Toshiyuki Kiyomiya likes to compare ramen to a carefully arranged universe in a bowl.
The savory combination of steaming broth, noodles and toppings — typically ranging from chāshū (Chinese-style roasted pork) and menma (pickled bamboo shoots) to soy-sauce braised soft-boiled eggs and sheets of nori — is a complete meal by itself that can easily be adapted to local tastes, he said.
"I've never seen a dish that can encompass such a diverse range of expressions in one bowl. And that's why we can take it global," he told The Japan Times in a recent interview.