The first ramen shop "Hakkoda Shokudo" (Okeya-cho, Hirosaki City, TEL 0172-35-5690) opened by Hiroto Ishiyama, a famous ramen researcher in Hirosaki, opened on March 31st.

Mr. Ishiyama interviewed more than 2000 ramen shops nationwide and wrote and supervised more than 20 books. I also have the experience of eating more than 700 cups of ramen per year. He still appears on TV information programs and contributes columns to weekly magazines and websites.

Originally from Aomori and Hirakawa, he attended Hirosaki Minami High School in high school, where his parents' house is a shrine and he is also a priest. In December 2016, he moved his base from Tokyo to his parents' house in Hirakawa, where he helped with rituals and other activities to open the store.

“I have experience developing cup noodles and producing ramen shops, but this is the first shop I open myself,” says Ishiyama. I spoke to a classmate and childhood friend Seito Shindo and appointed him as a store manager. He explained why he chose Hirosaki, "Because I wanted to open a store locally and consider the business opportunities in my living area, I became Hirosaki inevitably."

The store area is about 50 tsubo, and the number of seats is 60 seats including counters and small rooms. Utilizing a house without a tavern with antique furniture lined up. The name of the store is "Hakkoda" to clearly convey that it originated in Aomori.

The menu includes soy sauce ramen, niboshi ramen (700 yen or more), miso ramen, tsukemen (800 yen or more). Mr. Ishiyama says that the noodles are made by custom-made noodles, and that the soup and char siu "are made with love and time and effort." It plans to increase the ramen menu in the future, and is also considering a izakaya menu.

“I want to use this store as a base to send information inside and outside the prefecture,” says Ishiyama. "I would like to output the ramen I have input so far, on my own," he said.

Business hours are from 11:30 to 14:30, from 18:00 to 1:00 the next day. Closed on Wednesdays, open on Sundays only.