Ramen Jiro Mita Honten: Inside Tokyo's Legendary Noodle Phenomenon
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First-time visitors often struggle with Jiro's unique ordering culture. There's an unwritten protocol that regular customers know instinctively.
You purchase a ticket from the vending machine outside. The basic options are "small" and "large," though small is already substantial by conventional standards. Large is genuinely challenging for most people to finish.
After being seated at the counter, you'll hear the staff call out "Ninniku wa?" This is asking about garlic and other free toppings. The proper response format is brief and specific.
Your options for the topping call are: garlic (ninniku), vegetables (yasai), back fat (abura), and flavor intensity (karame). You can request these in normal amounts or increased quantities by saying "mashi" (more) or "mashi-mashi" (much more).
A typical response might be "Ninniku, yasai mashi" for garlic with extra vegetables. If you want everything standard, simply say "Zenbu" or "Subete." If you want nothing extra, say "Nashi."
The system feels intimidating initially. Regular customers zip through their orders in seconds. But the staff at Mita Honten are generally patient with foreigners and newcomers who take a moment to respond.