About Taikaiken

The husband and wife founders in their old store, which is now a warehouse and workshop, around 2009

The founder in the kitchen around 2009

The founder when the store first opened in 1976
Founder: Masahiro Kubota, 1983
Founder since 1983

The exterior of Taikaiken before it opened. The Kusamura Shoten truck is small and cute. Next to it is the owner's Suzuki Fronte. It has rear-wheel drive.

Taikaiken is a small ramen shop that was started in 1976 by a husband and wife team in the small town of Moroyama, which has a population of around 30,000.

He learned the recipe from the Nagafukucho Taishoken ramen restaurant and began serving ramen based on that recipe.

If I had continued to use the recipes I was taught, I don't think we would have become a ramen shop with so many customers coming in every day, which is unthinkable in a small town.

So why have we been able to continue for 48 years and attract so many customers? I think it's because we have always thought about how to make our food even more delicious, focusing especially on the soup, and have continued to pursue how we can provide a consistently high-quality, delicious soup.

The secret to its deliciousness is the "blended dried sardines"

One such technique is "blended dried sardines."

Niboshi is the core ingredient of Taikaiken's soup, and if they were to stick to a specific type, the taste of the soup would vary greatly depending on the supply situation. In order to minimize this variation, they adopted a blending method.

We use about 300kg of blended dried sardines per month, but if left as is, they will smell like dried sardines and be unsuitable for many people to eat.

To solve this, we balance the amount of dried bonito flakes, vegetables, and pork bones. This means that the dried sardines do not stand out too much, and I think the flavor is acceptable to everyone. We have not reduced the amount of dried sardines since the restaurant first opened, and we have continued to experiment to find the right balance.

We don't believe that we can create the perfect ramen that all customers will like, but Taikaiken is a ramen shop that is moving forward with the motto of "More delicious" in order to get as close as possible to that perfect ramen.

In response to the coronavirus pandemic that began in 2020, we started our online shop (mail order) in August.

Our restaurant is primarily used by customers who are already familiar with the flavors of Taikaiken, but we intend to make efforts to spread the word to those who are completely unfamiliar with the restaurant.

Company Profile

Company name: Taikaiken Co., Ltd.

Head Office: 657-5 Morohongo, Moroyama-cho, Iruma-gun, Saitama Prefecture, 350-0451 TEL 049-294-7777

Moroyama store: 〒350-0451 657-6 Morohongo, Moroyama-cho, Iruma-gun, Saitama Prefecture

Founded: April 2, 1986

Representative: Kazuhiro Kubota

Business description: Cooking and serving Chinese noodles (ramen) and wonton

Bank: Saitama Shinkin Bank, Moroyama Branch

Number of employees: 16 (as of September 2024)

Company Philosophy

We foster food culture through ramen and contribute to the happiness of our customers, employees, and the local community.

Company History

1976: Taikaiken is founded in Moroyama Town.

1986: Established Taikaiken Co., Ltd.

2007: Ticket vending machines introduced

February 2010: Store moved next door (from 657-5 to 657-6 Morohongo)

April 2011: Official website launched

June 2011: Hachioji store (second store) opened

August 2020: Official online store opens

April 2022: Official website renewal

October 2022: Official website and online shop integrated

January 2023: Hachioji store closed

February 2024: Customer queue management system implementation

September 2024: Introduction of Smaregi ticket vending machines

"Taikaiken" and "Ikinari Regular Delivery" are registered trademarks of Taikaiken Limited Company.