Shinbashi has been a bit of a ramen desert for a while, so the August 2024 opening of ambitious seafood noodle specialist Sato came as a pleasant surprise. The shop started life as a temporary lunch-only purveyor on the premises of an izakaya, but soon set up a permanent location to match its burgeoning reputation.
The menu revolves around the twin poles of Kaki Soba (¥1,200) and Scallop Butter Soba (¥1,200), with the former riding the wave of oyster-based soups with a rich and umami-packed but refreshingly light soup we couldn’t resist drinking up every last drop of. Paired with thin straight noodles and artisanal char siu, it’s one of the most memorable ramen we had the pleasure of tasting in 2024.
Extra noodles (¥400) are available and come topped with your choice of either oyster or crab paste; you can mix in the paste and slurp them up as such, or dunk the serving into any leftover soup.