Japanese Ramen Simulator Let's Play: Growing a Ramen Shop for a Month and Taking On Four Critics

The game begins with designing the storefront of a building that is about to open. The first task is making the sign, with the lettering drawn by hand using the mouse. The player finished the sign while grumbling that "writing letters with a mouse is pretty hard."

As for the interior, the player explains that, compared with a card shop management game they played before, this one gives you a fair amount of equipment from the start. They sold off everything that seemed unnecessary in one go, removed the fridge door as unneeded, and pushed the fridge into a corner so its contents would be easy to grab. The ordering terminal in the back room was moved into the kitchen, since walking to the back every time to place an order was a hassle. This kind of workflow optimization comes up again and again throughout the rest of the playthrough.

The terminal lets you order both ingredients and equipment. The player ordered a stove and a stockpot and picked them up behind the shop. The first day's menu was tonkotsu shoyu ramen, so they ordered noodles, soup and toppings. To make soup, you put ingredients in the pot, fill it with water at the sink, and simmer it on the stove.

The first customer arrived 50 minutes after opening. When the second customer came in, the player prepared two servings of tonkotsu shoyu base in advance. They said noodles at their shop are "firm by default," then joked that "customers are eating information, so noodle firmness doesn't matter."

Lunchtime from 12:00 is rush hour, and customers start arriving much faster. A bowl of ramen sold for 37 dollars. The player got through the rush by handling checkout and washing dishes before the next customer arrived.

Closing involves turning off the stove to prevent fires, putting perishable ingredients in the fridge, and checking for anything left behind. Getting into the bed in the back room ends the day. Equipment purchases drove up expenses, but the first day still ended in the black.

From Day 2, the player could hire part-timers. They first installed a noodle boiler for staff and put "Boil Boy" in charge of boiling. According to the player, the rule seems to be that Boil Boy boils noodles automatically as long as noodles and an empty bowl are set in the designated spot. They also added "Register Boy" to handle checkout, so the shop was now run by a team of three.

The player says the effect was huge. Every time they turned around there were freshly boiled noodles, so all they had to do was make the soup and carry bowls to the counter, while Register Boy took care of payment. The freed-up time could go to washing dishes, and even after labor costs, the shop turned a solid profit.

On Day 3, knives became available, so the player bought a cutting board, a knife and prep trays, and chopped green onions before opening. There were more kinds of toppings now, but thanks to the part-timers, business ran smoothly, and the player judged that they could probably move with room to spare even during the rush. They leveled up, and beer was unlocked.

Serving beer requires installing a beer server, setting up a keg, preparing mugs and placing trays for serving sets. When an order comes in, you pour beer and foam into a mug, put it on a tray, and serve it along with the ramen. The player says these orders are a relief, since beer takes little effort to prepare and carries little risk of waste.

On Day 5, a ramen critic came in for the first time, setting up a boss battle. The player aimed for the ultimate bowl with boosted umami, aroma and richness, using every card in their hand to finish it. The result was a win, defeating the first critic, "Ramen Baldy." From the next day, miso ramen could also be served.

On Day 6, serving beer had turned out to be more of a burden than expected, so the player switched to pouring it ahead of time. Since a closed fridge keeps things fresh, the player said the fridge door they had dismissed as unnecessary "finally has a purpose."

They also rethought how ingredients were managed. Using nori straight from the pack produces trash every 10 sheets, so they moved it into a prep tray beforehand to handle 30 sheets at once. From this day, a staff-only dishwasher became available, and dish-washing staffer "Dish Boy" joined the team. The trophy sent by Ramen Baldy was displayed at the shop entrance as proof of victory.

With both miso and shoyu on the menu, the player couldn't know what to make until the order came in. So they set up a layout where toppings are added in front of the customer. That way, they didn't have to memorize each order and could check it every time. The player described this as a workplace where you can work with peace of mind even if you're not confident in your short-term memory. The process was to focus first on making soup and noodles, then add toppings and drinks after confirming the order in front of the customer. The cost of the dishwasher put that day in the red, but seeing how Dish Boy worked, the player said they could no longer get by without the dishwasher.

