Ryuji Compares Frozen Misokin with the Restaurant Before It Closes, Giving His "No Holding Back" Verdict in Front of HIKAKIN

According to Ryuji, the Misokin shop at Tokyo Station released a frozen ramen timed to coincide with its closing. On learning this, Ryuji figured it had all been planned from the start. Shops inside stations are often leased for a fixed period, so the guess was that releasing frozen Misokin had been part of the plan all along. "Whoever thought this up is brilliant," Ryuji said, adding, "Probably not HIKAKIN, though, I'd guess."

Since the frozen version was billed as a faithful reproduction of the shop's flavor, the shoot was arranged so that Ryuji would eat it before visiting the shop two days later.

Frozen Misokin comes in three parts: the soup, the noodles with toppings, and a finishing "spicy oil." The soup is heated in its pouch in boiling water for about eight minutes, and the noodles with toppings go in the microwave. Ryuji, eating this style of ramen for the first time, said frankly that "to be totally honest," it was a hassle.

On the large amount of soup, Ryuji guessed they were aiming to match the portion served at the shop. The package said green onions and seasoned egg were not included, so Ryuji added green onions. Ryuji took the chashu and menma to be included.

Never having eaten frozen ramen before, Ryuji had imagined something like a concentrated tare diluted with hot water. In reality, it was a format with the whole soup included. While saying it would be even more of a hassle if the tare came separately, Ryuji reconsidered: people who go out of their way to eat HIKAKIN's ramen at home are people who want good ramen even if it takes effort, so maybe the extra work is fine. Ryuji also recalled that the "Spicy Misokin" eaten previously wasn't all that good.

During the shoot, the staff asked Ryuji whether it was okay that the video would be sent to HIKAKIN's side for review beforehand. Ryuji joked that if HIKAKIN's side said "please don't say this," that would be uncool, and Ryuji would say so.

As the reason, Ryuji pointed to Ryuji's own products. People who didn't think those products were good have said so too. Ryuji's view is that if you fear reviews like that, you shouldn't release products at all; if you aren't prepared for it, you shouldn't do it. So when it comes to reviews like this, Ryuji said, you can say as much as you want.

Ryuji added that it's fine because saying something isn't good gets Ryuji criticized instead. Fans who thought it was good always respond with things like "It was delicious, wasn't it?" and "Your products are the ones that taste bad." Ryuji then stressed that reviews are fundamentally a matter of personal taste, and that some people mistakenly assume that if Ryuji says something tastes bad, it tastes bad to everyone, which overrates Ryuji's opinion. Ryuji's stance is that viewers should try it themselves and decide.

At the time of filming, Ryuji and HIKAKIN had never met, and the meeting two days later would be their first. Still, whenever Ryuji covers Misokin, HIKAKIN always leaves a comment, which Ryuji said is much appreciated.

At the same time, Ryuji said that from a branding standpoint, HIKAKIN would probably be better off not interacting with Ryuji much. Ryuji plays an outspoken, controversy-prone character, and so is the one who has to be careful around people with a squeaky-clean image.

As an example, Ryuji cited what happened after making a recipe by Akari Hasegawa. When Hasegawa mentioned that video on X (formerly Twitter), a flood of quote posts said "Don't interact with Ryuji," and Ryuji felt bad about it. Worried that some of HIKAKIN's fans might be the same way, Ryuji criticized this, saying, "People who try to restrict who someone interacts with should stop." Ryuji's opinion is that if you're truly someone's fan, you should accept their friendships too.

The finished frozen Misokin looked close to a ramen shop portion and came out nicely. It had a strong garlic aroma, and when the spicy oil was drizzled over at the end, both Ryuji and the staff agreed it looked like the real deal, saying it was "just like it."

Once they actually ate it, however, their verdicts split sharply. A staff member said they liked the slightly sweet base, like Shinshu miso, and rated it "A-plus." Ryuji, on the other hand, felt that people who eat ramen at shops a lot wouldn't call it good. Ryuji's criticism was that it tasted like miso tantanmen, wasn't good, and had no dashi flavor. The richness was nearly perfect, yet it felt like ramen you could make at home. Ryuji gave it a C, then revised that to about a C-plus.

