Now, here’s a refreshing take on ramen! Afuri’s specialty is yuzu shio ramen (980 yen), a ramen made with a yuzu citrus spiked clear broth called “chintan” and labeled simply as “chicken broth” on the menu.
Afuri’s broth and noodles are made exclusively with spring water from Mt. Afuri in Kanagawa Prefecture, hence the name Afuri and the moutain shaped logo. There are eight Afuri outlets in Tokyo and we went to the one at Harajuku area. First, you will need to choose your noodles from the vending machine. For first timer, you can go for the yuzu shio (salt broth) or yuzu shoyu (soy sauce broth) ramen.
An order slip will be printed out, just pass it to the chefs, and your food should be served to you shortly.
The chefs will often ask if you preferred tanrei (light broth) or maroaji (thicker broth). We went for tanrei since it is an Afuri’s classic.
There are sometimes seasonal specials, such as the chilled tsukemen (dipping noodles). I just had to order this. A regular bowl costs 1060 yen.
The broth is served seperately from the noodles. The noodles were thicker which I really like and the cold dipping sauce is yuzu based as well. Just dip some noodles into the concentrated broth then slurp away. Remember to ask for some hot broth to be added to the leftover dipping sauce. The soup will be amazing – full of umami flavours.
Here comes the star – yuzu shio ramen with light, citrus-spiked broths and clean, springy noodles.
Made with chicken, fish and konbu seaweed and finished with a garnish of yuzu peel, the delicate hot broth is simply amazing. The noodles is served with half an ajitama egg, slices of freshly grilled chāshū pork, seasonal greens and seafood. The chāshū was out of this world. It was very soft, tender, fatty and juicy. The chef grilled it over charcoal to get the charred and smoky flavor.
Highly recommended!
Afuri Harajuku
Add: 1F Grandeforesta, 3-63-1 Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Tel:03-6438-1910
Hours: 10:30am – 3:00am (Open 7 days a week)
Other outlets here.