Recommended bowl: Rich tonkotsu-gyokai

Rich tonkotsu-gyokai soup is served bubbling hot in an iron pot. Dipping noodles are house-made. Run by master Kurumiya-san, whose father-in-law, Karoku-san, first introduced him to the tsukemen world. Karoku-san started by training at the legendary Maruchō in Ogikubo, Tokyo, before going on to open his own shop called Maruka in 1969. Moving forward several decades, Karoku-san was able to get his son-in-law an apprenticeship at a branch of Maruchō in Sakado, Saitama. Kurumiya-san would then go on to open Tsukemen Maruwa in Haruta, Nagoya, in the space previously occupied by his family's rice shop. Now one of the top ranked tsukemen slurps in Nagoya. Open since 2007.