Ryuji said that rather than eat this, it would be better to eat the regular cup noodle miso (the cup version of Misokin). The seasonings were used generously and there was plenty of chicken extract, but perhaps because it had been frozen once, something felt strongly off. Ryuji's assessment was that with a bit more work, it would definitely be good.

At the same time, Ryuji considered why it tasted this way. Ryuji and the staff speculated that it might have been made for households, perhaps with kids like elementary schoolers in mind. While acknowledging it might be fine for families, Ryuji wrapped up half-jokingly that, to Ryuji's palate, the cup ramen Misokin was "150 times better."

When the staff asked what Ryuji planned to do after shooting a video like this when meeting the man himself two days later, Ryuji admitted to perhaps not being able to say it to his face. Ryuji said the only way might be to frame it as "the frozen one didn't suit my palate, but the shop's..."

The staff fired back that Ryuji had just said that people who open a shop shouldn't chicken out, and now Ryuji was the one chickening out. Ryuji laughed and replied, "There's no way I can fight HIKAKIN and win." In the end, they headed to the shop with the plan that Ryuji would give Ryuji's own opinion and the staff would add that they had rated it A-plus.

The shoot at the shop took place after closing, at midnight. Meeting HIKAKIN for the first time, Ryuji seemed very nervous, saying it had been a long time since feeling this nervous. Ryuji mentioned having filmed Misokin reviews three or four times so far.

When Ryuji asked whether it was okay to speak frankly, since no-holds-barred reviews are Ryuji's selling point, HIKAKIN replied that Ryuji should say whatever came to mind. But HIKAKIN prefaced it with "to make it even harder to say" and brought out something prepared in advance.

It was the story that HIKAKIN's wife had been watching Ryuji's videos since back when Ryuji had few subscribers, along with proof. His wife had bought Ryuji's debut book, Yamitsuki Buzz Recipes, on February 24, 2018, and its obi band read "Over 70,000 followers." HIKAKIN said his wife cooks from this book, and "my body is built on Ryuji recipes." Ryuji was surprised, saying that if she bought this, she was the real deal. HIKAKIN also revealed that his wife had recently been watching a lot of the videos with the sushi chef, and that HIKAKIN eats Ryuji's "Shiko" lightly salted potato chips at night after work while drinking non-alcoholic beer. Ryuji laughed, "You've really come armored," while adding the caveat that tastes vary.

Ryuji said Ryuji is usually the type who doesn't make eye contact with people. Despite Ryuji saying fairly rude things in review videos, HIKAKIN never fails to leave a comment every time. Ryuji once again expressed gratitude, given that Ryuji even pokes a bit of fun. HIKAKIN replied that you have to tell fans how you honestly feel.

Asked what was hard about creating the physical shop, HIKAKIN said the difficult part was deciding where to draw the line between the flavor he truly loves and a flavor many people would accept. The shop version, HIKAKIN said, was made leaning heavily toward his own preferred flavor. If you steer toward the ordinary, you might end up with a flavor you can find anywhere. In that case, it's better to be bold, and he wanted to put his own feelings into it. As a result, HIKAKIN reflected, the final product ended up bolder than expected.

HIKAKIN has always loved ramen, so there wasn't much hesitation in making it. For example, he had decided that the seasoned egg absolutely had to be a runny soft-boiled one. He explained that, purely as a customer who goes out to eat ramen, he packed in everything he'd wish existed.

The ajitama Misokin that arrived was frothy on the surface. This is because it's brought to a quick boil at high heat in a wok at the end. With the first bite, Ryuji noticed a lot of garlic. After saying "It's delicious," Ryuji noted the difference from the frozen version: "But it really is better eating it at the shop." The verdict was that freshly made is many times better. Ryuji also praised the domestically sourced chashu and the noodles that had soaked up the flavor, saying people who came to eat at the shop probably left very satisfied.

For changing up the flavor, curry powder, sansho pepper, and ichimi chili are provided. According to HIKAKIN, the curry powder is strong, so it's best added last, and sansho makes it lighter. Ryuji remarked having expected something thicker and heavier, but that it was surprisingly light.

