Home Economics Room
I feel like it was sweeter.
Do I just add more sugar?
Hey, Yuu!
How many bowls are you trying to feed us?
We can't eat any more!
What? Can't you eat just one more bowl?
Nope.
Thanks for the food.
I think this is already a great ramen.
What aren't you satisfied with?
No, this is totally different.
I remember that tasty ramen I ate in Osaka when I was a little kid.
I think the place was close to my grandma's house.
Last night, as I was falling asleep, it just popped into my head.
Thank you for waiting.
It's so good!
Yum!
I've been hoping to replicate that taste to entice Koizumi-san over.
It's so amazing that you can make ramen this delicious.
Let's be friends.
I would love to!
Why does that sound...
...easier said than done?
Unfortunately, I can't remember the ramen clearly enough to replicate it.
Do you at least know the name of the restaurant? Or their menu?
I was really little, so I don't remember.
And it's in Osaka, so I can't just take her to it, either.
Why don't you ask someone in your family, then?
Maybe your brother?
That's our Jun! So smart!
Yuu
Brother, this is an emergency. Do you remember the ramen we ate in Osaka back then? You know, when we had that rare outing where we all went, back when I had just entered kindergarten.
What kind of ramen was that again?
Please tell me
Oh, it's from Yuu.
Your sister?
Yeah... "Brother, get back to me right away."
Yuu: Brother, this is an emergency. Do you remember the ramen we ate in Osaka back then? You know, when we had that rare outing where we all went,back when I had just entered kindergarten.
Yuu: What kind of ramen was that again?
Do you remember the ramen we ate in Osaka back then?
Please tell me
You know, when we all went, back when I was in kindergarten.
"What kind of ramen was that again?"
"Please tell me."
Oh, yeah, that ramen. I know.
Ping
He wrote back!
I knew he'd come through.
Bro: Oh, sure. That was
Oh, sure. That was...
Bro: Tasty Ramen
Tasty Ramen.
Yuu
I'm not asking for your opinion
I'm not asking for your opinion.
What the heck?! What's wrong with Yuu?!
Why is Ohsawa crying?
I told her, and this is how she treats me?!
Who knows? Sibling fight?
I can't count on him.
I'm going to have to remember it myself.
Uh, it had some kind of leafy vegetable and some kind of chopped meat...
The soup had a gentle sweetness, kind of like sukiyaki sauce.
It wasn't a particularly light flavor, though.
Anyway, it was a tasty ramen.
That's not exactly enough info.
Tasty ramen?
Staaare...
K-Koizumi-san?!
Excuse me. I don't actually have any business here,
but I was walking down the hall, and I smelled ramen.
Yeah, okay! So come on in!
I can't believe this is actually working.
Here, have a seat!
Excuse me.
It's... still a work in progress.
Thank you for the food.
By the way, you were talking about a ramen that this was based on.
Could it be...
Tasty Ramen?
Huh? Yes, it was.
Because their main branch is located in Osaka's Dotonbori,
but Tokyo has a location, too.
Wait, really?! Where?
I want to go there!
I don't think we can...
...eat any more ramen today.
Loves Ramen Noodles
Ms. Koizumi
Loves Ramen Noodles
Kabukicho Ichibangai
Tasty Ramen
I think that's what you were talking about.
Huh?
Tasty Ramen
Tasty ramen!
Welcome!
Please take a seat anywhere you like.
Two customers coming in!
Welcome!
So I guess it's literally called "Tasty Ramen" on the menu.
I'll have to text an apology to my brother.
Excuse me.
Here's your Tasty Ramen.
Please add some garlic chives, if you like.
Yes, this is the scent!
Time to eat.
This is it! The napa cabbage gives it that gentle sweetness.
But maybe it's the higher amount of flavored oil
that keeps it from being too light?
The soup is always so hot here.
I guess these are the garlic chives?
The garlic chives give it an even deeper flavor.
Customers coming in.
Welcome!
Still hot
That really was tasty ramen!
Thank you for the food.
I just drank all that soup without thinking.
I never thought I'd have the ramen of my childhood memories here in Tokyo.
I was sure I'd have to go all the way to Osaka for it.
