Introducing Susuru, Japan's Biggest Ramen YouTube Star

Ramen Stories is a new series where Ramen Beast teams up with Sabukaru, an online magazine from Tokyo that researches and shares Japan’s subcultures. We will be sitting down with key figures of the ramen scene to hear their stories. For the very first edition, the Ramen Beast Team met with SUSURU TV, the biggest ramen YouTuber in Japan.

SUSURU TV is run by a young Tokyo-based ramen head who calls himself Susuru (the Japanese onomatopoeia for “slurp”). Eating at a different ramen shop everyday, Susuru has attracted over a million followers with his relentless ramen-eating adventures.

Being a YouTuber, many of Susuru’s viewers assume he creates his videos to review and rank Japan’s endless supply of ramen shops, but this is not his goal. All he really wants to do is share ramen culture — how diverse, delicious and endlessly inventive it is — to inspire others to get out, eat and explore. He’s done a good job at that, because many of the shops he visits receive a wave of new customers after his videos post. And many shop masters now recognize him when he walks through their door. Susuru’s reach in Japan has grown to such an extent that he recently created a video with Keanu Reeves, a noted ramen fan, when the actor was promoting his latest Matrix movie in Tokyo.

Hardcore ramen enthusiasts will already know about SUSURU TV, but how did he get here? What is his history and relationship with ramen? What does he do when he isn’t eating and filming? Check out what he had to say in the interview with the Ramen Beast Team below.

To start with, please introduce yourself?

Hi, my name is Susuru and I eat ramen every single day. At the time of this interview, it’s been five years since I started making videos for Youtube. For the last five years, I’ve been making a ramen video every day. Regardless of my own preferences, I try to showcase as many different styles of ramen as possible. The goal for the channel isn’t to critique or describe the ramen, but rather to make it look appetizing, appealing, and fun so people will go out and eat more ramen. I’m originally from Aomori Prefecture. I’m 28 years old. 

What inspired you to start making YouTube videos?

Obviously I enjoyed eating ramen before, but it was one of my Senpai from college who suggested I start making YouTube videos. Back then, I enjoyed watching a lot of ramen vloggers, but there weren't any who really caught my attention or that I latched on to. I was also kind of curious what would happen if I ate a bowl of ramen everyday. So that was kind of the reason why I started. 

How has this lifestyle changed your life?

So I ate ramen every single day and it might be obvious, but I gradually gained weight as time passed. After the first year, I went to the doctor for a check-up where they run various tests to check my health — and I essentially scored the lowest on every test. I kind of realized this wasn’t healthy, so I started going to the gym everyday as well. 

What’s the process behind your content creation? What goes into making one video?

Well, as I said, at a minimum, I eat a bowl a day. Sometimes if I’m traveling to a remote area, I’ll eat at three shops a day. The most shops I visited in a day was nine.

Nine! 

Yep. As for the videos, I try to make one or two a day. I’m more the filmer and eater nowadays, so I go and film myself eating, etc. I have an editor now who helps me with the video editing so I hand it off to them, I add voice overs and we usually post once a day. I eat at a bit more than 600 shops a year. 

Do you ever miss or skip a day of eating ramen? 

When I first started YouTube, because I had other obligations I would spend a day filming at multiple restaurants to build up content and then not eat ramen for a couple days or so. Nowadays, even during my days off, I eat ramen somewhere. For instance at Ramen Jiro, they don’t particularly like people filming in their shops, so I don’t shoot there as a sign of respect. However, I love Ramen Jiro, so on my days off, I’ll go and eat there. And I also just go to my favorite stores without filming on my days off from shooting. 

Do chefs recognize you when you go to their shops? Do you ever get any special treatment from them?

Recently, yes — and sometimes to my detriment (laughs). I was once traveling to a remote area for ramen and had been eating all day. When I got to the fourth shop of the day, despite ordering only a regular bowl, the master surprised me with a Tokusei (full toppings). Of course, I’m so appreciative when masters surprise me with extra service, but it really did me in that time. I happily cried my way through the bowl.

How have your ramen tastes and preferences changed in these five years? Is there any style you’ve discovered that you feel is a bit underrated?

