babukong
During the state of emergency due to the novel coronavirus, I usually cook my own dinner, but by the weekend, my food stock runs low. Shopping at the nearby supermarket where social distancing is difficult increases the risk of infection, so I decided to visit a family-owned ramen shop that has implemented proper infection control measures. I visited the newly opened "Machida Shoten Izumigakiji Station Front Store" near the newly opened "Takanawa Gateway Station" located between JR Tamachi Station and Shinagawa Station last year. The nearest station is the Toei Asakusa Line Izumigakiji Station, which is only about 300 meters away from "Takanawa Gateway Station". The reason why it is called "Takanawa Gateway" instead of "JR Takanawa Station" is simple, to avoid confusion with other stations. In fact, there is a station called "Takanawadai" one station before Izumigakiji Station on the down line of the Toei Asakusa Line, so to prevent confusion, they made it clear by adding the katakana "Gateway" to the name. On February 20, 2021 (Saturday) around 4:35 PM, I visited for the first time. According to the pre-research on Tabelog, the all-you-can-eat rice was until 5 pm, but when I bought the meal ticket on the left side of the entrance, there was a notice that the all-you-can-eat rice was until 6 pm. The default ramen price including tax is 720 yen, and when combined with the all-you-can-eat rice until 6 pm, it is very impressive considering the high-class location of the area. There were three other customers, and I, a male employee in his early twenties, ordered the noodles to be boiled for 7 minutes and the all-you-can-eat rice until 6 pm, and requested an extra quail egg with the presentation of the Machida Shoten smartphone app's permanent passport. I was guided to a counter seat with acrylic dividers for each seat, so I could eat comfortably. The noodles were cooked perfectly to my desired softness, and the soup was well-balanced without any overwhelming creaminess, making it easy to eat and quite delicious. The all-you-can-eat rice until 6 pm was served in a small bowl, so I had one refill and finished it off. I received a digital stamp on my smartphone card and left the restaurant. That was my experience at "Machida Shoten Izumigakiji Station Front Store"!