《Japan Ramen Guide/日本拉面指南》

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Menkui Wanderer（麺喰ワンダラー）

column 2025.09
What is “Rock ‘n’ Three,” the much-talked-about ramen shop that drew a line of 200 people on its opening day, September 25, 2025?(1)

The Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum is known for hosting popular and famous ramen shops from around the country. However, the newly opened shop does not exist. Or, more accurately, the shop in question has relocated entirely, its flagship store closed, and the museum is entering a new phase: Phase 3. Having known the owner of Phase 1 (Ramenya 69’N’ROLL ONE) and eaten at their ramen before it opened, I’d like to explain what “Rock ‘n’ Three” (Phase 3) is all about.

The lone genius ramen chef, Junichi Shimazaki(嶋﨑順一), and his journey

The “legend” who created legends in both Kanto (Phase 1) and Kansai (Phase 2) has returned to Kanto. His name is Junichi Shimazaki. He’s still an active ramen shop owner, standing in the kitchen himself. However, his evolution is still ongoing, as he continues to strive for his final goal of serving the “ultimate ramen.” The shop’s name will also be his third. It went from “Ramenya 69’N’ROLL ONE(ラァメン家　69’N’ROLL ONE)” (Kanto era: Phase 1) to “Ramenya Rock’n’Billy Super 1(らぁめん矢　ロックンビリーS1)” (Kansai era: Phase 2) to “Rock’n’Three(ロックンスリー)” (a triumphant return to Kanto: Phase 3).

First, let’s look at his achievements during his Kanto era: Phase 1. The “TRY Ramen Awards(※TRY=Tokyo Ramen of the Year)” (published by Kodansha), for which I was also a judge at the time, are like the “Record Awards” of the music world. At the awards, he won the “TRY Newcomer Award Grand Prize” the year he opened (2006). From 2007 to 2012, he won first place in the soy sauce category for six consecutive years. While this would be a hall of fame now, such a system didn’t exist back then, making it a record that will likely never be broken. In 2011, he won the TRY Ramen Grand Prize, the pinnacle of ramen in the Tokyo metropolitan area. In 2012, he became the first restaurant to win three awards in the unprecedented categories of soy sauce, salt, and thin tsukemen noodles. Despite this record, he relocated to Kansai in 2014.

During his time in Kansai, Phase 2 changed his name to “Ramenya Rock’n Billy Super 1” and continued to evolve, winning numerous Kansai ramen awards and even being inducted into the Kansai Ramen Hall of Fame. To date, Junichi Shimazaki is the only ramen restaurant to have both won the Kanto Grand Prize and been inducted into the Kansai Hall of Fame.

Junichi Shimazaki created “water chicken ramen(水鶏系ラーメン)” and “kelp water tsukemen(昆布水つけ麺).” While the former could be considered a trend, the latter could be considered an “invention.” Both were groundbreaking, so I’ll discuss each separately.

A pioneer and a leader in the now-historic “water chicken ramen(水鶏系ラーメン)” trend.

Ramenya 69’N’ROLL ONE was founded in Sagamihara at the end of 2005. At the time, Kanagawa Prefecture was home to a ramen stalwart named Minoru Sano(佐野実) of Shina Sobaya(支那そばや), whom Shimazaki highly respected. Sano’s admirers formed a team called “Sano JAPAN,” which organized study groups, events, and various other activities. Sano sourced quality ingredients from around the country and created a well-balanced soup that combined the flavors to create a synergistic effect (i.e., multiplication). Meanwhile, Shimazaki, also a member of “Sano JAPAN,” developed the polar opposite: a soup that “subtracts”—a soup made solely from water and chicken. This is “water chicken ramen.” At the time, it was offered under the name No. 2 Ramen, and, coincidentally, the name “water chicken ramen” wasn’t coined until he moved to Kansai. Though their approaches differed, they were both champions of the same “clear soup” style. While the two were talking, Shimazaki asked Sano, “How long will the era of rich soup last?” To which he replied, “Just be patient for another three to five years! The era of clear soup will definitely come!” And indeed, the era of clear soup has arrived.

Continued in (2)

“RocknThree” (Shin-Yokohama Station, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture)
Official Information
1-9-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0005, Tokyo Station Ichibangai B1F

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