Fuunji

Restaurant

Prefecture

Tokyo

Type

Restaurant

N/A

0 reviews

Restaurant Train Access

About This Destination

A narrow counter with about ten stools, a few minutes from Shinjuku's south exit, and a queue outside it for most of the hours it is open. Fuunji opened in 2007 and has been on every Tokyo tsukemen list since. Tsukemen means the noodles and the broth arrive separately. Here the noodles are thick, cold and firm, and the dipping broth is a gyokai tonkotsu: pork and chicken bones cooked down and then loaded with dried sardine and bonito powder until it is closer to a paste than a soup. It is intensely savoury and it clings to the noodles rather than running off them. The standard order is the tokusei tsukemen, which adds extra chashu and a marinated egg. Finish the noodles, then ask for soup-wari. Staff top the remaining broth with light stock so you can drink it, and skipping this step wastes the best part of the meal. Practical things. Buy a ticket at the machine before joining the queue, which is the local rule and not obvious to first-timers. Expect thirty to sixty minutes at peak, less if you arrive right at opening or in the mid-afternoon before the evening service. There is a midday break, and the shop closes on Sundays. Portions are large and the default noodle amount defeats a lot of people. Cash is safest. If the queue is beyond your patience, Shinjuku has several hundred other ramen shops. Very few of them do this particular bowl as well.

A narrow counter with about ten stools, a few minutes from Shinjuku's south exit, and a queue outside it for most of the hours it is open. Fuunji opened in 2007 and has been on every Tokyo tsukemen list since.

Tsukemen means the noodles and the broth arrive separately. Here the noodles are thick, cold and firm, and the dipping broth is a gyokai tonkotsu: pork and chicken bones cooked down and then loaded with dried sardine and bonito powder until it is closer to a paste than a soup. It is intensely savoury and it clings to the noodles rather than running off them. The standard order is the tokusei tsukemen, which adds extra chashu and a marinated egg.

Finish the noodles, then ask for soup-wari. Staff top the remaining broth with light stock so you can drink it, and skipping this step wastes the best part of the meal.

Practical things. Buy a ticket at the machine before joining the queue, which is the local rule and not obvious to first-timers. Expect thirty to sixty minutes at peak, less if you arrive right at opening or in the mid-afternoon before the evening service. There is a midday break, and the shop closes on Sundays. Portions are large and the default noodle amount defeats a lot of people. Cash is safest.

If the queue is beyond your patience, Shinjuku has several hundred other ramen shops. Very few of them do this particular bowl as well.

Location

Prefecture: Tokyo

Address: Tokyo, Japan

Nearest Station: Shinjuku Station

Best time to visit: Year-round; go right at opening or in the mid-afternoon lull to shorten the famously long queue for the rich seafood-and-pork tsukemen

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Visitor Information

Credit Cards: Unknown

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Fuunji and how long is the wait?

1F Hokuto Daiichi Building, 2-14-3 Yoyogi, Shibuya, an 8-minute walk south of JR Shinjuku Station South Exit, or 5 min from Yoyogi Station (JR Yamanote/Sobu, Toei Oedo). Lunch 11:00–15:00 sees 60–90 min queues; dinner 17:00–22:00 reaches 30–60 min. Best time: 14:30 (post-lunch lull, 15–30 min wait) or right at 17:00 reopen (10 min wait). Sunday is closed. Cash only, so bring exact change for the ¥1,000 ticket vending machine.

What's tsukemen and how do I eat it?

Tsukemen are 'dipping noodles': thick, cold noodles in one bowl, intensely-flavored hot broth in another. Lift a few noodles with chopsticks, dip briefly into the broth (don't soak), and eat. The broth is too rich to drink directly. After finishing the noodles, ask for 'soup-wari' (free) to dilute the remaining broth with light dashi for drinking. Fuunji's signature is the chicken-fish-pork triple stock. Order the standard tsukemen (¥1,200) or upgrade to extra-noodles 'omori' (¥1,400); most adults manage the larger size.

What's the difference between Fuunji and Ichiran?

Different ramen styles. Fuunji = tsukemen (cold noodles + hot dipping broth, thick fish-based broth), 1 location, sit at a counter shared with regulars, conversation OK, ¥1,200–1,500. Ichiran = traditional hot tonkotsu ramen, individual silent booths, customizable, 24h, ¥1,200–1,600. Fuunji is the foodie pick (Tabelog 4.0+, Michelin Bib Gourmand), Ichiran is the famous-experience pick. Both are within walking distance of Shinjuku Station. For a true Tokyo ramen experience, do both: Fuunji at lunch, Ichiran late night.

Are there other Fuunji branches?

No. Fuunji has only this one Yoyogi/Shinjuku location, which is part of its mystique. Owner Manabu Nishiyama insists on personal oversight, refusing franchising. The shop opened in 2007 and has remained at the same location with the same menu and 14 counter seats. Comparable Tokyo tsukemen alternatives if you can't queue: Tsukemen Tetsu (Yaesu, no queues), Mita Seimensho (chain with multiple branches, ¥980), or Rokurinsha at Tokyo Ramen Street (Tokyo Station).