Best Ramen in Tokyo: 8 Top Shops for Shoyu, Miso, Shio and Tonkotsu

The best ramen in Tokyo falls into four broth types: shoyu (soy sauce), Tokyo's signature style (Jun Teuchi Daruma, Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta); miso (Santora, Oshima); shio (Shinka, Menya Sho); and tonkotsu (Tanaka Shoten, Kyushu Jangara). Most top shops charge about ¥1,000–2,000 a bowl, serve lunch from about 11:00 to 15:00, break in the afternoon and reopen for dinner, and many take cash only. To sample regional styles in one place, visit the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum (adults ¥450).

Key takeaways

• Tokyo's signature style is shoyu ramen: a clear chicken or pork broth seasoned with soy sauce.
• Most of the 8 shops in this guide have a Tabelog budget of ¥1,000–1,999; Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta costs more.
• Many shops open for lunch from 11:00 to 15:00, close in the afternoon and reopen for dinner around 17:00–18:00, and close early when the soup runs out.
• Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum: adults ¥450, ages 6–18 ¥100; weekdays 11:00–21:00, weekends and holidays 10:30–21:00.
• Kyushu Jangara's Akihabara main store has been closed for renovation since 30 September 2026; go to the Harajuku or Ginza branch instead.

What are the main types of ramen in Tokyo?

Japanese ramen is grouped by seasoning into four types: shoyu, miso, shio and tonkotsu. Shoyu is the classic Tokyo style, but you can find all four in the city. Most shops specialise in one or two broths.

Type	Broth	Home region	Shops in this guide
Shoyu (soy sauce)	Chicken or pork stock with soy sauce; clear and savoury	Tokyo, Kitakata, Asahikawa	Jun Teuchi Daruma, Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta
Miso	Pork stock with miso; rich, often topped with lard	Sapporo	Santora, Oshima
Shio (salt)	Clear, mostly chicken stock seasoned with salt; the lightest	Hakodate	Shinka, Menya Sho
Tonkotsu	Milky pork-bone broth simmered for hours, with very thin noodles	Hakata (Fukuoka)	Tanaka Shoten, Kyushu Jangara

Yokohama's iekei ramen, a pork-and-soy broth with thick noodles, is another style you will see all over Tokyo.

Best ramen in Tokyo: 8 shops at a glance

We checked in October 2026 that all 8 shops are still open (Tabelog and the shops' own sites). Hours often change when the soup sells out or the shop takes a day off, so check the shop's X (Twitter) account or Google Maps before you go.

Shop	Type	Nearest station	Hours	Budget
Jun Teuchi Daruma	Shoyu	Nakano-Fujimicho, about 1 min walk	11:30–15:00 (irregular evening service)	¥1,000–1,999
Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta	Shoyu	Yoyogi-Uehara, about 2 min walk	11:00–15:00; closed Mon–Wed from October 2026	from about ¥2,000
Santora	Miso	Edogawabashi, about 3 min walk	11:00–15:00, 17:30–20:00; irregular days off	¥1,000–1,999
Oshima	Miso	Funabori, about 8 min walk	Tue–Sat 11:00–15:00, 17:00–20:30; Sun & holidays 11:00–16:00, 17:00–20:00; closed Mon	¥1,000–1,999
Shinka Machida Ekimae	Shio	JR Machida, about 5 min walk	11:00–15:00, 17:30–22:00; open year-round	¥1,000–1,999
Menya Sho Honten	Shio	JR Shinjuku West Exit, about 9 min walk	Weekdays 11:00–15:00, 18:00–22:00; weekends & holidays 11:00–15:00, 17:00–21:00	about ¥1,000
Tanaka Shoten	Tonkotsu	Bus from Rokucho Station, then about 3 min walk	18:00–4:00	¥1,000–1,999
Kyushu Jangara Harajuku	Tonkotsu	Harajuku, about 2 min walk	10:00–22:00	about ¥1,000–1,500

Best shoyu ramen in Tokyo

Shoyu ramen is Tokyo's most traditional style, and Rairaiken in Asakusa, which opened in 1910, is generally seen as its starting point. The broth is made from chicken or pork bones, kept clear and seasoned with soy sauce: lighter than tonkotsu or miso, but full of umami.

Classic Tokyo shoyu ramen. Photo: Quercus acuta / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

Jun Teuchi Daruma: hand-made noodles cut to order

Jun Teuchi Daruma opened in 2018 and is known for its shoyu ramen with thick, wavy noodles that are kneaded and cut by hand after you order. It is on Tabelog's "Ramen Top 100" list. The shop is at 1-18-3 Wada, Suginami, about a 1-minute walk from Nakano-Fujimicho Station on the Marunouchi Line.

• Open 11:30–15:00, with irregular evening service from 18:00 to 21:00; days off are posted on the shop's X account.
• One person makes the noodles and serves, and there are very few seats, so queues are common; when the line is long, the shop asks people to come back another day.

Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta: the world's first Michelin-starred ramen shop

Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta was the first ramen shop in the world to earn a Michelin star, and its website lists one star every year from 2016 to 2019. Its signature is a shoyu soba made with a blend of soy sauces. Prices are higher than at a typical ramen shop, and bowls with extra toppings often cost over ¥3,000.

• Address: 3-2-4 Nishihara, Shibuya, B1; about a 2-minute walk from Yoyogi-Uehara Station (Odakyu and Chiyoda lines).
• Open 11:00–15:00; according to the official site, closed every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from October 2026.
• No numbered tickets are handed out, and service ends early when ingredients run out. Check the Tsuta website for the latest schedule.

Best miso ramen in Tokyo

Miso ramen was created in Sapporo, Hokkaido, in the 1960s. It is a pork stock with miso, often under a layer of lard that keeps it hot, and it is rich and filling. The Sapporo shops Junren and Sumire trained many chefs, and both Santora and Oshima in Tokyo come from the Sumire line.

Miso ramen. Photo: Tail furry / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

Santora: rich miso from a Sumire alumnus

Santora's owner trained for years at Sumire in Sapporo. The miso broth is rich but a little less oily than typical Sapporo miso ramen. The shop is at 362 Yamabukicho, Shinjuku, about a 3-minute walk from Exit 1b of Edogawabashi Station on the Yurakucho Line.

• Open 11:00–15:00 and 17:30–20:00; days off vary and are posted in the shop and on X.
• Weekend lunch queues are long, so arrive before opening.

Oshima: Funabori's Sumire-line favourite

Oshima opened in 2013. Its owner trained at Sumire for about 12 years, and the signature miso ramen has a thick broth with medium-thick wavy noodles; shoyu and shio are also on the menu. The shop is at 6-7-13 Funabori, Edogawa, about an 8-minute walk from Funabori Station on the Toei Shinjuku Line.

• Hours: Tuesday to Saturday 11:00–15:00 and 17:00–20:30; Sundays and holidays 11:00–16:00 and 17:00–20:00.
• Closed Mondays (the next day if Monday is a holiday), plus occasional extra days; you order at a ticket machine.

Best shio ramen in Tokyo

Shio ramen is one of the oldest ways to season ramen: a clear, mostly chicken stock seasoned with salt. It is the lightest of the four styles, and Hakodate in Hokkaido is its home. If you want to taste the stock itself, order shio.

Clear shio ramen. Photo: Lombroso / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

Shinka Machida Ekimae: a benchmark for Tokyo shio ramen

Machida Shiruba Shio Ramen Shinka was founded in Machida in 2007 and is seen as one of Tokyo's benchmark shio ramen shops. Its signature bowl uses a blend of salts with a chicken stock. Go to the Machida Ekimae branch (4-6-15 Haramachida, Machida), about a 5-minute walk from JR Machida Station; from Shinjuku, the Odakyu Line rapid express takes about 30–35 minutes to Machida.

• The Ekimae branch is open 11:00–15:00 and 17:30–22:00, in principle every day of the year.
• The original Morino main store is currently marked "operating status unconfirmed" on Tabelog, so the Ekimae branch is the safer choice.

Menya Sho Honten: clear chicken shio ramen near Shinjuku

Menya Sho is known for its clear chicken-broth shio ramen with thin wavy noodles; the "tokusei" bowl with extra toppings is popular. The shop is at 7-22-34 Nishi-Shinjuku, about a 9-minute walk from the West Exit of JR Shinjuku Station or 6 minutes from Exit D3 of Shinjuku-nishiguchi Station on the Toei Oedo Line.

• Hours: weekdays 11:00–15:00 and 18:00–22:00; weekends and holidays 11:00–15:00 and 17:00–21:00, until sold out.
• Open year-round except at New Year. There are only 18 counter seats, and cards, e-money and QR payments are not accepted, so bring cash.

Best tonkotsu ramen in Tokyo

Tonkotsu ramen comes from Fukuoka in Kyushu: a milky broth made by boiling pork bones for hours, served with very thin straight noodles. You choose how firm you want the noodles, and you can order a "kaedama" (extra noodles) when you finish the first serving.

Tonkotsu ramen with its milky broth. Photo: Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Tanaka Shoten: Hakata Nagahama ramen until 4 a.m.

Hakata Nagahama Ramen Tanaka Shoten is known for its rich, long-simmered tonkotsu broth and very thin noodles shipped from Hakata, with firmness options such as "harigane" and "barikata". In August 2025 it moved to 1-16-11 Hanahata, Adachi, and it is open every day from 18:00 to 4:00, which makes it a favourite late-night bowl.

• Getting there: about a 30-minute walk from Rokucho Station on the Tsukuba Express, or take a Tobu bus from Rokucho Station to a nearby stop and walk about 3 minutes. It is far from central Tokyo, so plan on a taxi back late at night.