Huh?
Koizumi-san?
Thank you
What's wrong, Koizumi-san?
— The Next Day —
Shin Osaka Shin Osaka Hiroshima Shin Osaka Hakata
Non-Reserved Cars 1-3 Non-Reserved Cars 1-3 Non-Reserved Cars 1-3 Non-Reserved Cars 1-3 Non-Reserved Cars 1-3
Tokyo
Passenger Ticket - Bullet Train Non-Reserved Seat
Shin Osaka
It's been a while since I went west.
It was Tasty Ramen.
It was Tasty Ramen, was it not?
It was tasty ramen!
It was tasty ramen, was it not?!
Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles
Osaka
Menya Joroku
Time to eat.
- The Next Day -
Hey, hey, girlie! Hey, hey, hey!
Where ya goin'?
If you're free, wanna hang?
We know some really good places. Eh, eh?
The 10th time on this bridge alone
I can't move forward.
Oh, there you are!
Sorry I'm late, Charlotte!
Shall we?
Hey, wait!
Just hear me out!
Excuse me, but who is Charlotte?
And... who are you?
Ya just looked like a Charlotte.
I felt bad for ya, since those guys kept hittin' on ya.
Thank you for helping me out.
I'll be going now.
Hey, wait!
You were at a ramen place in Nanba last night, yeah?
I could tell from your accent that you're from Tokyo.
At the restaurant last night...
Oh, miss, you can just leave it.
Oh, force of habit.
After ya finished, ya put your bowl up on the counter.
That's not somethin' folks from around here would do.
You're in high school, right?
Tourin' Osaka by yourself?
I came here to eat ramen.
Whoa, whoa... It might be weird for a local to say this,
but Osaka ramen really ain't that big a deal.
We don't have anything unique here, either.
I don't see what brought ya from Kanto—
Untrue.
Osaka's ramen... is definitely the thing right now.
Of course there are the established places,
but there's also a lot of new places with potential coming onto the scene.
You just said that this area doesn't have its own
distinct style of noodles, but there's the type called "Takaida."
Yesterday's chuuka soba is derived from that genre,
and the further development of that rich soy sauce base
is "Osaka Black," which is one of my favorites.
Anyway, this is my last day in Osaka.
I still have four more bowls to go.
Wait!
Hey, hey, where are you going!
Can't move yet again
Hey, you wanna hang out?
Hey, hey...
I told ya so.
Was saved again
This is just a suggestion, but I could be your bodyguard!
So let me tag along today.
Hey!
Hey
Hey!
Hey
Hey!
Hey
Thank you.
Yes!
My name is Ayane and I'm 25 years old, a Virgo, and blood type O!
How about you?
My name is Koizumi.
Koizumi-chan!
Let's be friends!
Déjà vu.
I'm sorry about this.
But I did want to try Osaka's tasty ramen, and it's my last day, too.
Tori Paitan Ramen
Bokkoshi
Welcome!
Thank you for waiting!
One tori paitan and one extra thick tori paitan.
It's so white! Why?
Weren't ya talkin' about some black stuff earlier?
I already visited all the soy sauce based restaurants yesterday.
Today, I'm focusing on newly opened stores.
Osaka's "whites," like tori paitan and salt ramen, are hot, too.
I dunno about that, but I guess there are all kinds of ramen.
I haven't done this since I entered the workforce.
Time to eat!
This is so good!
What is this?
It's so rich and creamy!
Please eat more quietly.
Thanks for eating our ramen.
That was so good!
That paitan ramen was so milky! I could get hooked on that, all right!
Incidentally, they don't use milk to make it white.
Oh, really?
The white soup that results from a long, hot cooking process is called paitan.
The clear soup that results from low-temperature cooking is called chintan.
I see.
I didn't know they taught stuff like that in Tokyo high schools.
I didn't learn this in school.
Ramen
Look at this sparkling salt broth!
Two types of char siu made from local chickens.
Superb.
R a m e n
T s u k e m e n
R a m e n
T s u k e m e n
Men no Youji
Parents Kids Grandkids
Thank you for waiting.
Just look at this beautiful soup!
