Hōrai-ken

At Hōraiken, a neighbourhood Chinese-style restaurant just by Higashi-Mukōjima Station, the clatter of a wok and ladle from the kitchen at the back carries through to the dining room. The fried rice is a popular order. Rather than light and fluffy, it is moist, with well-seasoned grains throughout. It comes with a mild Chinese-style soup dotted with leafy greens, a welcome sip alongside the more intensely seasoned rice.

Among the noodle dishes, the meat-and-vegetable-packed tanmen has earned a following. Stir-fried vegetables are piled high over the bowl, their savoury flavour mingling with the soup. The base is a light salt broth, but the result has real depth. There are plenty of other noodle options, too: ramen in a simple soy-based broth topped with chashu pork and seasoned boiled egg, and umani soba, served with a sweet meat-and-vegetable sauce thickened over the noodles.

For a more filling meal, set menus pair noodles with a rice dish. The “ramen and small fried rice” set is more substantial than its name suggests, with a generous portion that makes for a satisfying meal. A “ramen and small curry” set is another option. The menu also includes handmade gyoza with chewy wrappers and fragrant browned surfaces, omurice cooked on an iron plate, and stir-fried meat with garlic chives. These are the kinds of dishes that suit an everyday lunch or a drink after work.