Subjective: Bannai Shokudo hails from Kitakata; creating a pork-based, clear broth ramen. It’s located within Kyoto Station on the 10th Floor of Isetan department store within the group of ramen restaurants dubbed«Kyoto Ramen Koji»(«Kyoto Ramen Street»). Similar to other ramen places in Japan, first buy a meal ticket at the front and then wait for a seat to open. Dishes average around 1000 yen. Objective: Kyoto Station is massive and it can take a while to get your bearings and find Isetan. Alternatively, look for signs for the Kyoto SkyWay as Koji is near there as well. There was no wait for weekday dinner around 8 pm. Ordered their signature pork ramen with their special char siu. Be warned the dish comes with seemingly a pound of char-siu and the flavor is sort of one-note towards the end of the meal. Noodle texture was great(more on the firm-side). It’ll leave you stuffed. Overall, would recommend, particularly if you love char-siu and less creamy broths.
Jay Y.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Houston, TX
Repping the Kitakata ramen in the Kyoto Ramen Alley, Bannai Shokudo is an excellent choice especially for those unfamiliar with various regional ramen styles such as myself! Unlike the creamy ramen broth that many mainstream chains like Ippudo has been presenting, Kitakata ramen broth is actually clear. Don’t let the clear broth fool you though, because you will get a good flavorful punch that you would’ve gotten from a creamy-looking broth, so if you are not a fan of the creamy texture but like the pork taste, Kitakata ramen is it for you! Bannai Shokudo’s price is on average with the other shops at around 1000 yen per order, but what stands out from the menu is that the restaurant also offers a mini version at 470 yen, which is still a pretty sizable portion, so you can get a light ramen snack here. Therefore, whether you are here to get filled up or to taste a Kitakata style ramen, Bannai Shokudo is perfect!