I love spicy miso ramen, and Kikanbo in Kanda serves some of the best. The Kikanbo ramen restaurant has recently moved from the location on the corner to a place, a little further down the road. The corner spot is now hosting another Kikanbo restaurant, which serves tsukumen, which is noodles you dip in a thick sauce.
You choose your preferred level of spiciness ranging from non-spicy to devil spicy. I’ve previously struggled with handling regular spicy at Kikanbo, but for unknown reasons I decided to order the devil spicy ramen this time. The staff warned me that it was very spicy, and told me that I could still change my mind, but I insisted on getting the devil spicy ramen.
Of course devil spicy was way too spicy for me, and after only a couple of sips, I was sweating like a pig. I gulped down 4 glasses of water, but I was still gasping for air, and the Japanese man sitting next to me, started to look worried. I tried circumnavigating those red pepper flakes, but it was impossible, so after eating the egg, I gave up.
Kikanbo – All you need to know
For fans of spicy ramen, there is no way around Kikanbo. The miso based broth is cooked on pork bone, chicken bone and different kinds of vegetables in more than 10 hours. Chili oil made from a well-balanced mix of six kinds of red peppers brings the heat to the bowl, which is then topped with braised pork belly, baby corn and bean sprouts and egg, and drizzled with more red pepper to create the requested level of spiciness.
There are five level of spiciness ranges from Non-spicy to Devil Spicy, and while it might be tempting to see if you can handle Devil Spicy, we strongly advice against it, as you will most likely end up with a bruning mouth and an untouched bowl of ramen. Level 2 – level 3 is suitable for most people.
Kikanbo is a typical Japanese ramen restaurant, so it is not a place to hang around for hours. Considering that there is usually a line outside, it is also common courtesy not to sit around for too long.
A bowl of spicy ramen is 1000 yen (August 2021)
Read about my first visit at Kikanbo back in 2015 >>
Kikanbo, Kajicho 2-10-9, Chioda-ku, Tokyo, nearest station: Kanda, Address in Japanese: 鍛冶町2-10-10, Chiyoda, 東京都 〒101-0044
