⚠️ Feumen Omotesando closed at the end of September but has re-opened in Ebisu.

Feu Men

⭐⭐⭐⭐

🍲 Noodles / 📍 Omotesando

📓 Visits: 10+ (2021-2022)

In earlier versions of this review I commented on how quiet Feumen is.  The restaurant opened on July 1st 2021 with a bowl of Feumen priced at JPY 1,320.  But from December 2021 to July 2022 they reduced prices to JPY 1,000 at lunch.  That proved not to be enough to fill the restaurant so on their 1st anniversary they relaunched with a new menu and a 3-day opening commemoration where the first 100 customers each day posting on social media would get a free meal.  The notice said you could line up up to an hour before but I had a sense that they were not going to be that busy.  I arrived a couple of hours after the restaurant opened on Friday 1st, was seated immediately and there were no more than 8 people in the 28-seat restaurant while I was there.  If you can't fill a restaurant when you're giving the food away then you're in big trouble.  I suspect Feumen will close not before long.  CityShop closed a couple of months ago and CityShop Noodle last year.  CityShop and CityShop Noodle were always busy.  Incredible that these types of restaurant can't make money in Omotesando.

So what exactly don't people seem to be getting about this restaurant?  It's a permanent collaboration between the chefs at the introduction-only Comptoir Feu (which has since closed) and Saika, two of the most coveted restaurants in Kansai.  There are several more options on the menu now including dandan noodles, miso and shoyu ramen and two new signature dishes of Garlic Shrimp Feumen (ガーリックシュリンプFeumen - ¥1,490) and Garlic Shrimp Tsukemen (ガーリックシュリンプつけ麺 - ¥1,090).  The basic Feumen is now called 'Customize' (カスタマイズ - ¥1,190).  If you choose a Feumen you specify the spiciness 'standard' (スタンダード) or 'mild' (マイルド) as a sub-option.  A large size of noodles was previously free but this is now an additional 220 yen.  There's now no option for hot Feumen, but perhaps that will come back in winter (providing they're still open, that is).  Extra toppings are 100 yen each.  'Customize' includes your choice of two.

I chose the Garlic Shrimp Feumen on re-launch day.  It's basically 'Customize' with diced pork, onsen tamago and, of course, garlic shrimp included.  So despite the big re-launch nothing I haven't really had before, but that's fine, because I loved it before.

The ordering system has changed a few times since they've opened.  Scan the QR code at your seat using your smartphone and follow the instructions.  You need a Line account to order by phone but, since the relaunch, rather than pay on your phone, you now pay at the register on your way out.  The interface is multilingual but the menu is in Japanese only.  Since they now have printed menus it's possible that you can order old school if you can't manage it digitally.

Food arrives within 8 minutes.  Mild is still fairly spicy (definitely too spicy for children).  The sauce is rich in tomato and lobster.  Noodles are very good, as is the niku miso.  All together, it's delicious.  Water is Pi-water Plus, another one of these 'high concept' waters that taste just like water.  The metal caps are starting to wear into the bottles so it's time they changed them.

Service is great.  Although you'll need to wait until 11:30 when the online system opens, twice I've arrived early and staff have let me in early rather than making me wait outside until they are ready, which is what usually happens in Japan.  The restaurant manager can speak English but I've only seen him on my first two visits and relaunch day.

You can sit at an actual table (rather than at a counter).  Comfortable, semi-upholstered wooden chairs and banquettes match the wooden floor.  Tables have built-in charging ports.  The restaurant is bright and colourful. Vivid, cartoon character-style paintings by artist Nana Soeda hang on the walls.  There's no open kitchen and instead a square counter for lone diners has an artificial 'tree' in the middle designed by Seijun Nishihata's Sora, the leading modern landscape gardeners in Japan.  A transparent roof section lets natural light in.

The 1,000 yen Feumen lunch lasted much longer than I expected and they always said it was 'limited'.  If you choose the basic Feumen now with large noodles this comes to JPY 1,410 which is 90 yen more than the original pricing so not that bad given rising costs in the past year.  I've been back twice since the relaunch and this is what I always order.  The garlic shrimp were fine but I'd rather spend my yen on the noodles.

I wasn't expecting anything special when I first went to Feumen and thought it would just be two chefs trading on their names.  But the food has been excellent every time I've been and Feumen quickly became one of my favourite restaurants for a cheap, convenient, different and filling lunch.  I don't get why this place has never caught on.  It's a shame it's going to close.

📌 https://tabelog.com/tokyo/A1306/A130602/13260780/ 

❓ My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.0

📱 Booking: No bookings.  Take-away available to order online as well.

📍 Location: 3-18-5 Minami-Aoyama.

2 minutes from Omotesando station Exit A4.  Dedicated street-facing entrance in a cul-de-sac.

📶 Free WiFi? ✅ Yes

Map data ©2021 Google

💴 Damage: 1,000-1,430

⏱️ Time taken: 20-25m