FROM YOUR WALLET,...