Tokushima | Unique Styles of Tea, White, and Yellow Broths: The Charm of Tokushima Ramen

When visiting Tokushima, you must try the local cuisine. One popular choice is Men-Ou Station Front Main Store. It's no exaggeration to say that during my two-day stay in Tokushima, the store always had a long queue outside during business hours. Men-Ou's ramen has several distinctive features. You can choose the firmness of the noodles, and they offer a free raw egg. For extra noodles (kaedama), you can select from Chinese noodles, spicy red noodles, pepper noodles, or seaweed-infused noodles with a marine flavor. The store's highlight is the unlimited spicy bean sprouts, which have a taste reminiscent of Taiwanese noodle stall side dishes. With a crunchy texture and subtle hints of sesame oil and chili oil, they are excellent whether eaten alone or added to the ramen. Tokushima, located in Shikoku, is famous for its Tokushima ramen. This ramen features soft, medium-thin noodles paired with tender, sweet-salty pork slices, bamboo shoots, and char siu, creating a bowl of indulgent delight that has become a local favorite. As a side note, Tokushima's ramen culture originated before World War II and is divided into three styles: tea, yellow, and white. Tea-style ramen has a tea-brown broth and is served with a raw egg. Yellow-style ramen, found in Chinese restaurants, uses a chicken bone and vegetable-based yellow broth. White-style ramen, popular in Komatsushima, is made with pork bone and white soy sauce. Tokushima ramen gained fame thanks to a shop called Butatani, which made a name for itself at Yokohama's Ramen Museum before the millennium. Now, 25 years later, Tokushima ramen has its own loyal following and continues to evolve. 📍Address: 〒770-0832 Tokushima Prefecture, Tokushima City, Terashima Honcho Higashi 3-6, Asahi Building 1F 🚗 JR Tokushima Station, a one-minute walk away.