Momofuku Ando's Instant Noodle Museum インスタントラーメン発明記念館
Get creative with ramen!
Named the greatest Japanese invention of the twentieth century in a Japanese poll, instant noodles are a cult product in Japan and the rest of the world. There are two museums dedicated to this food, in Osaka and Yokohama. Since its opening in 1999, the Momofuku Ando Instant Noodle Museum in Osaka has attracted more than 700,000 visitors annually.
The post-war food revolution
By developing the first instant noodles, Chicken Ramen, in August 1958, Momofuku Ando created the first success of a future giant of the Japanese food industry: the Nissin Foods Group. The museum focuses on teaching the public the story of Momofuku Ando and his creations. It also extols Ando's philosophy that if you have an idea, with the passion and tenacity to achieve it, you can invent something that will change the world. It is clear that Ando showed ingenuity, perseverance and simplicity when carrying his equipment and ingredients to the back of his bike during his experiments in 1957-1958. His modest workshop, set up at the bottom of his garden, is reconstructed in the museum. In 1971, Ando developed cup noodles (instant noodles in plastic cups) and transformed the instant made "made in Japan" ramen into a global product. Fast to prepare, nutritious and low-priced, cup noodles are a huge popular success that changed eating habits. Today, more than 100 billion cups are sold worldwide!
The famous "Chicken Ramen"
Learn and experiment
The museum not only exhibits Momofuku Ando's personal belongings, history and a great variety of his products through a ramen tunnel, there are also multimedia devices and a small theater in the form of cup noodle. It is also a place for culinary experimentation, since it gives visitors the chance to create their own instant noodles and cup noodles! At the Chicken Ramen Factory you can knead dough, make fresh noodles and fry them. In the Cup Noodle Factory workshop, you can create your ramen recipe, selecting your favorite soup from 4 varieties, as well as four ingredients from the 12 on offer; it's an opportunity to let your inner chef out to play!
Personalise your own ramen cup at the Cup Noodle Factory
To infinity and beyond!
Not content to see his products sold all over the world, Momofuku Ando sent his instant noodles into space, too! In 2005, thanks to a collaboration with Jaxa, the Japanese aerospace agency, Ando developed "Space Ramen", which can be eaten in zero gravity hundreds of miles from the earth. As a savvy businessman and communications professional, Ando liked to say that he owed his longevity to his chicken ramen, which he ate almost every day. The story goes that he ate it until the day of his death, at the age of 96 years. Instant noodles... the secret of longevity?
Address, timetable & access
Address
Phone
+81 (0) 727 510 825Website
http://www.nissin-noodles.com/english.htm
