らーめん桑嶋 Kuwajima: permanent nobara

Back to Shimokitazawa, our favorite place in Tokyo, food and entertainment morning til night in a culinarily diverse and multicultural environment. Kuwajima is brand spanking new, having moved in to a location that has been occupied by three different ramen shops in the last three years.

Apparently the master had a small shop in the Meguro area, but this time has gotten serious about chicken. Nothing but tori paitan and chicken-dashi bowls here. Lots of flowers outside and customers usually means good things for a new shop. I immediately became disappointed, thinking, "Oh, I should have come here before word got out." Sad feelings didn't remain for long.

Keikotsu ramen (800yen)

The paitan is rich but smooth. This is the new direction of tori paitan - no gamey or oily aftertaste, just creamy chicken essence. The thicker noodles paired well with this broth. Hearts kept looking over with Bambi eyes, so I had to devour it quickly. 

The yuzu shio was lighter, with strong a strong amount of yuzu kosho pepper mixed in. I like the shop's style of topping bowls with lots of leafy greens

Yuzu shio ramen (750yen)

Thinner noodles and a broth that's a little on the salty side. This is probably a good bowl after drinking, as its soothing and clean. Both bowls are topped with lean, smoked chicken breast.

These are simple bowls with a lot of soul. When we started slurping the soup, the master tried reading our faces, and when we thanked him, he smiled back and said he looked forward to serving us again. Strangely enough, this kind of warmth in a ramen shop is rare, so we hope Kuwajima sticks around.

Tokyo, Setagaya-ku, Daita 6-3-26
Closest stn: Shimokitazawa

Open from 1130am-230pm and 6pm-130am (closed Tuesdays)

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