ramen151e
Visit date: September 23, 2023 (Saturday)
For today's lunch, I went to "Nishieifuku no Niboshi-bako," which opened on September 28, 2021, in a back alley near Nishi-Eifuku Station on the Inokashira Line! This is the third brand to open following "BonitoSoupNoodleRAIK" in Omiya, Suginami Ward, and "CLAM&BONITO Katsuobushi Noodles raik" in Hounancho! The restaurant is about to celebrate its second anniversary soon. On this special occasion, they are offering a special niboshi ramen called "Second Year Niboshi Ramen." When I went to the affiliated store "CLAM&BONITO Katsuobushi Noodles raik" last Sunday to try the limited edition "Flounder and Shrimp Shio Soba" introduced from this day, the owner of the Koriyama branch said to me, "Please come to the Niboshi-bako anniversary on September 23!" The manager of Nishieifuku's Niboshi-bako also said, "It's Saturday, September 23, a public holiday, so don't get confused." With such invitations, I couldn't resist going to eat there. So, first, I went to "Menya Morino" near Tsukada Station on the Tobu Urban Park Line, where they serve a rare "School of Fish Ramen" once a year. Since it coincided with the day they serve it, I thought I might skip it this year as I did last year, but after eating "Flounder and Shrimp Shio Soba" at "CLAM&BONITO Katsuobushi Noodles raik," I thought, why not give it a try? So I posted on X, "We'll be waiting for you in Nishi-Eifuku on Sunday—BonitoSoupNoodleRAIK (@BSN_RAIK) September 17, 2023 Saturday. It's Saturday, a public holiday on the 23rd, so don't get confused—Nishieifuku no Niboshi-bako (@westnibox) September 17, 2023." With such comments from the Koriyama branch owner and the manager of Nishieifuku's Niboshi-bako, I decided I had to go. I thought I would be fine since they had 130 servings, but if they ran out, I would have to choose a time to eat. So, instead of going at 8:30 a.m., I decided to go about an hour later. If there were still tickets left, I would eat at the specified time and give up "Morino." However, if they had finished distributing tickets, I would go to "Morino" as there would be a reason for it. That was my plan as I set out. When I arrived at the store at 9:27 a.m., I saw cute staff members handing out tickets and taking a 1,000 yen deposit from customers. This meant they hadn't sold out yet. The ticket I received in exchange for the deposit was number 57, with a gathering time of 13:40. As I walked towards the store, someone called out, "Ichiesan!" It was Tsuruzaki, the manager of "Menya Itto." I seem to run into him more often at ramen shops like this than at his own store. I asked him where he was going today, and he said he had just registered at Shibazaki-tei and would go to Kuroki after that, then come back here. He was saying it would be better to come after 2 p.m., but he's the type who diligently studies, so he never misses a day off to go hopping between ramen shops. "Shibazaki-tei" is a popular niboshi ramen limited edition! "Kuroki" has a limited edition of "Duck and Matsutake Salt Tsukemen"! He seems more like a limited edition enthusiast than a diligent studier, but he's also someone who makes delicious limited edition ramen. I'm looking forward to next Monday's "Duck Competition"!