On Day 8, gyoza and chashu were unlocked. To make room for the gyoza grill, the player moved Dish Boy against the wall and set up the grill next to the stove. They also added a new pot for chashu.

Chashu is made by putting pork loin and soy sauce tare in the pot, filling it to the brim with water, and simmering. For gyoza, you put frozen gyoza in the grill, wait, and remove the lid once they're done. The player jokingly explained that, to cut costs, their shop doesn't grill during business hours and may instead reheat gyoza kept in the fridge.

During service, the player made the ramen first, topped it with nori, cabbage and chashu in front of the customer, then prepared the gyoza and served everything on a tray. The player said the addition of gyoza made cooking far more fun. Equipment investment raised expenses, but side dishes increased spending per customer, and the day ended in the black.

The customer on Day 14 was an oil baron seeking the most luxurious bowl the shop could offer. The player used chicken shoyu ramen as the base, then ran around the topping area gathering ingredients before the soup could cool, piling them on while balancing them so they wouldn't topple. The player called this "Ramen Tower Battle." They stopped stacking as it neared the limit, completing the "Golden Bowl" and defeating the Oil Baron.

Rice was added on Day 16, so the player prepared a rice cooker and bowls. You put in rice and water, switch it on, and wait a while for it to cook.

The player also ordered a new piece of equipment, the "wall-mounted food sample shelf." Since it mounts on a wall, they first placed a temporary wall, attached the shelf to it, then removed the temporary wall. This let them install the shelf wherever they wanted. According to the player, the shelf works the same as a closed fridge, but you don't have to open and close anything to take items in or out, and you can see the contents at a glance. That made it perfect for storing beer. With beer and cooked gyoza moved to this shelf, the fridge could once again be used with its door open.

During the lunch rush, the player made chicken miso ramen while restocking Boil Boy with bowls washed by Dish Boy, checking each customer's toppings and finishing each bowl. For a greedy set order with ramen, a negi chashu rice bowl and beer, they put off the quick-to-serve sides and focused on the ramen first. The beer came from the sample shelf, and the rice bowl was made at their feet before serving.

On Day 21, the player prepared soup with kombu, which excels in flavor and aroma. The monk who came in wanted ramen that made the most of the bounty of plants. The player made a light shio ramen base with kombu dashi and piled plant-based ingredients high on top. The result was the "Vegan Tower," which the player described as having "a gorgeous look like a final dungeon." The Monk was defeated too, and soft drinks were unlocked the next day. Only one critic remained.

By Day 26, drink orders had increased too, and the shop was booming. The player says the refrigerated shelf made serving drinks easy. On the other hand, whenever Boil Boy stopped working, they had to restock bowls right away. Each chicken miso ramen got different toppings depending on the order, such as sliced chashu, fried crab, niboshi and wood ear mushrooms. For customers who looked unhappy about waiting, the player bought time by serving water first and made the next bowl in the meantime. For orders that included drinks, they brought soda from the sample shelf to complete the set. The stream of customers never let up, but they managed to finish the day. The shop reached max level, and every ingredient was unlocked.

On the final day, the player prepared soup with the best ingredients, and the final boss turned out to be Ramen Baldy, making a return appearance. The player made a base with regular soup and chose shio ramen to bring out the natural flavor of the ingredients. While cooking, they said that "ramen is the very passion of trying to create truth out of fakery" and that "the spirit of inquiry is the essence." The player described the finished bowl as "honestly looks tasty," and successfully defeated Ramen Baldy.

After a month of growing the shop and impressing every critic, the game was cleared. The player said they could feel the care put into details like the ramen, the cooking equipment and the atmosphere of the work, while at key moments the game also has the feel of a goofy "baka-ge," and they were strongly drawn in by where it draws the line on realism. They also said it's interesting how each player's personality tends to show in their shop layout and cooking habits, and closed by saying they're looking forward to checking out other players' ramen shops.