Teaser..
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Our main attraction for today is the Make-Your-Own-Cup-Noodle at the Nissin Cup Noodle Museum in Ikeda, 5 train stops from the station nearest our apartment.
Ikeda City is the birthplace of instant noodles. In 1958, the world’s first instant noodle product, CHICKEN RAMEN, originated in a “Research Shed” in Ikeda City, in the yard of the house of Momofuku Ando, the inventor of instant noodles and the founder of Nissin Food Products Co., Ltd.
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Momofuku Ando’s achievements during his lifespan are introduced through visual images, along with the exhibition of testimonials and actual medals awarded to him. The story of the invention of instant noodles, the growth of this new industry, and the value of intellectual property are also displayed graphically and chronologically for guests to enjoy.
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The Instant Ramen Museum was established in 1999 to introduce the history of instant noodles and convey the significance of innovation and discovery in the stages of invention. In the Museum, you not only learn about the creation of instant noodles, its history of development and its manufacturing methods, but you can also create your own cup noodle with soup and ingredients of your choice at “My CUPNOODLES Factory”
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This wall-to-ceiling Instant Noodles Tunnel exhibit displays the instant noodles lineup that started with Chicken Ramen. Approximately 800 product packages shows how a single product introduced more than a half-century ago grew into a global culture.
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Entrance to the museum is free, but you have the option to buy a cup from the vending machine at ¥300 if you want to make your own cup noodle to either eat or bring home as souvenir.
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Create your own completely original CUPNOODLES package, which is unavailable anywhere else in the world. For the cup that you design, select your favorite soup from among four varieties as well as four toppings from among 12 varieties.
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1.) Buy a cup from the vending machine 2.) Proceed to the table & color/decorate as desired, pens provided..
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Obviously, this activity doesn’t interest Kap in the slightest. He preferred to nap rather than engage, hehe. Gisingin nalang daw sya pag kakain na! ;)) It’s a good thing we weren’t booted out as the tables are strictly reserved for the “designers”! 😛
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3.) After decorating your cup, line up to select a broth (regular, seafood, curry, or chili tomato) 4.) Select 4 ingredients to complete: (shrimp, cube roast pork, egg, grene onion, fish sausage, garlic chip, green bean, cheese, imitation crab, corn, kimchi, or bacon).
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You’d be amazed at how many people come to the Cup Noodle factory! Ang haba ng pila & this is said to be a regular occurrence ha. When Ate told me this was gonna be in our #GOsaka2018 agenda, I mentally groaned & thought it would be another one of those boring walk-thru museums. Turns out it is so interesting, very interactive, and highly educational -and not just for kids, as you can see.
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5.) Seal with love, package in a plastic bubble, and you’re good to go! Don’t forget to fill in the date of manufacture on the cup you just made & be sure to eat the packaged noodle within one month.
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The packaging is super cute, as is expected with any Japanese merchandise. The kids didn’t want to get rid of the bubble packaging, so they carried it around their necks & got several interesting stares haha.
Of course, as with any other tourist attraction, the souvenir shop beckons at the end of the tour. The shop features original goods from the CUPNOODLES MUSEUM and other items related to instant noodles. Many of the limited items in the shop are unavailable anywhere else. Ate got a Cup Noodle candle, ano naman kaya ang amoy nyan? ;))
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Because we just had instant noodles for breakfast & we stayed a good 3 hours in instant Cup Noodle land, it was obvious that we craved something else for lunch.
