The Ramen Chronicles XXXVI
The plot gets devilish
Your Associate Ramen Chronicler found himself able to seek out a bowl of noodles on his own, so set out to find a meal at Kikanbo. I’d been here 8 years previously on another trip to Tokyo, but it was squarely on the list to revisit while here.
Kikanbo specializes in a spicy miso ramen, with a soup made from both pork and chicken and topped with a mouthwatering collection of toppings. You can specify the level of chilli spice and the level of numbing pepper, and as you can probably tell from the image below, I went for spicy on both, one step below the top-of-the-range “Oni” (Devil) spice level. It was excellent, and absolutely packed a major spice punch. The spice enhanced and raised the experience, even as the combination of spice heat and temperature heat made slurping up mouthfuls of noodles a physical challenge. The pork was wonderfully melty and the bean sprouts a great (and I find generally underutilized) topping. With a bit of foresight, I’d have probably gone for a bowl of rice to add in, but as it was I found myself slurping up a good bit of rich and garlicky broth as I went.
Kikanbo means Ogre club, and the overall decor leans heavily into the theme. It’s dark and moody, with ogre imagery everywhere, and there’s a heavy, pounding, drum soundtrack constantly playing. It truly feels like you’ve descended into hell, only to be given a bowl of noodles tasting worthy of heaven.
