Menya Takei Hankyu Umeda at Umeda, Osaka

A Kyoto-origin tsukemen specialist inside Hankyu Umeda Station, famed for rich pork-and-seafood dipping broth.

Menya Takei Hankyu Umeda is a branch of a celebrated Kyoto ramen shop located inside the ticket gates of Hankyu Umeda Station, so you will need to enter the station to reach it. The house specialty is tsukemen, where springy extra-thick house-made noodles are served separately so they can be dunked into a dense tonkotsu-gyokai broth that combines intense umami with a gentle sweetness, clinging firmly to each strand. The most popular order is the special tsukemen, topped with three kinds of chashu - pork belly, pork loin and chicken thigh - plus a seasoned egg, with noodle portions available from small up to extra-large. The menu also offers a conventional bowl of ramen with the same rich soup, alongside toppings such as spicy minced meat, extra chashu and menma, and the shop accepts cards, barcodes and electronic money for convenience. Seating and ordering are organised for a quick turnaround, which suits solo diners and commuters perfectly, though the steady stream of fans means a short wait is common at peak times. It is an ideal stop for anyone who wants a serious, flavour-packed bowl without leaving the station complex. If you are changing trains at Hankyu Umeda, make time for a bowl of Menya Takei - Go Umeda reckons a great tsukemen is the perfect way to reset between stops.