Yokohama Cup Noodle Museum

Last fall I visited the Cup Noodle Museum in Yokohama. That's right, Yokohama not only has a ramen museum, they also have a museum dedicated to instant ramen!

The first thing we did upon arrival was watch a brief movie about the man who created instant ramen. The movie is in Japanese, but you can get a headset with English, Korean or Chinese audio. I thought the movie was cute and had a sweet message about never giving up, which was a theme throughout the museum. It evidently took Mr. Momofuku many tries before he succeeded in creating instant ramen.

Afterwards there is a model of the shed Mr. Momofuku worked in for so many years, a room full of the many different iterations of Cup Noodles and other Nissin brand instant ramen, and some entertaining ramen themed art work.

But the highlight of the visit is the opportunity to create your own cup of noodles for 300 yen. First you are issued a cup and seated at a table with markers to decorate it as you please. Once your cup is ready to go, you can select a broth flavor and your favorite toppings and watch as the cup goes through the assembly line. To be honest, I thought it sounded a little gimmicky, but it was really fun. Depending on how busy the museum is you may be able to make two or three cups if you like, but I've heard of it being limited to one on some days.

Of course, at the end there is a huge gift shop if you need even more than your individualized Cup Noodle to remember the day.

Cup Noodle Museum

Admission: 500 yen

Hours: 10:00-6:00, no entry after 5:00, closed on Tuesday

Phone: 045-345-0918

Address: 2-3-4 Shinko, Naka-ku, Yokohama

Map

So many years and varieties of Cup Noodles

Sister Visit

I'm terribly late writing about this, but a couple months ago my sister came out to visit (for the fourth time!) for her spring break. It was her shortest trip by far, but still lots of fun.

We discovered that the Yokohama Ramen museum now has two shops that offer gluten free ramen, so we made a point of going out there to binge on ramen. (She enjoyed both, but says that Muku Zweite is better than Komurasaki if you have to choose one or the other.)

In other food adventures we went to Enoshima, an island a little over an hour from Tokyo, and during a picnic a hawk stole her entire lunch! Luckily we were able to find more gluten free food (and ice cream) relatively quickly.

The cherry blossoms were supposed to be opening during her visit, but they were very slow this year. We got a few sightings in, but nothing nearing peak blooms. In spite of that we still did lots of other fun things like seeing a Yayoi Kusama show, finding a baby mango (the size of an egg) at a gift fruit store, and just generally enjoying each other's company.

Gluten Free Ramen

The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum - so much more crowded than a few years ago!

Mini Mango!

The Yayoi Kusama Show

She's so werid, but I LOVE her

Sister Love

Travel themed chu-hais

The Time Is Flying

It's hard to believe it's already the middle of May. Somehow I completely missed writing about the sakura this year, and my sister visiting during her spring break. The cold weather has left, and warm sunny days are coming back, at least for a little while. Rainy season only about three weeks away!

But in the meantime I've been enjoying as much time as I can outdoors. I bought a picnic blanket, and have already put it to use a number of times. A few weeks ago Raku and I went on an overnight to Yokohama, just for an adventure. And while we didn't go anywhere for Golden Week, John and I made a point of going somewhere fun everyday so that it actually felt like a vacation.

Cherry blossoms with a friend

It's the best time of year

Yokohama

The flowers were fantastic

And so was the company!

Cherry Pie Frappuccino - surprisingly delicious

Apple galette for Raku's birthday

Pretty enough for a restaurant, but made by Raku

Coffee Set at the Hotel Chinzanso

Spa EAS in Yokohama

I mentioned the other day that John and I were going to the spa in Yokohama. I was sure that I'd written about it before, but I can't find anything about it on my blog, so let me correct that! Sadly I couldn't take any pictures there (get ready for a text heavy post). But their floor guide has lots of great pictures. 

Spa EAS is a really fantastic spa in Yokohama that I've been to three times now. They have a number of saunas and steam rooms including one really amazing room where a person pours a bunch of herbs and water over the hot rocks and then beats the air with a towel to raise the temperature and humidity. You're only allowed to be in for 8 minutes because they raise the temperature to 70 c (that's 158 f!) I never knew I could sweat so much, but it feels amazing! Once you've enjoyed all the saunas on the top two floors there are a bunch of different baths including salty mineral water, sparkling water, several temperatures of hot water, and ice water accessible through the locker rooms. There are a couple of steam rooms inside the bathing area, but the other saunas are co-ed, except for a small ladies area on the 7th floor. I've been twice with a group of female friends and once with John, and I really enjoyed both experiences.

