Hello everyone.

Recently I have had frequent opportunities to visit Shimohonmachi and frequently wander around the area commonly known as 'Shimomachi'.

It is quite a pleasant town to walk around and I would like to report on it from various angles! As I was thinking about this, this shop jumped out at me. Tagosaku. It's a really good name. I was just starting to get hungry, so I went in (Tagosakudon!). I'm going to go in and try it (Tagosakudon!).

This is the exterior. Perhaps because it is getting colder, the heavy door is firmly closed, and when I opened it, I said, "Hmmm!" when I opened it. I thought maybe it was in preparation, but it was simply my inability to do so.

I hope to eliminate any unnecessary photos and only give you a food report... (It's not that the restaurant was cloudy and I couldn't take any photos... sweat).

Here is what I ordered, the 'B set'. This is the so-called 'Rachan' set, which includes ramen and fried rice.

The ramen is a light, chicken-based soup. Niigata is known for its "gritty, greasy" ramen with fatty backfat, but I, as a judge-obsessed person who appreciates minorities, feel right at home here. Moreover, it is a light salted type. In Niigata, I can say that I am in the overwhelming minority.

But all that talk aside, here's what it tastes like.

Mm! Light and tasty! A standard but reassuring taste, with no unnecessary flavours. It had a unique taste that is hard to describe. In a good way. There were also two pieces of chashu pork, which were also thick and juicy. It also has no unnecessary flavour, and is just right for enjoying with fried rice as a set.

Followed by fried rice.

This one is also quite tasty. The feeling of being parched and stable. There were visibly more onions, which is probably why it is milder. Easy to eat. While I was eating it, I realised that a rahchan set that is tasty and quick to eat is wonderful. It's hard when both are gritty... (Alaskan lament).

Impressions, etc.

Ramen noodles, alone, are ¥520! Cheap! The fried rice set (B set) is 750 yen, which is very reasonable. This kind of thing can only happen in a shopping arcade. There are quite a lot of items on the menu. There are also tanmen and ma-po noodles, so there is plenty of variety.

There is an extensive menu. There's even a claypot meat bowl! Looks delicious!

Also, as it is located in the middle of a shopping street, (not surprisingly) the locals come and go with guns blazing. It's interesting just to listen to what everyone has to say. Here, too, I got the impression that everyone knows each other and gets on well, but there is no exclusive atmosphere at all. I was also spoken to in a friendly manner by strangers such as "Nii-chan, where are you from?". They spoke to me in a friendly manner. This is exactly what I mean by "friendly".

Here, too, I felt like I was touched by the warmth of the people of Shimomachi. Even those who say they don't often visit Shimo-honmachi may want to come here for this reason!

Shop information

ramen

• Address: 12-2747-1 Honmachi-dori, Chuo-ku, Niigata City
• Opening hours: 11:00-23:00 (closes when soup runs out).
• Closed: Sunday