This is my first time visiting Fukushima, and this time I came to eat Kitakata ramen near Koriyama Station. I’ll give an initial rating and then a more detailed review later.

Seafood dipping noodles: 3.8/5
Service: 3.5/5
Atmosphere: 5/5

I think the atmosphere of the restaurant is quite nice. Although the space is not large, almost all the seats have windows for natural light. Upon entering, the staff immediately brings a pot of iced water, along with coasters to prevent water from dripping everywhere. The most important part is that there is a whole pack of tissue paper at each seat. Anyone who has been to Japan knows that most restaurants do not provide tissue paper, so if you find a place that does, you must cherish it 🥹

Next, regarding the service, I feel that since we are foreign visitors and not in a typical tourist area, the staff might not be very enthusiastic when taking orders. They only started helping us with our orders slowly when we called them over. But I don't blame them; if I were the staff and had foreign-speaking customers, I might also act instinctively in that way 🤫

Now for the main point: the seafood dipping noodles! Overall, they were pretty good, but the char siu was a bit excessive (super salty). The noodles are thick, very chewy, and have a strong alkaline flavor. The ratio of noodles dipping into the seafood broth was about 2/3, which I think is just right. The broth had a strong seafood flavor, complemented by sweet Japanese leeks to enhance the overall taste. The only part I found regrettable was that the char siu was really salty, leaning towards being overly salty. If the saltiness of the char siu could be toned down a bit, it would be perfect.