Reading katakana is helpful, and kanji would be even more helpful, but even if you can't read or speak that doesn't mean a visit would be out of the question, it will just take a little preparation beforehand. I've never heard anyone speak English there, and there are only a few English signs (and I've actually never seen another foreigner there) but this place is too great to miss!  The spa is a quick walk from the West Exit of JR Yokohama Station or Exit 9 of the Metro, on the 4th floor of a big complex that also has a bowling alley and a Pasela karaoke.  You'll need to take off your shoes at the entrance and put them in a locker before going to the front desk. At the front desk they will give you a wrist band that opens your locker and can charge any purchases for the rest of the day, including the drink machines. After getting your wrist band walk up the stairs to the 5th floor. At the desk you can pick your spa clothes (there are two choices for ladies and one for men) and a get floor guide brochure. Just point to the color and tell them what size (I was comfortable in an M). They'll give you a bag with your outfit, a big towel, and a small towel. Once you've got your bag you can go in the locker rooms to get changed. The wrist band you got on the 4th floor has a number on it - that's your assigned locker, and it's magnetic - just push it against the little gray button and your locker should pop right open. (That took me waaaaay too long to figure out). Once you've changed you're ready to go enjoy yourself on the sixth and seventh floors. The floor guide will show pictures of the different steam rooms, relaxation rooms, and other services so you should be able to find your way around even if you can't read. I like to bring a kindle or my phone inside my bag to read in the relaxation rooms. A lot of people bring their towels to lie on in the saunas too.

The really hot sauna on the 6th floor happens on the hour, usually at 12:00, 1:00, 2:00, and 4:00. It's important to get in line about 20 minutes beforehand because it's really popular and it fills up super fast. People will just sit on the floor waiting until they let you in. If you can read Japanese you can check out the schedule to pick which hour sounds best (they have different essential oils like herbs, orange, bergamot etc.) but if you can't, don't worry. Just pick a time and be sure to get in line early.

There are a number of restaurants that serve noodles and curries as well as a juice and smoothie bar, and also places that do massages, facials, acupuncture, and aromatherapy. Obviously you have to pay for all of that, but you can just charge it to your wristband. There are also lots of drink machines and an ice cream vending machine. I've never tried any of the extra services, but John got a massage and he was really happy with it. All the signs are in Japanese, but if you look at their website with google translate ahead of time you should be able to figure out what you want.

Once you're done with the saunas you can enjoy all the different baths. The first time I went I was really nervous about the whole naked thing, but everyone else acts like it's completely normal, and I promise that after a minute or two you'll adjust. If you've never been to an onsen before you leave your big towel in the cubbies just before the baths and bring your little towel with you. You can hold it in front of you to cover up the most important bits if you want. It's important to shower (thoroughly) at the little booths before getting in the water. If your hair is long you can get a hair tie at the same place you get your spa clothes. Most people keep their little towels folded up on the top of their heads while they're soaking in the water.  They have lots of hairdryers and fun face products you can try, so you leave looking at least as nice as you did when you arrived. At the end turn your clothes and towels back in where you got them, and then take your wristband down to the 4th floor to pay.

The normal price is 2600 yen (200 yen upcharge on holidays) but every Tuesday is Ladies Day, and then it's only 1600 yen as long as you're in a group. If you go by yourself they only give you 500 yen off. Friday is men's day, but as far as I can tell it's just a free drink, not reduced admission. 

Whew!  If you've made it this far, thanks for sticking with me. I realize I wrote a ton and went really in depth with the details. It's the sort of place that might be intimidating without knowing what to expect ahead of time or being able to communicate very well, but I've just had such a great experience here, and I hope other people can too.

Spa EAS
Hours:10:30 am - 9:00 am
Phone: 04-5290-2080
Address: 2-2-1 Kitasaiwai, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa
Map

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Yokohama Chinatown

A couple weeks ago Raku and I went to Yokohama for the afternoon, the plan was to eat some Chinese food, spend the afternoon writing, and do a little shopping (the real reason for the trip). Well, we never got around to the writing, but we were very successful at the eating and shopping.

