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Ichiran releases an at-home counter kit that turns your desk into a ramen restaurant

Oona McGee a few minute ago
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Iconic ramen chain brings out an exclusive product so you can fully focus on the taste of the noodles.

Amongst all the many ramen restaurants in Japan, Ichiran stands out for its unique dining experience, where customers sit at a long counter with private partitions and receive their noodles through a bamboo screen. The unusual seating layout is what the chain calls its “Aji Shuuchuu Counter”, or “Taste Concentration Counter”, as the private seating allows you to concentrate solely on the taste of the noodles, free from the gaze of others around you.

Now, the chain is giving us a way to enjoy the special dining setup at home, with the release of an exclusive “Taste Concentration Counter Kit”. We were fortunate enough to receive one in the office recently, so our reporter Ahiruneko got straight to trying it out, using the kit to turn his desk into an Ichiran restaurant.

The kit requires some assembly, so Ahiruneko started by inserting the side panels into the overhead sign and countertop pieces.

▼ Then he attached the reinforcement parts…

▼ …and finished by inserting the bamboo blind into the back of the setup.

▼ Now he was ready to eat!

The Taste Concentration Counter turned out to be tiny, but it displayed impressive attention to detail, with the front sign covered in explanatory text and the bamboo blind raising and lowering as it would at an actual restaurant.

▼ It even came with the side sign details, which includes instructions on how to place your order.

The most impressive thing, however, turned out to be the call button, because when you press it, you hear the same familiar chime played in Ichiran restaurants!

It was far more Ichiran-like than Ahiruneko had expected, allowing him to realise his dreams of opening a totally new branch of the chain in the office, which he dubbed the “Ichiran SoraNews24” branch.

▼ It may not be the most impressive branch, but it’s certainly a fun one.

Ahiruneko couldn’t help but smile upon opening his tiny branch, which consisted of one counter seat, set up neatly on his desk.

The only thing missing from the kit was a tiny chef to go with it, so Ahiruneko stepped in to take on noodle-cooking duties.

With everyone else in the office engrossed in their writing, Ahiruneko continued running the branch on his own, and when he lifted the bamboo screen, he felt a rush of excitement at what was to come.

▼ Ta daaaa! A hot bowl of Ichiran ramen!

Even though he was the one serving himself, Ahiruneko loved the setup, and was impressed at how the opening was just wide enough for the ramen bowl to fit perfectly.

Now he had the ideal ramen-eating setup on his desk, where he could concentrate entirely on the bowl in front of him…

▼ …without worrying about his boss and colleagues staring at him.

The Taste Concentration Counter was the perfect sanctuary where he could remain blissfully unaware of any potential side-eye from his higher-up colleague (上司) and company president (社長).

To really get into the Ichiran mood, you need to hunch over and slurp your noodles, so that’s exactly what Ahiruneko did.

By removing everything other than the counter from his field of vision, he was able to trick his brain into thinking he was actually at Ichiran.

Though he looked a bit like a student hiding a snack behind an upright textbook, the Flavour Concentration Counter Kit is enclosed by walls on three sides, so the chances of anyone noticing his noodle moment remained extremely low.

Even the workmate opposite him would never dream that he was having an Ichiran experience right there in the office.

▼ Hunched over a laptop? Or a bowl of noodles?

It didn’t take long for Ahiruneko to finish all his noodles, but as there was still some broth left, he did what any noodle lover should do at this point.

▼ He pressed the call button to order a noodle refill (known as “kaedama” in Japanese).

▼ Leaping up to attend to his own order, Ahiruneko headed over to the kitchen to boil up his kaedama.

▼ Then, back at his desk, the bamboo blind went up.

▼ And in came his extra serving of noodles!

▼ Ahiruneko, playing the role of both staff and customer with equal amounts of joy.

For Ahiruneko, a visit to Ichiran isn’t complete until you’ve ordered a noodle refill, so he was thrilled that he could recreate this ideal visit from the comfort of his office desk.

If you’re like Ahiruneko and absolutely love the unique feel of Ichiran’s Taste Concentration Counter, then he highly recommends purchasing this product while it’s available.

▼ This tiny model has a lot more finesse than the homemade cardboard setup we created in the past.

The kit, released to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its souvenir product, Ichiran Ramen Hakata Thin Straight Noodles, comes with either five servings of the noodles, for 3,850 yen (US$25.00), or 10 servings for 4,980 yen. Available while stocks last, the 10-serving set is only available at the online store, while the five-serving set can be purchased online and at physical stores right around the country.

Related: Ichiran Online Store
Photos © SoraNews24
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