Ramen Kaniryu

Being tired after trying to adjust to a new time zone the day after we arrived, we didn't start until a lot later.  Luckily we accounted for this and set our entrance to Teamlabs Borderless for 5:30pm.  That allowed us to have a late breakfast then have a later lunch at Kura at Shinagawa Station.   After a fantastic visit to Teamlabs, we were in search of dinner.  Sure, we could've dined nearby, but we decided to head back towards Shinagawa for something simple.  The place we chose was Ramen Kaniryu, which is located within a group of restaurants situated right near the canals.  They specialize in a pork & crab broth with the option of being spicy.  Place is pretty rustic with wood tables and plastic buckets as seats.

The menu is pretty basic with the one thing that they are known for is their Tonkotsu Crab broth.  Holy moly, this broth was so full of umami!  Every sip was a revelation as the depth from the pork was completely complimented by the brininess of the crab.  The firm ramen noodles soaked up the broth and were completely flavoured.  As for the thinly sliced and relatively lean pork, it was quite buttery and soft.  The lack of fat didn't make the meat any less tender nor flavourful.

There wasn't a whole lot of other options on the menu, but I could order the ramen in a Spicy Version.  Oh man, this elevated the already delicious and umami-rich crab & pork broth even more so.  Beyond the initial hit of brininess and crab aromatics combined with the richness of pork, there was a solid hit of almost smoky heat.  It wasn't painful spicy though, rather, it added depth and body to the broth.  Really enjoyed this.

For good measure, I added the Crab Miso Mixed Noodles.  This was a dry noodle topped with green onion oil (and residual fried green onions used to make the oil) with crab miso on top.  The result was some intensely crab-forward taste along with the fermented saltiness of miso and the brightness of the green onion oil.  For only 500 yen, I should've eaten another one of these, but alas I was full.  Such a hidden little gem of a restaurant.  I highly recommend that you check it out if you are ever in the Shinagawa area.  Maybe, just maybe, you should head out there even if you are not!

The Good:

- Delicious flavour profile

- Inexpensive

- Super nice chef

The Bad:

- Seating is basic, but that is par for the course for this type of food stall