Tabelog ratingRamen Wara (らーめん 藁) opened in 2022. Its chef trained at Shinka, the celebrated salt-ramen shop in Machida, and the shop was selected for Tabelog's Ramen Kanagawa "Tabelog 100" in 2024 and 2025. Two things set it apart. The first is the tsukemen: house-made flat noodles rest in chilled kombu-and-chicken water and are seasoned so well that several reviewers ate most of them before touching the dipping broth. The second is the chashu, which pairs smoky, flame-charred pork belly with silky chicken thigh. For many reviewers, that alone justifies the trip.
Reviewers almost unanimously praise the chashu, the chicken in particular. The clear soup is built on chicken, duck and pork with a bonito edge, and reviewers call it refined yet deep in both the shoyu and shio versions. The half-and-half soft eggs (one soy-marinated, one salted) and the shio tsukemen are frequent highlights. Staff are described as polite and warm, and the room as spotless and welcoming to children.
The recurring criticism is the noodles. They are soft, thin and flat, and some reviewers compare them to udon or hiyamugi and find them short on bite. A few thought the soup too gentle, or felt that noodles and broth in the shoyu bowl did not quite come together. Some found the chashu rice bowl ordinary.
Prices have risen steadily since 2024. In 2024–2026 reviewers paid around:
- ¥900–1,080 for shoyu ramen
- ¥1,150–1,380 for the tokusei (fully loaded) shoyu or shio
- ¥1,100–1,200 for shio tsukemen and ¥1,500 for the loaded tsukemen
- ¥350–380 for pork chashu rice, and +¥200 for a large portion
The listed budget band is under ¥1,000, but lunch and dinner typically come to about ¥1,000–1,500 per person once toppings are added. Value is rated well, since portions are generous and the loaded bowl's chashu covers half the surface. One regular found ¥1,000 for a bowl with egg slightly steep.
- Getting there: from the north exit of Tsujido Station (JR Tokaido and Ueno-Tokyo lines), take the Kanagawa Chuo Kotsu bus bound for Chigasaki Station to the Owada stop, then walk 1 minute. On foot it is 19 minutes (1.4 km) from the west exit of Tsujido Station.
- Payment: cash only, at a ticket machine that takes notes of ¥1,000 or smaller. Credit cards, electronic money and QR payments are not accepted.
- Booking: reservations are not taken, so just walk in and queue. If there is a line, join it first and buy your ticket only when staff call you in. Weekend and lunch waits are typically 10–20 minutes. Arriving 15–30 minutes before opening gets you into the first sitting.
- Seats: 12 (8 at the counter, 4 at tables). No private rooms or private hire. When the chef works alone, bowls can take 10–15 minutes.
- Children: welcome, and there is a kids' menu.
- Smoking: non-smoking.
- Parking: 4 spaces, 2 in front and 2 in a second lot about 100 m away. Waiting for a space is not allowed.
- Closures: holidays are irregular and announced on the shop's X account, so check before going.