6 Tonkotsu Ramen from Fukuoka City Loved by the Locals

1. Isshin Furan Daimyo Honten

The highest-grade of domestically sourced tonkotsu (pork bones) are boiled for the maximum amount of time to melt them down. 1 session reaps enough soup for multiple servings, with a high level of attention given to the end results. The toppings are quite generous so it has just the right amount of richness without being overwhelming.“Kuro no Koku Tonkotsu Ramen” uses filtered water, iron kettle sun-dried salt and domestic pork bones. “Shiro no Tonkotsu Ramen” has a white soup made just from boiling the high quality pork bones. “Aka no Koku Miso Tonkotsu Ramen” is made from a mixture of barley miso, red miso, white miso and koji miso kneaded together. “Kin no Negi Shio Ramen” is made from Okinawan iron kettle sun-dried salt. All four kinds are delicious.

HP: http://www.isshinfuran.jp/ (Japanese Only)

Address: 2-6 Daimyo, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken (Google Map)

2. Mengekijo Genei

Genei is famous for their theatre-style seating. Their popular “Genei ramen” uses homestyle soy sauce with no additives and no artificial flavors. Their “Shiokaori Shio Ramen” made from extracts of boiled kombu and dried shrimp is also quite popular. Another unique item is their “Nihonichi no Kodawari Tamagokake Gohan” which uses native Kumamoto “Hi no Hikari” rice.

HP: http://d.hatena.ne.jp/iriehideki/ (Japanese Only)

Address: 2-16-3 Yakuin, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken (Google Map)

3. shin-shin

This place not only does pork bones, but also soup made from chicken bones or vegetable. Good for those of you who are not too keen on the smelliness of tonkotsu. The noodles are extremely fine so they’re easy to eat.

HP: http://www.hakata-shinshin.com/

Address: 1F 3-2-19 Tenjin, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken (Google Map)

4. 秀ちゃんラーメン

Their ramen consists of concentrated soup which has the rich flavor of pork bones cooked for over 20 hours in an iron kettle and superfine noodles. The toppings are simple: chashu pork and spring onions. It’s a Hakata-style ramen.

HP: http://ra-hide.com/ (Japanese Only)

Address: 2-13-11 Kego, Chūō-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken (Google Map)

5. 博多一幸舎 大名本家

Inside this creamy soup is 3 kinds of soy sauce and over 20 kinds of seasoning, together with a sauce made from a blend of 5 types of seafood, giving you a very strong and flavorful soup. They’re also particular about not only their noodles but their chashu toppings, making this ramen like a work of art.

HP: http://www.ikkousha.com/ (Automatic translation)

Address: Exceed Daimyo 1-8-4 Daimyo, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken (Google Map)

6. Ramen Jinanbou Hakata Honten

In an area like Fukuoka with so many competing stores, this popular ramen shop has won 1st place. It uses the fine, flavorful Hakata noodles, with a soup that manages to banish the smelliness of tonkotsu. On top of that, the topping is chashu made with high quality pork loin and a soft-boiled egg. It’s a bowl of supreme bliss.

HP: http://r-jnb.jp/ (Japanese Only)

Address: 2 Chome-16-4 Hakata Ekimae, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka-shi, Fukuoka-ken (Google Map)