Hailing from the Nagano city of Matsumoto, the Ryoga group of ramen eateries made its first foray into the capital’s noodle scene by landing in Ogikubo in June 2025. And while they cook up entirely competent ramen (from ¥1,000), the shop’s signature gently sour gyokai-tonkotsu (seafood and pork bone) soup is best savoured in tsukemen (¥1,100) form. Tip: Don’t hesitate to spice up the soup with some of the doubanjiang and shredded garlic available at your table.
We’ll let you in on a secret, too: Get a tsukemen ticket from the vending machine and ask the wait staff for ‘Ogikubo’ – you’ll get to savour a solid reproduction of the tsukemen served at Marunaga Chuka Soba, a beloved Ogikubo shop that closed for good in 2023 after 76 years in business. Ryoga has a long way to go to reach the same local legend status, but the newcomer sure has shown promise early on.