Discover Menya Kanetora Tsukemen at Hakata Station's Deitos Noodle Street in Fukuoka! Despite a 50-minute wait, the rich dashi and chewy noodles made it unforgettable. Find out why it's a must-try!
Menya Kanetora Tsukemen: Absolutely Worth the Wait!
That rich dashi broth and perfectly chewy noodles!
It's a must-try for your first meal in Fukuoka!
For our very first meal in Fukuoka,
we had ramen on our minds.
So, we sought out a tomato ramen shop near our accommodation.
Like many ramen spots in Fukuoka,
there was a bit of a queue.
But we had no idea how long the wait would be,
and absolutely no menu guidance.
After waiting for a while,
we realized we didn't really feel like eating there anymore.
So, we decided to head to Hakata Station Deitos Noodle Street instead.
Along Noodle Street,
long queues stretched out from every single shop,
but Shinshin Ramen and
Menya Kanetora Tsukemen particularly stood out to us.
Having never tried Tsukemen before,
my husband and I decided this was the perfect opportunity to give it a go!
While we were waiting, an employee handed out menus, which was great because we could look through them and decide on our orders beforehand.
Although the queue was much longer than at the previous place we visited,
what impressed us was how staff members consistently came out to manage the line
and offer menu guidance.
As we waited, we could peek inside and see people enjoying their meals – we were truly envious!
Knowing the approximate waiting time made us feel so much more at ease.
I think we waited about 40 minutes outside, and then another 10 minutes in the indoor waiting area.
After approximately 50 minutes of waiting,
we were finally seated!
Before heading into the inner waiting area, we finalized all our menu orders.
Because we had already picked our dishes and placed our orders while waiting,
our food arrived quite quickly!
We ordered the Spicy Tsukemen Premium,
with a regular noodle portion,
and opted for "Crazy" for the spice level – that's level 2!
Tsukemen is served with the sauce and noodles separately, just like this.
The sauce actually had a good amount of sizable meat chunks. However, for my taste, the soft-boiled egg and chashu served as noodle toppings didn't quite complement the sauce as much as I'd hoped.
With plenty of meat and
various other ingredients generously packed into the sauce,
I felt like ordering the 'Premium' version might not have been strictly necessary.
The Tsukemen sauce has an incredibly rich dashi base,
and the umami flavor was absolutely fantastic!
However, if I dipped the noodles in too deeply, it was a little too salty for my personal taste.
To get the perfect balance of flavor, you really only need to dip the noodles lightly.
But since the noodles are served cold, I kept wanting to warm them up,
which meant I kept plunging them deep into the sauce.
As a result, I ended up drinking a lot of water!
The cold noodles are wonderfully chewy, but that also means the dipping sauce cools down quite quickly.
While the first few bites were incredibly tasty,
as time went on, the sauce began to cool,
and the fact that the whole dish became lukewarm was a bit of a letdown.
However, I don't think this is a flaw of this particular restaurant,
but rather a characteristic inherent to Tsukemen as a dish itself.
Once you've finished your noodles, you can add hot broth to the remaining sauce and enjoy it as 'soup-wari'!
So, for those of you, like my husband and me,
who prefer to have a consistently hot broth throughout your meal,
Tsukemen might not be the absolute perfect dish for you.
Still, the staff's well-organized and attentive service made sure that from a guest's perspective,
it was a truly pleasant place to dine.
📍 Menya Kanetora Hakata Deitos Branch Japan 〒812-0012 Fukuoka, Hakata Ward, Hakataekichuogai, 1−1 inside Hakata Noodle Street, JR Hakata Station
Approximately how long did you have to wait to eat tsukemen at Menya Kanetora Hakata Deitos?
According to this article, the author waited for about 40 minutes outside and then 10 minutes in the indoor waiting area at Menya Kanetora, totaling 50 minutes before being seated. It's mentioned that the staff managed the queue and provided wait time guidance, making the wait relatively comfortable.
When ordering the 'Spicy Tsukemen Premium' at Menya Kanetora, how did you choose the noodle portion size and spice level?
The article's author ordered the Spicy Tsukemen Premium, choosing a regular noodle portion and the second spice level, 'Crazy.' However, they advise that since the sauce already contains plenty of meat and ingredients, ordering the premium version might not be necessary.
What are the characteristics of Menya Kanetora's tsukemen sauce and noodles, and what was disappointing about them?
The tsukemen sauce is described as very rich and dashi-based with excellent umami, but it can be too salty if the noodles are dipped too deeply. The noodles are served cold and are chewy, but this causes the sauce to cool down quickly, making the overall dish lukewarm, which was noted as a drawback.