As mentioned last week, I wanted to check out some new ramen shops in the area (after the devastation of losing my beloved Komen taste), and Paul‘s visit last night was a good opportunity as he wanted to get some ramen. We went to Masu Masu (mentioned in this week’s TOKYO WALKER, and a shop I spotted a while back but just hadn’t gone to yet), which is located under the Mashman’s Cafe, where we had drinks (I tried a Vietnamese beer called 333). I was really surprised by the welcome we got at the shop, with one of the workers (possibly the owner) greeting us in English (broken, sure, but he was clearly making an effort and wanted to make us feel comfortable), recommending us certain things, giving us free bowls of rice, and then some tickets for free gyoza on our next visit. As for the main meal, it was rather good. The soup was a bit fat, and I prefer thicker noodles, but I was still quite satisfied (and I think Paul was also).
On a side note, when I got back to Ikebukuro after work I stopped by at Parco and picked up the first issue of ART iT at P-BC, as well as a nice little notepad at Delfonics. I’ll wait until I get a chance to read the magazine before commenting on it, but Paul had some interesting things to say about it (especially about the typography, which isn’t something I would have automatically looked at). At first glance, it’s certainly a nice-looking magazine.