Shitenno

Osaka is far from the biggest ramen hub in Japan, but it's still the third biggest city, and as such, has its fair share of ramen staples.  Kamukura, Kinryuu, and Kotan are all chains you can find around Osaka's most active neighborhoods, and are open late, if they close at all.  But the most omnipresent chain ramen shop in Osaka is Shitenno, a shop that there's so many of that it's almost impossible to not run into one or two in a walk across the city.

Since Shitenno is everywhere, I had never got around to trying it.  But it was finally the beginning of April, which meant hanami season, and thus long days and late nights drinking.  It got to the end of the night, and my friend and I were hungry.  He's an Osaka native, so he's had Kinryuu more times than he can count, but he prefers Shitenno so we went there.

As a major chain, Shitenno offers any kind of ramen you might want.  I'm a sucker for miso ramen, so that's what I went with.

Information
ラーメン四天王
1-7-25 Dōtonbori
Shitenno is right on Dotonbori, next to all the other ramen shops.

The Bowl
The broth was a fairly simple tonkotsu, with a bit of miso in it.  The miso wasn't anything special, but it made the bowl a bit more syrupy, and just a little bit spicy.  The noodles were medium-thin, and fairly chewy.  The chashu was just one big thin slice, a bit fatty, and actually pretty good.

Would I Go Again?
Overall Shitenno offered a standard bowl, but a bit better than I was expecting.  I'm not in a rush to revisit, but since Shitenno is all over Osaka, I'm sure I'll find myself back.

Should You Go?
It's somewhat of an Osakan staple, but the ramen isn't quite good enough to demand a visit.