We enjoyed our lunch here at Yaesu Bus Terminal while waiting for our bus ride. Good noodles but the portions too big for our tummy. Fast service and really satisfying.

+1

The tantanmen is bad. It’s saltier than the ocean. I don’t understand why don’t they reduce the amount of salt in their broth given multiple complains about the salt content.

We walked by after taking the bus, the noodle is too greasy and not tasty, pork charsiu is taken frozen from fridge not fresh

Authentic soupless tantanmen The basement of Yaesu Midtown is lined with lots of places to eat lunch, but at lunchtime they're all packed. Among them, one I often go to because it turns over relatively quickly and is delicious is "Shiran Tantanmen" (芝蘭 担々麺). That day there was quite a line! But my mouth had already been set on tantanmen, so I waited in line leisurely. When it's your turn, you buy a meal ticket first. I went with the soupless tantanmen (spicier) set with rice and an onsen egg. I went inside, got a counter seat, and waited for a bit. The soupless tantanmen arrived! It's a pretty generous portion, which made me happy. The sauce feels light, but there's a lovely aroma of sansho pepper. First, mix it all up really well so the flavors blend, then take a bite. Insanely delicious! Thin noodles with a firm, snappy bite. Plenty of chili oil, with the heat working just right, and lots of garlic too. Seasoning I love! If you add the onsen egg after eating a bit, the flavor gets deeper and even more delicious. I recommend adding it. Once you finish the noodles, add the rice and mix well. The mala mixed rice, with the mala sauce coating the rice thoroughly, is the best! As is, with the onsen egg, and mixed with rice—a luxurious soupless tantanmen you can enjoy in 3 stages! Next time I want to try the tantanmen and mini katsudon set! I'd like to come back for more delicious tantanmen!

+3

I went to "Shiran Tantanmen" (芝蘭 担担麺), a tantanmen specialty shop in the basement of Tokyo Midtown Yaesu. This time I ordered the "new tantanmen + lunch set." What I noticed at the first sip of the soup was that it's not just spicy—the richness of the sesame is really thick and deep. There's a heat that slowly spreads within the mellowness, a flavor that keeps you coming back. The chili oil smells great too, and before I knew it my spoon kept going. The noodles are the kind that cling well to the soup, really lifting up the rich sesame umami. The umami and texture of the ground meat also add an accent, so I could eat to the very end without getting bored. And what I personally want to recommend is the rice. It goes way too well with the rich soup, so at the end I left a bit of soup to have with the rice. This is super satisfying. Tantanmen lovers, please order the rice in the set too. The inside of the shop feels clean and easy to walk into, and it seems handy for when you can't decide on lunch in Yaesu. A tantanmen with an exquisite balance of heat and richness that makes me want to eat it again.

+2