Here are 5 of the best Osaka ramen shops, from chicken mousse ramen to luxurious duck ramen.
#1 Chukasoba Kazura
This shop is a shining example of Osaka’s burgeoning ramen scene. They’ve only been open since 2015 but are at the top of the charts.
The head chef’s background in French cuisine led them to create a frothy chicken ramen. It’s unique feature is a creamy-mousse-like top.
Semi-thick round noodles mop up this foam alongside a sweet shoyu oil. A delicious cut of raw pork is the crowning stroke in this stunning, modern ramen.
#2 Jinrui Mina Menrui
Osaka definitely likes their shoyu sweet and this is also apparent in the deeply flavored shoyu ramen at Jinrui Mina Menrui. The name translates as “Human Beings Everybody Noodles”.
Chicken in the broth provides a silky richness and clams a taste of the sea. Their noodles are thick and with excellent texture and wheaty aroma.
Customize your bowl – 2 thicker 4 thinner menma slices. The same goes for the pork – thick or thin. If thick (as pictured), you’ll feel like a medieval nobleman, receiving 2 gigantic slabs. They’re so divinely soft that they fall apart on the way to your mouth.
#3 Moeyo Mensuke
Located in the competitive ramen neighborhood of Fukushima, Moeyo Mensuke serves 2 superb ramen dishes – shellfish or duck.
Their shellfish ramen utilizes a blend of light shoyu, allowing the shellfish flavor to really radiate. Their duck ramen has an even lighter shoyu that makes way for the fatty Wakayama duck flavor.
I would give a slight edge to their shellfish ramen. For duck ramen, Kamo to Negi is still my number 1. Both ramen bowls are brilliant though. Moeyo Mensuke’s interior is just as elegant as their food presentation.
Osaka offers many more regional delicacies aside from ramen which you'll get to read about here:
#4 Resshishoyu Menkobo Sanku
Also in Fukushima, let’s call them Sanku for short. They are the king of niboshi (dried sardine) ramen in Osaka. They’ve done an excellent job of extracting the sharp flavors from the sardines. The broth is a light shoyu (not sweet this time), made slightly bitter from the sardines.
In addition to the niboshi ramen, they have a white shoyu with a yuzu citrus kick and round, freckled noodles. They also have a darker, stronger flavored shoyu with frizzy noodles.
In both of the shoyu ramen, there is a ton of negi onions – but it works! No matter what ramen you order, you’re treated to an orange pudding at the very end. It’s a wonderful way to end a wonderful meal.
#5 Chukasoba Uemachi
This might just be my favorite Osaka ramen shop. Uenmachi also happens to be consistently ranked as one of the top ramen shops in the country.
Their delicately simple chukasoba is made with a sweet Shodoshima shoyu and high-grade chicken from Nara (Yamato nikudori). The broth is so pure it’s like you’re drinking from a geyser of tangy mineral water.
The softer noodles are made in-house from local wheat and unassumingly absorb that sweet broth. The thinly sliced chashu pork is delightfully seasoned – it’s so soft and succulent.
There might be a bit of wait at Chukasoba Umemachi. But I guarantee you’ll applaud them for their masterful ramen.