On December 4th, Aizu Men Hamasaki (Aizu Men Hamasaki, Nishitsugaru District, TEL 0173-82-0334 ), a ramen restaurant in Aomori's Ajigasawa district, will celebrate its second anniversary.

This is the restaurant where Tomonori Tsuchiya, a native of Fukushima, serves Kitakata ramen. Mr. Tsuchiya made an I-turn to his wife's hometown in 2021 and opened the same store. The store is a renovated former convenience store. The store area is approximately 50 tsubo. The number of seats is 32 including a small raised area.

Mr. Tsuchiya has been devoted to ramen for over 30 years, having worked at popular Kitakata ramen restaurants such as Sakauchi Shokudo since high school. He also worked for four years at Ramen Kaido in Goshogawara's ELM shopping mall. As his colleagues who worked with him went independent, he started thinking about starting his own business, and decided to open a store in Aomori.

Kitakata ramen typically uses thick, aged flat noodles, but in the Tsugaru region, thin noodles are preferred, so we made it possible to choose between thin and thick noodles. We also provide services such as providing ramen for children and giving them toys so that children who visit with their families can have fun. “I just want my customers to be happy,” says Tsuchiya.

Looking back on the past two years, Tsuchiya says the first thing he remembers was the flood in August last year. Record heavy rain fell in Aigasawa, causing the Nakamura River to flood. The store was damaged by water 90 centimeters above the floor. ``I was in a daze, but I decided I couldn't keep going forever for the sake of my family and employees, so I got back on my feet.I had the stamina to open a store twice,'' says Tsuchiya. After being closed for a month, customers quickly returned to the store, which reopened.

Although issues such as a lack of human resources and soaring prices still remain, the store is back on track and is now celebrating its second anniversary. To commemorate the 2nd anniversary from December 4th, we will be giving away a masterpiece from the Aizu region, ``Ogari Koboshi''. "It's a really small amount, but I feel grateful," said Tsuchiya. ``We want to be a shop that people can easily stop by and use on a daily basis.Our goal is to be a shop where regular customers can get their favorite ramen without having to order.''

Business hours are 11:00 to 15:00. Closed on Wednesdays.