Gengensya

With kelp-water dipping noodles, the meal begins before the noodles reach the broth. Diners at Gengensya have described slurping a mouthful on its own to savour the kelp, dipping the noodles into the broth, then returning to them plain. The flavour shifts with each dip, and some diners add lemon for a touch of acidity, making it easy to find a balance to suit your taste. The menu also lists cold noodles in kelp water made with makombu kelp from Todohokke Village in Hokkaido, with lemon or the vinegar on the table suggested as accompaniments. If you’re in the mood for noodles centred on the savoury depth of kelp, you can choose between dipping noodles to enjoy with and without broth, or a bowl of cold noodles.

One visitor chose the Gengensya Tonkotsu and reported a hint of dried-fish flavour alongside the pork-bone broth. The menu pairs it with medium-thick, flat, straight noodles, offering a different direction from the kelp-water dishes. A diner who ordered the Gengensya Special described its foamy tonkotsu broth as clean-tasting and enjoyed two kinds of pork: rare-cooked chashu and roast pork. The roast-pork-and-egg rice bowl served with the meal was reported to include a soft-fried egg, roast pork, garlic chips and mayonnaise. There’s room to make the meal your own, whether you stick with a bowl of noodles or add a rice bowl.

Limited-time noodles offer another reason to look over the menu. One listed dish, Abesuta Dx, uses Chinese cabbage and garlic chives from Osaka, with house-made chilli oil, charred garlic and pork back fat. It appears occasionally as a monthly special, with only a limited number of bowls available each day, so check whether it is being served if you have it in mind. Alongside the regular Chinese-style noodles, tonkotsu and kelp-water noodles, these changing specials add another option to the choices at Gengensya.