Tucked away in the now kawaii and cool Aoyama hood, this 45+ year-old noodle joint has top-class Japanese-style ramen on the cheap – sticking to its workingman’s roots. Noodles are freshly made in-house, and served with pungently addictive broth of pork, chicken legs and vegetables, spiked with shoyu. The menu’s undisputed ramen star: takana soba. Noodles can be fried, supersized or wonton-ed. Also available: English picture menu, vegetarian options. Cash only, and expect a quick-moving line.

Here’s udon done right. Tsurutontan’s in Roppongi is one of Tokyo’s most-beloved udon restaurants, and its just as good in its new spot. In summer, we always succumb to the cold udon with sudachi (Japanese limes) sliced paper-thin over the noodles, and a mound of shaved ice riding on top, melting into a light sauce as it’s eaten. Pork cutlet on noodles is a house fave. Cooler weather means shabu shabu udon, made with tasty beef. Go off peak to avoid a wait. English and picture menu available.

Tucked into a side room off Ippudo’s ramen section, the experiment that is Soba Combo Watanabe puts the Ippudo spin on soba noodles. Here, they serve the soba noodles cold, to be dipped in a sauce made of Ippudo’s proprietary tonkotsu stock. Customize your noodles or broth with any of the ingredients used in the dishes as a “topping.” Extra soba and simple rice bowls with an egg or greens are available. Pro tip: Let the host know you’re there for soba, and you can skip the ramen line.

Ichiran takes dining discretely to a whole new level. Before entering, order your tonkatsu ramen at the pre-payment machine (with helpful pictures). The Hakata-style ramen from Fukuoka Prefecture contains a milky white pork bone marrow broth with somewhat thin noodles and is customizable. Find your seat then customize your order further on a slip of paper – within minutes, a bamboo curtain will rise, a steaming bowl of noodles behind it. No human contact necessary.

Revisit the roots of classic ramen dining. Since 2000, Afuri serves light, bright-tasting ramen with eye appeal and enticing flavors, with vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. Most-popular is the signature traditional yuzu ramen, scented with the fragrant citrus. The ultra-healthy chicken and dashi broth can be ordered salty or with shoyu. Save room for a specially brewed draft beer from Asahi breweries.

Adding a quality twist on ramen is a challenge, yet friends Yamada and Sumida struck gold with one perfectly measured innovation: kemuri (“smoke” in Japanese). Tucked away near Rikkyo University in a quiet, student- friendly area, this modest ramen joint serves their latest experimental dishes without straying from the joy of good ramen at its best. Counter seats and a small standing section make for an intimate setting, where newcomers can feel like locals, dining on smoky shoyu ramen.

The narrow Chabuzen, folded into the very fringes of the hip Shimokitazawa, has two low tables on tatami – enough room for 6 to squeeze. While a relatively obscure vegan restaurant in Tokyo’s sprawling mass, those in the know rave about Daiji Takada’s dragon ramen – a creamy mock tonkotsu that even has everyone confused as to how it manages to taste so rich without using pork. Virtually everything is made from scratch. The menu is halal-certified and available in English, Chinese and Korean.

Tokya’s Tsuta became the first-ever ramen store to receive a Michelin star. Locals maintain, however, that the best ramen is rather found around the corner at Menya Imamura. The limited menu has only two types of ramen, both with a base broth of chicken and small dried sardines, and laden with thick, springy noodles. The shoyu version has a thicker broth, with punchy umami recalling memories of the sea; the other, shio (salt), is closer to a hearty chicken soup. Each bowl is a work of art.

Owner and chef Shinji Narahara deftly handles the classic accompaniment to udon (think homemade dashi, deep-fried tofu and tempura) but elevates the humble noodle to modern heights with Udon Shin’s trademark carbonara udon. Barely fitting 10, you’ll order your udon while in line, and watch it made fresh through the window before being seated. With their twist of thick, white noodles, Udon Shin has consistently ranked among the best udon restaurants in Tokyo since 2011 – worth the wait.

Ramen may have seen a worldwide boom in recent years, but when it comes to soba – Japanese buckwheat noodles – fans might say they’ve been unfairly neglected. Soba Kaiseki Gi, located in the stylish area of Ebisu, has a sleek wooden counter and backlit bottles of sake, a modern yet unmistakably Japanese restaurant, which does as its name suggests: soba for lunch, and kaiseki, a traditional multi-course dinner. We love the handcrafted soba in a creamy sauce with elegant shavings of truffle.