The umami from the vegetables and chicken is permeatin' my entire body!
I'm so full!
I can't believe I've eaten four bowls for lunch.
Are you going to be okay?
Yes!
I come from a family with big stomachs, thanks to my grandmother.
But after all that, you're still having takoyaki?
Well, I am in Osaka.
Boy, eatin' that ramen made me want to get a drink.
Why don't you go get a drink, then?
I can't join you, since I'm underage.
I'll pass.
It's better to not drink somethin' you love when you're all gloomy.
Y'know...
I quit my job.
After this, I'll be workin' a job in Tokyo that my relatives got me.
So this is my last day in Osaka.
I was doin' stuff I liked for a living,
but it was starting to be too stressful.
Yesterday, I asked my friends to go out with me to get my mind off things,
but I couldn't really enjoy the drinks.
Then, on my way home, I remembered a ramen place
I used to go to after drinkin'.
I hadn't been there in so long.
It was the best.
Why does the ramen you eat after some drinks taste so good?
Paitan and salt ramen are good, too, but I guess I prefer soy sauce based ones.
The simple kind with naruto and stuff on them.
When I was in college, the place I often went to was in Tsurumi.
I could never forget that taste.
I forgot the name of the store, though. What was it again?
Then let's go there next.
I want to try it now, too.
Huh?
You're really gonna take me there?
Thank you!
Chuuka Soba
Hey, this isn't Tsurumi.
I'm going in.
Koizumi-chan, wait!
Excuse me. Here's your chuuka soba.
Thank you for waiting.
This does kind of look like that ramen.
Time to eat.
Time to eat!
This is it!
This unpretentious, simple chuuka soba!
Some years ago, the main restaurant transferred over here.
What's in Tsurumi now is a branch location.
So that's why we're here.
The location may be new, but it tastes just as good as before.
If anything, it tastes even better than before.
The longer a store has been in business, the more it's devoted to improving its ramen.
It looks the same,
but it's continuously changing.
If I ate this after some drinks, it'd be even more delicious!
This is the last place.
The last place is in the office district? That's just cold.
Ya know I just quit my job.
I simply wanted to eat this black ramen, too.
There was no other reason.
More importantly, I thought you shouldn't drink when you're gloomy?
Oh, well, they had drinks on the menu!
No, that's not it.
The day before I start my new journey,
I've been eatin' delicious ramen with a cute li'l lady
all over the city that I've called home for 25 years.
I left gloomy behind me a long time ago. I'm in a great mood!
The reason I quit my company was because I didn't wanna stop working.
Isn't that a contradiction?
That's right, bein' an adult is all about contradictions.
Thank you for waiting.
One Kurofune.
All right, then!
Time to eat.
Yum!
Black ramen really is the best.
Not all black ramens are the same.
Thanks for spendin' today with me.
Here ya go.
It's my contact information.
I'll be counting on you in Tokyo.
For what, exactly?
Oh, yeah! I've got a cousin the same age as you over there.
Ohsawa Ayane
You don't mean—
She's comin' out today to help me move.
She should be here soon. I'll introduce ya.
No... I...
C'mon, let's go!
Koizumi-san!
Yuu!
I knew it.
What are you doing in Osaka?
You ignored me?!
I would've never expected to meet you here.
What are you two doing together, anyway?
I was just about to ask you the same thing.
You know each other?
Koizumi-chan's been showing me around all day.
What?! Do that for me, too!
Time to get on my train.
Koizumi-chan! Let's meet again in Tokyo!
Hey! Wait!
Hey, Aya-neechan.
Where's Yuu?
Over there.
Koizumi-san!
Yuu (5 years old)
Aya-neechan, there's a dragon stuck in the ramen place!
Kinryuu
That's Naniwa's guardian deity.
Thank goodness!
Oh, a guardian deity.
Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles
Nagoya
Reunion
Looks like you're pretty used to Osaka, huh, Koizumi-chan?
I've been there many times.
Well, then, why don't you try speakin' in in the Osaka dialect?
What for?
I wanna hear your adorable voice speaking in the Osaka dialect!
Oh, come on, please?
I'm thinkin' not.
You're a native speaker!
Thank you for the meal!