Super large amount, very cheap, and very very delicious. Used to love this place.

I had a generous bowl of champon. The toppings are substantial: pork, plenty of vegetables, seafood such as shrimp and squid, and fish-paste products including hanpen and bite-sized satsuma-age. The soup is delicious, with a lovely balance of umami from the stir-fried ingredients and just the right saltiness. The champon noodles pick up the soup well, which is nice.

+2

Drove to a champon restaurant in Nakano I'd wanted to try for ages! There's no dedicated parking, but I parked at the nearby Times (10 minutes/220円) Arrived at Nagasaki Champon・Sara Udon Kuma (くま)... It was just before 12, so luckily there were still seats available! As expected, the menu mainly features champon and sara udon, but there are set meals too! They have a wide variety of champon & sara udon, but I ordered the basic "sara udon" (1,000円/tax included)! Besides the usual "paripari" fried thin noodles, there's a "yawaraka" thick-noodle option. My wife ordered "yawaraka", I ordered "paripari", and we added gyoza With plenty of thick sauce poured over it, it looks just like ordinary Nagasaki sara udon Lift the thick noodles and you'll see browned patches on their surface, combining chewiness and a toasted aroma! The "paripari" fried noodles are piled high, so impressive that I couldn't help saying "Ooh!"! The rich sauce has a slightly animal-like smell and uses champon soup made from pork bones and chicken carcasses as its base. It's delicious, with the ingredients' umami blended in! Since the sauce has a strong flavor, adding vinegar mellows it out, and that flavor change made it even tastier! The gyoza are small, with 6 pieces (500円). Their surface is both crisp and chewy, the filling balances meat and vegetables, and the garlic is a little strong! The sara udon had a rich, strongly flavored sauce, and it would surely have paired perfectly with draft beer if I hadn't been driving!! The owner's wife? regularly refilled our cold water, so the service was GOOD too! Sara udon X２＋gyoza came to 2,500円, great value! "Thank you for the meal" We ate quickly, but parking cost 660円 for 30 minutes, the rate near Nakano Station... Next time I'll have to work out a parking strategy!?

+3

I stopped by for Sunday lunch to have champon for the first time in a while. I couldn't decide between thick and regular noodles, but chose thick noodles. Inside there are three tables and counter seats. As expected, many people order champon or sara udon. It had plenty of toppings, and the thick noodles were a little firm, but they picked up the soup and tasted delicious.

+2

My second visit, after 12 and a half years. There are counter seats, but I took a table for 2. The air conditioning works well, so cool~. The dishes are varied; just browsing the menu is fun. ■Thick-noodle sara udon　1,000円 I appreciate that they serve it with a soup spoon. The sauce is very thick, piping hot, rich and hearty~. It feels heavy, but isn't cloying. Only a hint of sweetness, with a subdued seafood flavor. It doesn't turn watery, even at the end. Cabbage, onion, bean sprouts, carrot, green beans, wood ear mushrooms, chikuwa, pink kamaboko. Tender, springy squid tentacles, and a little finely cut pork. Thick noodles with browned patches here and there. Chewy and quite nice. Partway through, I drizzled sauce over it. I wonder if the cook is the owner? Before ordering, I asked whether the noodles used "toaku (とうあく)", and the response was, what's "toaku (とうあく)"?? Then he said, "We don't use anything like that; these are Tokyo noodles." I couldn't find wording such as "Nagasaki" on the sign or menu, but the receipt clearly said "Nagasaki Champon・Sara Udon Kuma". "Ringer Hut" is like that too, though... Well, I thought this was delicious in its own way.

+3