Time for a Hot Bowl of Ramen
After a chilly morning at Takahashi Farm Milk Kobo, we headed for an early lunch. We were craving for a hot bowl of ramen in this weather, and while browsing online, we found an interesting shop called Niseko Ramen Kazahana. It was only 15 mins away, located near the Grand Hirafu Resort. What was interesting was their signature creamy potato broth ramen, touted as the most unique ramen in Japan. Ramen? Check. 15 mins drive? Check. Thus so decided this shall be our lunch place.
The Tastiest Ramen in Niseko
We arrived at around 11.30 a.m., not expecting that there would be already queue forming. Lucky for us, there were only around 10 people in front. Hence we should be able to squeeze in as the first batch of customers. That said, half an hour in the snow was extremely difficult. We had constantly shuffle our hands and feet to keep ourselves warm.
Even though they opened the doors exactly at noon, they had some sort of a crowd control system in place. They gradually let the guests in, I believe to settle down and take orders and not overwhelm the poor chef. Thankfully the wait wasn’t too long for us. The place itself wasn’t very big and the ambiance was quite cozy. Best thing was, there was an English menu. And of course, we did order their famous Creamy Potato Ramen, and the Hokkaido Miso Butter Corn Ramen.
Both bowls of ramen were unsurprisingly huge. The potato ramen has a layer of mashed potato-like foam that sits on top of the miso broth. There are a few to enjoy this ramen. You can either eat the noodles first together with the foam and enjoy the sweetness of the potato. Or you can stir everything up into a mix to achieve a sweet-salty taste. The miso butter corn ramen was delicious too, with an aromatic fragrance because of the butter. Though we were extremely hungry, we couldn’t finish up the portions of noodles. Nevertheless we had our energies replenished, for our afternoon ski again!
Information About Niseko Ramen Kazahana
Address: 179-36 Yamada, Kutchan, Abuta District, Hokkaido 044-0081, Japan
Opening Hours: 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily
Note: Only walk-ins available, no reservations accepted
Average Price: ¥1100 per bowl
Website: http://www7.plala.or.jp/nisekoramenmount/index-e.html
