つけ麺 竹川 Takekawa: the unexpected men

We love walking around Setagaya, and when we are starving, we walk to nearby ramen shops unconsciously. We wanted to try Washo, a highly regarded Taishoken clone, but gave up once we saw the insanely long line. Instead, we went to an alternative shop specializing in tori paitan tsukemen.

Tsukemen (850yen)

I like tori paitan, but sometimes it's a little sticky or stinky because of the richness of the soup. Takekawa's soup looks really rich, and my worry kicked into hyperdrive, but it wasn't sticky or smelly at all. With the first bite, I tapped Hearts' shoulder with much excitement because I wanted to tell him how good it was.

Like camino, Takekawa also serves their tsukemen with vegetables. Where the veggies are the star in camino, they are more like colorful supporting actors here. Tomatoes, zucchini, radish, carrots - all of them organic - gave me a good impression that this shop is considerate of their female clientele.

Takekawa is small, but the warm ramen master and wooden decor made me feel relaxed. Setagaya is a fierce ramen district, so the shop isn't currently as highly regarded as some of the others in the area, but it should be far more popular than it is.

Tokyo, Setagaya-ku, Taishido 2-1-1
Closest stn: Sangenjaya

Open from 12-3pm and 630-11pm (closed Wednesdays)

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