King Seimen

King Seimen Oji is a ramen shop with homemade noodles located in Oji Honmachi, Kita Ward, Tokyo. It has been selected as one of Japan's Top 100 Ramen Shops (Ramen Hyakumeiten) and is known for being part of the same group as popular shops like "Raamen Koike" and "Chukasoba Nishino". Its signature dish is shirodashi (light dashi-based clear broth) ramen, characterized by a clear and delicate soup featuring traditional Japanese ingredients akin to soba broth, such as dried sardines (niboshi), kelp (kombu), and bonito flakes (katsuobushi). The broth focuses on umami rather than relying on saltiness, and despite its light appearance, it offers an elegant flavor and crisp finish from white soy sauce. The noodles are medium-thick, hand-kneaded, and wavy (temomi chijire-men), praised for their chewy texture and excellent ability to pick up the soup. The shop also prides itself on its hand-wrapped wontons (wantan), offering two types: plump shrimp wontons with whole shrimp, and richly filled pork wontons. Customers can choose various serving configurations like "chotto-zutsu" ("a little of each," which includes a small portion of all toppings) or "zenbu-iri" ("all toppings"). The ramen, adorned with a large slice of chashu (braised pork), a seasoned soft-boiled egg (ajitama), and a slice of naruto (fish cake), is visually appealing. In addition to the shirodashi, the menu features sansho (Japanese pepper) ramen (enjoyed for its fragrant aroma rather than numbing spice), tonkotsu-gyokai tsukemen (pork bone and seafood dipping noodles), and tantan mazesoba (soupless dan dan noodles). The mayo chashu rice is also a popular side dish. Inside the shop, customers can observe the noodles being made on a noodle machine.