Onomichi Guide: Senkoji Ropeway, Temple Walk, Cat Alley and Onomichi Ramen
Kai
Setouchi Notes
Hiroshima Tsukemen and Soupless Tantanmen: How to Order the Spice Level, How to Eat Them and Where to Find Them
Kai
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Quick answer: Hiroshima has two spicy noodle dishes of its own. Tsukemen (つけ麺) are cold noodles you dip into a spicy red sauce, served with boiled cabbage, cucumber and green onion. Shiru-nashi tantanmen (汁なし担担麺) are soupless noodles with a tingling Sichuan-pepper sauce that you mix 20–30 times before eating — then you add rice to the last of the sauce. Every shop has its own spice scale, so start low. Most shops are in central Naka Ward (Hatchobori and around), and there are some inside Hiroshima Station. A bowl usually costs around ¥1,000.
Okonomiyaki gets most of the attention, but Hiroshima also has two noodle dishes of its own. I’ve eaten both, and I choose the milder spice levels. Here’s what they are, how to order and how to eat them.
Hiroshima-style tsukemen
What it is: noodles chilled in ice water, served with a separate bowl of spicy red dipping sauce. The sauce is made with soy sauce, chilli, chilli oil, vinegar and sesame, and some shops add seafood stock.
Toppings: the standard set is boiled cabbage, thinly sliced cucumber and green onion. You’ll often get chashu (sliced pork) and a boiled egg too, with plenty of sesame on top.
How to eat it
- Dip the noodles in the sauce and eat.
- There’s usually extra chilli, sesame and vinegar on the table, so you can adjust the taste as you go.
Where it came from
The dish is often traced to the cold noodles served at a Chinese restaurant that opened in Hiroshima in 1954. Specialist tsukemen shops appeared around 1985, and the dish became known across Japan around 2001.
Soupless tantanmen (shiru-nashi tantanmen)
What it is: noodles in a spicy sauce with no soup. Its roots are in the dry style of Sichuan cooking. The tingle comes from Sichuan pepper (花椒, huajiao).
Its Hiroshima story: the boom started with a specialist shop that opened in the Funairi area in 2001. Today about 100 shops in Hiroshima serve the dish.
How to eat it
- Mix it well before you eat — about 20–30 times. Some shops say 30 or more, mixing from the bottom up.
- Adjust the tingle. Some shops put several kinds of sansho pepper on the table.
- Finish with rice. Order a bowl of white rice and add it to the sauce left at the bottom. Locals call this tantan-meshi or tantan rice. A soft-boiled egg (onsen tamago) is a popular extra.
How to order the spice level
You choose the heat when you order, and each shop uses its own scale. That means “3” in one shop is not “3” in the next.
| Tsukemen | Soupless tantanmen | |
|---|---|---|
| Example scales | 0–6, 0–30, or 0–100 | 0–5, or 0–3 plus “MAX” |
| Extra charge? | At some shops, for the hottest levels | At some shops, for the top level |
| First time? | Order “futsu” (regular) or a low number | Start at a low number |
I go for the milder end of the scale myself. Shops often have extra chilli or sansho on the table if you want more heat later.
Tsukemen or tantanmen?
| Tsukemen | Soupless tantanmen | |
|---|---|---|
| Noodles | Cold, sauce on the side | In the sauce, no soup |
| How to eat | Dip | Mix 20–30 times |
| Heat | Chilli | Chilli plus Sichuan-pepper tingle |
| To finish | — | Add rice to the leftover sauce |
| Typical price | About ¥950–1,100 (regular size) | Basic bowl under about ¥1,000 |
Prices vary by shop, so check the menu.
Where to find them
Central Hiroshima
Most shops are in central Naka Ward: around Hatchobori, Shintenchi, Otemachi, Tokaichi, Kogami-cho and Fujimi-cho. See Hiroshima Streetcar Guide for getting around the centre.
Hiroshima Station
If you’re short on time, you can eat both at the station:
- ekie (the station shopping area) has a tsukemen shop on 2F, a soupless tantanmen shop on 1F — which also sells a half-and-half set for ¥1,200 — and another shop on 1F that serves both.
- minamoa, the new station building that opened in March 2025, has an Onomichi ramen shop but no tsukemen or tantanmen shop.
Other Hiroshima noodles
- Hiroshima ramen: a light, cloudy pork-bone and soy sauce broth, with straight noodles and boiled bean sprouts on top.
- Onomichi ramen: a soy sauce base with chicken and dried-sardine stock, bits of pork fat and flat noodles. See Onomichi Guide.
Make a day of it
Spicy noodles for lunch and okonomiyaki for dinner is an easy way to try Hiroshima’s food in one day. See Hiroshima Okonomiyaki Guide, Hiroshima Day 2: Beyond the Peace Park and Where to Stay in Hiroshima.
FAQ
Are Hiroshima tsukemen hot or cold?
The noodles are cold — chilled in ice water — and the dipping sauce is spicy.
How spicy is it?
You choose. Each shop has its own scale, so order “futsu” (regular) or a low number the first time.
How many times should I mix soupless tantanmen?
About 20–30 times before eating. Some shops say 30 or more.
Can I eat them at Hiroshima Station?
Yes. ekie has a tsukemen shop, a tantanmen shop with a half-and-half set, and a shop serving both.
Dish details, spice scales and station shop locations checked on Dive! Hiroshima (Hiroshima Prefecture’s tourism site) and MAPPLE on 28 October 2026.
ABOUT THE WRITER
I live in Tokushima and my family is from Hiroshima, where I also used to live. I still go back several times a year. The guides here come from places I have actually been. Where I haven't tried something myself, I say so.