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Our daily breakfast consists of Cup Noodles or Instant Ramen. Paired with whatever available fruit is in the apartment. I am missing this Pineberry something fierce huhu. After having tasted this white sweet variety, I prefer it over its red tangier cousin. You gotta try it too, I think it’s only available in Japan. </3
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Babyson googled & found a well-rated sushi joint near the museum so we headed there for lunch. It was a very tight fit for a 12-seater resto, but we were all so hangry by 3 pm that we just plopped ourselves on the available seats & re-grouped as (seats) became available. No disappointment because the sushi were really good & fresh, and more importantly, pasok sa budget ni Kap! 🙂
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I am so proud to say that our giblings are always thankful for being fed, wherever it may be. They have grateful hearts & here I caught them thanking (having just kissed) their dad for a yummy lunch. <3
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The skies were gray & a heavy downpour was imminent, so we decided to take our fun indoors for the day. Parked ourselves in Lucua Mall in Umeda, came out empty-handed though as all the stores inside looked foreign to us, mga hindi namin kilala so I don’t advise you to waste your limited time in Japan here.
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As usual, Kap spent a considerable time browsing over Seiko watches at the department store as we waited for the heavy downpour to subside.
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At dahil wala silang napamili, the giblings decided to headed to Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade YET AGAIN. In between Umeda and Namba is the covered shopping arcade Shinsaibashi-suji, one of Osaka’s oldest and busiest shopping destinations which runs about 600 meters in length. Shinsaibashi-suji’s collection of brand name shops, chain stores, independent boutiques and variety of restaurants makes it popular with nearly every kind of shopper.
They’ve been all over these stores the past several days, I don’t know what else they could have missed, my gulay! @_@
And as usual, I asked to be spared from torture & stayed in a Cafe while they shopped and just met up when they’d had their fill (I’m sure it’s just for the day) and went to dinner at Ikinari Steak, which is a wildly popular quick-service meat chain best known for its lack of chairs (you eat standing) and fast turnover.
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Ikinari Steak is a Japan-based standing steak restaurant chain owned by chef and restauranteur Kunio Ichinose. It opened in Tokyo in December 2013, and now has over 130 locations throughout Japan. The idea behind Ikinari Steak is to serve “super thick” high quality meats quickly and economically, therefore people stand while consuming their steaks.
Although it’s a SRO kind of restaurant, if you are lucky enough (and willing to wait), there are around 3 tables with chairs & you can ask to be seated instead. Just be prepared for a long wait outside the restaurant. Good thing we were all bundled up (and I just had a good 1-hour rest in a coffee shop while waiting for the shopaholics to do their thing teehee).
The concept is very similar to Pepper Lunch back home, except the meats here are definitely thicker, better, and mas malasa.
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Truth be told, I’m just in Japan for the food & eating, lol. I already bought what I came here to buy so if it’s not sightseeing, I’d rather sit it out while they go crazy shopping. Hindi ko kaya ang init-lamig-init-lamig. Plus it’s so hard to peel off layers of clothes then put them all back on & repeat the process again when entering, then exiting stores (or toilets for that matter). Wala akong pasensya.
The next 2 days’ agenda will be Kyoto. I’m excited for that! 😉 Goodnight for now. Brrrrr!
6 Comments
Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuper love your post Ms. Jane!!!! especially kapag tungkol sa travel nyo ng family nyo.. sabi mo nga, adventures and misadventures…inaabangan ko palagi kung may update ka ehh…at habang wala ka post, i love looking at your IG stories..hahaha… stalker lang peg, lahat na lang pinafollow kita! naeexcite na ako sa US trip nyo! hehehehe!
February 19, 2018 at 4:33 pmAwwwww Yeeeen!! You made my heart melt. Thank you for giving value to me, what a nice birthday gift!! :-* ILY!
February 19, 2018 at 5:18 pmHappy Happy Birthday Ms. Jane!
February 20, 2018 at 9:04 amWishing you all your heart’s desires! GOD BLESS you more and your family!
Thank you Yen, such a happy day! :-*
February 20, 2018 at 9:08 amHuHu same tayo mahina din ako sa init-lamig init-lamig kaya ako nagkasakit last November nung nag Tokyo kami. Ang cute ng activity nyo as a family. Kahit inaantok si Kap hehe. Ikinari Steak FTW!!!
February 19, 2018 at 5:54 pmPaano pa kaya kami sa US sa december hehe nginig!! ;))
February 19, 2018 at 9:19 pm