Kita no Daichi

The entrance to Kita no Daichi

On an unseasonably warm Friday afternoon, Micah was helping our couchsurfing guest with her temporary mobile phone as I perused the 2011 issue of Ramen Walker, looking for a recommended Shinjuku shop we hadn't already tried. For no particular reason, other than the bowl featured looking tasty, we decided on Kita no Daichi, a Hokkaido ramen shop in east Shinjuku.


Kita no Daichi's interior

The inside of Kita no Daichi is like many other ramen shops with bar seating and a couple tables. It's capacity is probably about 15 people, so I caution against going with larger groups. Actually our group was five people so I felt quite lucky for all of us to get seats together at the bar.


The specialty of this Kita no Daichi is the "Cheese and Mushroom White Miso Ramen"

Going with the specialty of the shop, I ordered the Cheese and Mushroom White Miso Ramen, as did my couchsurfing friend. Micah ordered the Karami Katsu: spicy tonkotsu broth with tonkatsu. The two other guests both ordered miso ramen, I think! After about 10 minutes waiting, we were all served our ramen!


Micah took this shot of our group


The Cheese and Mushroom White Miso Ramen!

The Cheese and Mushroom White Miso ramen came with a little bit of moyashi, a healthy sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and a handful of shimeji mushroom. With grated black pepper on top and a slice of chashu on the side, this bowl rounds out to the perfect heartiness. The miso flavor is noticeable, though with a lot more fat globules floating on top than your average bowl of miso. It's a strong taste, a bit salty and not for a person looking for a lighter flavor. The cheese and mushroom combination is certainly interesting, unlike any other ramen I've ever had. The Parmesan cheese melts into the soup, changing the flavor from straight up miso to a bit of a cheesy miso. The noodles are a bit on the soft side, so if you're a fan of firm noodles, then this shop is not for you. However Kita no Daichi knows how to make a good bowl of ramen!


The Karami Katsu Ramen

The Karami Katsu ramen boasted to be spicy. As a regular consumer of Nantsuttei: Misoya Hachiro Shoten's gekikara ramen, the Karami Katsu ramen was not so spicy, but it was spicier than Micah expected. In the center of the bowl was a dollop of spicy miso paste that needed to be mixed up to give a uniform spiciness. The katsu was juicy, not dry at all, and the breading wasn't too thick. The breading was softened by the broth but not to the point of mushiness. Micah says the chashu was not super fatty but flavorful nonetheless. There were plenty of noodles and although Micah often feels ramen needs an egg, he said this ramen was fine without one. Overall it was filling, all parts were flavorful in their own way but mixed well together.


Yum!


Gochisousama deshita!


Ramen Kita no Daichi

Phone: 03-3357-0056
Address: Tokyo, Shinjuku 3-28-2 Shinjuku 160-0022
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 23:00 ~ 16:00, 17:00 ~ 11:00 Holidays 11:00 to 21:00