Ramen is probably the most famous of Japan's casual "backstreet" cuisines. Starting with a simple Chinese dish of soup and noodles, Japanese chefs focused on the soup, making it the center of attention. The noodles and toppings followed suit, and modern-day ramen is a bowl of gourmet slurps. But, reflecting its origins, the price for a bowl of ramen in Japan remains relatively low. Even shops that use only the highest quality ingredients rarely top ¥1000. The only problem with ramen is the lines at some of the better shops; an hour can be spent waiting for a bowl.

Types of ramen

Categorizing ramen can be tough. You can start with two basic types - heavy soups and clear soups. Heavy soups are created by cooking chicken and/or pork bones over high heat for many hours. The collagen is drawn out from the bones, and the result is a creamy, heavy broth. Heavy soup varieties include tonkotsu ramen and miso ramen. Thinner soups, also made with pork and/or chicken bones, are cooked for a shorter time, but must be carefully tended to achieve a good flavor. These clear soups are mixed with either a soy sauce flavoring or a salt flavoring to create shoyu and shio ramen, respectively.

Of course, these four styles are only the beginning. Ramen is big on regionality, and a Tokyo-style shoyu ramen will differ from a Kitakata-syle shoyu ramen, which will be quite different from an Asahikawa-style shoyu ramen. A few regional favorites that pop up around the country are:

• Sapporo-style miso ramen. Yellow, wavy noodles in a thick miso soup topped with a layer of oil to keep the heat in.
• Kitakata-style shoyu ramen. Flattened noodles in a simple shoyu broth, flavored with niboshi (dried anchovies). Eaten locally for breakfast.
• Saitama-style junk ramen. A soupless bowl, junk style is thick noodles topped with any ingredients that are fatty, salty, and full of flavor. A bowl might have chashu, pork back fat, spicy shrimp mayonnaise, cracker bits, a half-cooked egg, and a pile of cheese.
  Similar styles are also referred to as 'abura-soba' (lit. "oil noodles") and 'maze-men' ("mixed noodles").
• Tokyo-style tsukemen. Noodles served cold and dipped into a thick, hot soup. The soup is often pork based and mixed with different dried fish.
• Tokushima-style tonkotsu ramen. A thick, porky soup topped with a pork stir-fry and a raw egg.
• Hakata-style tonkotsu ramen. Often 100% pork, these bowls are heavy, stinky, and cheap. The noodles are as thin as possible, and served up al dente.

Using the ticket machine

Most ramen shops have a ticket machine near the door. Customers should buy a ticket before sitting down, and be ready to give their ticket to the staff when asked. Some ticket machines are daunting, with dozens of choices. In general, though, the upper left button on a ticket machine will get you a great bowl. When in doubt, go for the upper left.

Different styles of ramen are usually on different lines, with toppings and drinks at the bottom of the ticket machine. When in doubt, a simple request of "Sumimasen, osusume?" ("Excuse me, what do you recommend?") will get you some help if you need it.

Kaedama (extra noodles)

You can order this at some shops, especially tonkotsu ramen shops. When you finish your regular serving, but still have some soup left in the bowl, order kaedama. Simply say "sumimasen" to get the staff's attention, then say "kaedama onegai shimasu." You will probably be charged ¥100.