Kyushu Jangara: tonkotsu in Harajuku and Ginza

Kyushu Jangara is a Kyushu-style tonkotsu ramen chain with its main store in Akihabara. The signature "Kyushu Jangara" bowl has a mild pork broth, and "Bonshan" is the richer option. Its branches are easy to reach: Harajuku (about 2 minutes from Harajuku Station, 10:00–22:00) and Ginza (about 5 minutes from Ginza Station, 11:00–22:30).

• The Akihabara main store has been closed for renovation since 30 September 2026, with no reopening date yet; the Nihonbashi branch mentioned in older guides is no longer on the official store list.
• Check each branch's hours on the Kyushu Jangara website.

Is the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum worth it? Tickets and access

The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum is the easiest way to try ramen from all over Japan in one visit. It recreates a 1958 (Showa 33) street scene and gathers famous shops from different regions, so you can compare styles under one roof. Shops serve mini bowls, so you can try several.

The Showa-era street inside the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum. Photo: Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Item	Details
Admission	Adults (19+) ¥450, ages 6–18 ¥100, under 6 free
Hours	Weekdays 11:00–21:00, weekends and holidays 10:30–21:00 (shops take last orders at 20:30)
Closed	31 December and 1 January
Access	About 5 min walk from JR/Shinkansen Shin-Yokohama Station; about 1 min from Exit 10 of the subway and Tokyu/Sotetsu Shin-Yokohama Line station

From Shibuya, the Tokyu Toyoko Line plus the Tokyu Shin-Yokohama Line takes about 25–35 minutes to Shin-Yokohama, and some trains run through. From Tokyo Station, the Tokaido Shinkansen takes about 20 minutes. The noodle-making class needs a reservation; check shops and prices on the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum website.

How do you order and queue at a Tokyo ramen shop?

Most Tokyo ramen shops use a ticket machine, which is simple, but popular shops have queues. Keep these points in mind:

1. Buy a ticket at the machine by the door (many have English or pictures) and hand it to the staff. Many shops take cash only, and some machines only accept ¥1,000 notes.
2. Queue where the shop tells you to and don't block neighbours' doors. At some shops you wait to be seated rather than grabbing a seat.
3. Many shops break around 15:00 and reopen at 17:00–18:00, and they close early once the soup runs out. For popular shops, arrive 30 minutes before opening.
4. Ramen shops rely on quick turnover, so leave once you finish rather than lingering.

What should you do with your luggage when you go for ramen?

Most ramen shops are tiny, with only counter seats, and popular ones have queues outside, so getting in with a big suitcase is hard and gets in other customers' way. Station coin lockers fill up in busy seasons and don't always fit large cases. If you take the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Shin-Yokohama, bags with total dimensions of 161–250 cm need a reserved seat with an oversized baggage area; without one, you pay a ¥1,000 fee.

The easiest option is to send your bags to your hotel first. LuggAgent picks up luggage at the airport or your hotel and delivers it to your next stop in Tokyo the same day, so you can head straight from your flight to a bowl of ramen with free hands. See Tokyo luggage delivery for details.

If you land at Narita, hand your bags to us at the airport and we'll take them straight to your hotel in central Tokyo:

If you land at Haneda, do the same, have a bowl of ramen, then pick up your bags at the hotel:

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FAQ

How much does a bowl of ramen cost in Tokyo?

At well-known Tokyo shops, a bowl usually costs ¥1,000–2,000, and most of the 8 shops in this guide have a Tabelog budget of ¥1,000–1,999. At pricier shops such as Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta, a bowl with extra toppings can exceed ¥3,000.

Can you pay by card at Tokyo ramen shops?

Many ramen shops are cash only; Menya Sho Honten, for example, takes no credit cards, e-money or QR payments. Ticket machines often accept only ¥1,000 notes and coins, so carry cash.

Where can you eat ramen late at night in Tokyo?

Tanaka Shoten is open every day from 18:00 to 4:00 and is Tokyo's best-known late-night tonkotsu shop; Kyushu Jangara Harajuku is open until 22:00. Most famous shops finish dinner service by 20:00–22:00, so late-night choices are limited.

How much is the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum?

Adults (19+) pay ¥450, ages 6–18 ¥100, and children under 6 enter free. It is open 11:00–21:00 on weekdays and 10:30–21:00 on weekends and holidays, closed on 31 December and 1 January, and it is a 1–5 minute walk from Shin-Yokohama Station.

Is Japanese Soba Noodles Tsuta a Michelin-starred ramen shop?

Yes. Tsuta was the first ramen shop in the world to earn a Michelin star, and its website lists one star every year from 2016 to 2019; check the Michelin Guide website for its current rating. It is now in Yoyogi-Uehara, open 11:00–15:00 and closed Monday to Wednesday from October 2026.

Cover photo: Quercus acuta / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0