Yokohama is famous for its huge Chinatown, the perfect destination for a delicious lunch. I'm not that familiar with different types of Chinese food, but we picked a Shanghai style restaurant and had a very satisfying meal. We started with stir fried noodles with shrimp and vegetables. It was perfectly salty and noodles had a satisfying chewiness.  

Next we ordered a surprising pork and tofu dish. We picked it based on a picture, and were surprised that it came with little steamed buns to put the mixture inside. Honestly, it didn't really need the buns, but I'm not a steamed bun fan in general. The meat and tofu mixture was curry flavored, which was also unexpected, but not unpleasant.

We finished with an order of enormous shumai. Yokohama is famous for shumai - you can often get them as a souvenir to bring back. They're a type of steamed pork dumpling partially covered in a paper thin wrapper.  The filling is tender, juicy and delicious!

We had our meal with unlimited hot jasmine tea. I don't think I've had any since we were in Hong Kong, and I had forgotten how much I enjoyed it. The hot floral tea is perfect with greasy salty Chinese food.

After all that eating I got some shopping in. I bought these beautiful plates from a local ceramics company called Yokohama Masuda. 

I love them!

And just for fun, Raku and I took funny photos at a display painted on the windows at Yokohama Station.

Yokohama Ramen Musuem

This week Raku has had a friend visiting, and the three of us went out to the Ramen Museum in Yokohama.  For some reason the museum spells it "raumen," but I'm just going to stick to the regular spelling.

The museum area of the museum is actually quite small.  It's just a wall inside the gift shop with some history - all in Japanese.  But the point is not to read about ramen, it's to sample the ramen!  The museum has recreated a little 1958 ramen village with nine ramen shops.

Main Square of the Village

Ramen Alley

Everything has been aged to look like it's from 1958

The museum has selected from the most well know in the country to represent the four major types of ramen: shoyu (soy) broth, miso broth, shio (salt) broth, and tonkotsu (pork) broth.  The shops all have vending machines that sell tickets for half and full sized bowls.  We decided to try three different types, but even with the half sizes we were stuffed by the end!

Our first ramen was tonkotsu style from Komurasaki.  Tonkotsu is my favorite type of ramen anyways, and this was excellent.  The broth was wonderfully flavored with garlic and had a rich almost creamy consistency.  There is red pepper on the table than you can mix in, which I did halfway through.  Both ways were great.  The only bad thing I would say it that noodles were maybe slightly overcooked.

Komurasaki: Tonkotsu Ramen

 Our second stop was at Sumira for some miso ramen.  This was my least favorite of the day.  The noodles were thick and crinkly, with a nice springiness to them, but I didn't care for the broth.  It was very thick and very oily, with a strong ginger scent.  I normally love ginger, but I thought it clashed a with the miso, and that the flavor of the bamboo shoots clashed even more.  I did like how the pork was diced rather than in slices.  For what it's worth this was Raku's favorite miso of the day, but her friend agreed with me.

Sumira: Miso Ramen

By our last stop we were all losing a little of our enthusiasm (even though I didn't finish my ramen at Sumira).  Luckily, at Shinasoba-ya the small portions were significantly smaller than at the other two places.  The noodles here were the thinnest and most delicate which Raku and I both enjoyed, though her friend preferred them thicker.  The broth had a delicate flavor that Raku and I both though reminded us slightly of Udon broth.  Raku found this very unsettling, but I was just glad it tasted better than the miso.

Shinasoba-ya: Shoyu Ramen

By the time we finished our tongues were burning from both the salt and the hot broth.  In our dehydrated state we went to the gift shop which was very entertaining.  Raku's friend bought some ramen to take home, and we all laughed at the ramen themed gifts.

Classical and Jazz Noodle CDs?

Super cute ramen stickers!

Yokohama Ramen Museum

Admission: Adults 310 yen, Children 100 yen

Hours: Typically 11:00-10:00, but varies daily, consult this page

Phone: 04-5471-0503

Address: 2-14-21, Shinyokohama, Kohoku-ku

Map