HIKAKIN revealed that this was the part he agonized over most. The ratio of chicken to pork changes the flavor dramatically. In the first trials, there was a lot of pork, but partway through he felt it sat heavy in the stomach, so he gradually increased the chicken ratio until arriving at the current version. In the end, he used quite a lot of chicken bones. With the opening date approaching and a decision required, he kept adjusting until the last minute. HIKAKIN also said that ramen-making has no right answer, so it feels like something you could do forever. They also talked about how some shops keep improving their recipes long after opening.

Customer reactions vary too. People who eat Jiro-style ramen sometimes say they came because they heard the garlic was intense, but it's quite mild. Others say they were shocked by how incredibly strong the garlic was. Ryuji replied that there seemed to be enough garlic to make it bold.

Ryuji praised it as hitting an exquisite balance, since anything thicker would make it more polarizing. HIKAKIN said that when he was younger, thick, heavy ramen left him satisfied, feeling he'd really eaten, but as he's gotten older, lighter things have become more appealing. HIKAKIN is 36, and it turned out Ryuji is about three years older; the two bonded over how oil starts to get hard on you around age 36.

Ryuji said you could tell the soup was carefully simmered. It didn't feel overly reliant on the kind of thing Ryuji specializes in (which Ryuji didn't name specifically here). Ryuji also praised it as designed so you can finish the whole bowl. Even after finishing, it didn't sit heavy in the stomach, and Ryuji said it was very easy to eat for "a 39-year-old middle-aged cooking guy."

While eating, Ryuji prefaced, "I'm not sure I should really say this," and said that having tried the frozen version, the shop version was about ten times better. HIKAKIN took this as a challenge for the future, responding that surpassing the shop is quite difficult.

Ryuji also develops food products and so understands the difficulty well. Ryuji thought the frozen version captured the thick feel of the soup and was a strong effort. However, Ryuji pointed out that bringing out the dashi character is still hard. HIKAKIN also acknowledged that the garlic tastes fresh at the shop, but the aroma changes a bit once it's made into frozen soup.

Finally, Ryuji added curry powder. It instantly turns the flavor to curry, but HIKAKIN said many reviews praise the curry powder. Ryuji, who eats largely by aroma, said the freshness of the curry powder on top of the rich soup was delicious. HIKAKIN explained he had tried various curry powders, and that this one has a different aroma from the supermarket kind Ryuji uses in videos.

After finishing the bowl, Ryuji summed up that it was good the shop's flavor hadn't been rounded off too much. There were deliberate choices, like the amount of garlic. Miso ramen can be made as easy-to-eat and flat as you like, but Ryuji, adding "not to sound condescending," said it was admirable that it hadn't gone fully in that direction. Ryuji then said it would be great to be able to eat this flavor again somewhere.

When HIKAKIN jokingly asked whether Ryuji really would have said so if it had been bad, Ryuji admitted that yes. Ryuji's face gives everything away, so forcing it would be obvious to viewers. Ryuji called on fans to reassure HIKAKIN by writing in the comments that today's reaction was genuine and not showing on Ryuji's face. Ryuji did, however, apologize that the reaction when eating the frozen version may have shown.

Ryuji said it was moving to taste the flavor HIKAKIN had aimed for. HIKAKIN, who also loves the food business, said that as fellow influencers who also run food businesses, they should both keep at it, and Ryuji replied, "I won't lose." At the end, they exchanged gifts. HIKAKIN, receiving Ryuji's books and other items, was amazed that Ryuji supervises recipes while putting out videos at that frequency, and Ryuji replied that Ryuji now posts daily.

Toward the end of the shoot, the staff also tried the shop version. The staff member who had given the frozen version an A-plus said the shop version was bolder. Their take was that the frozen version may be tailored to HIKAKIN's broad fan base, from elementary schoolers to older people, while the shop version may target a narrower audience within it. Saying both have their own kind of deliciousness, this staff member, who likes gentle miso, said they might actually prefer the frozen version.

Meanwhile, another staff member who had only tried the cup version said the shop version was far better. Some also said it was two or three times better than the frozen version, including the texture of the noodles. The video closed with the conclusion "Test result: the Misokin at the shop is super delicious." As for the frozen version, it ended with opinions still divided: Ryuji sees reproducing the dashi character as a challenge, while some of the staff actually prefer the frozen version.