There’s a ramen shop I’ve been super into lately called Oiwatei in Aichi prefecture. The ramen is so thick, your spoon stands up when you stick it in and yet the owner/master is even more impressive than this thick soup. For instance when he strains the noodles, he makes a loud shout and he’s become a bit of a local celebrity. I guess by showcasing these unique ramen masters, I hope people will go seek them out.  

How did you develop your distinct video style?

I’m a huge fan of the TV show/anime called Kodoku no Gurume (Solitary Gourmet, available on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video in Japan), which is about an old man who goes around and eats at these different restaurants alone. Throughout the show, you see his thoughts and feelings about the dish, but since he’s shy, he doesn’t verbally express them to anyone. The narration is like a voice over. So that really influenced my voiceover style, rather than talking about it directly into the camera. And of course, I want to show people the ramen and make it the star of the show rather than me, which this allows me to do. 

Did you have any favorite YouTubers when you were just getting started?

I was a fan of [the Japanese comedian] Haiji-san and he would sometimes eat ramen. Being featured on his channel has been fun. I do sometimes take inspiration when I make my thumbnails — I think he makes some great ones.

You have gained so many followers over the past couple of years. What are they like? Who are most of your followers? Any stalkers?

When I first started, a lot of raota (ramen otaku) found me and started following me, but I’ve gotten a lot of casual ramen lovers following me as well. Once I started doing location shoots to other prefectures, I started getting regular people looking for food recommendations, and they followed as well. I haven’t had any stalkers (laughs), but I do have hardcore fans who show up to every event I get invited to. More like super fans. 

Do you have another job or is ramen and YouTube your full-time thing now? 

No, YouTube is now my full-time job now. I did work part time jobs when I first started. I was working at a popular gyutan restaurant (beef tongue specialty restaurant) when I first started making YouTube videos. After about the first year I left hat job to eat ramen full time.

A question not many ask but all are curious about is payment. Around how much can you make as a ramen YouTuber?

I would say I make better money than an average salaryman of my age and experience, but I don’t make as much as you might think when you think of star YouTubers. Our videos are quite short, so we’re not the type of videos that are optimized for profit on Youtube. I’m envious of those other YouTubers (laughs). 

Has your enjoyment of ramen changed since it has become your “job”?

I think my enjoyment has actually increased. When I choose the shops to film, I’m choosing shops I really want to visit. Having the luxury now to travel throughout the country, eating at all these shops, I would say it’s become even more enjoyable. 

Have you ever been told off by a ramen master for filming in his shop? Do you always ask for permission?

I’ve never been told off by the master, but when I first started, the customers would get mad or be passive aggressive towards me. Nowadays, a lot more people recognize me so they ask for pictures when I’m filming, but before, they would intentionally talk loudly, or passively aggressively tell the master that they hate customers who film themselves eating, etc. I try to be as polite as possible and call ahead of time telling them I’ll be there and ask for permission. But many ramen shops don’t have phone numbers or never pick up, so in those cases, I ask for permission when I get there.

One of the top stores in the ramen pyramid is Jiro. Is there a reason you've never tried to shoot there, one way or another? 

I’m pretty close to the son of Yamada-san who works at Jiro. He jokingly told me he would kill me if I shot a video at Jiro (laughs). But honestly, I do it out of respect for them and it's also my favorite shop/style, so I'd rather go there to enjoy the bowl in peace than to film.

How do you describe Ramen Jiro to people from overseas who don't already know about it? 

It’s a ramen that you either love or hate — and you become addicted to it if you love it. The ramen is massive, and the sense of happiness, pride and accomplishment after finishing their bowls is truly addicting. You might not be able to stop yourself after having a bowl. The shop is really intimidating, and now that I think of it, for foreigners it must be even more so with the strict lines, them telling you when to buy your tickets, and asking you for your topping options only in Japanese, etc. For first timers, I recommend going with a Japanese person who has been to Jiro before. Also clear your schedule before going because if you eat a bowl there, you’re not gonna be able to eat dinner, so you should probably avoid booking a sushi reservation on the day you’re eating Jiro (laughs). My favorite Jiro is the Jimbocho location. I feel like the bowls there are the epitome of what makes Jiro Jiro. Flavors are spot on, the plating is perfect — I just think it’s the best embodiment of Jiro.

What would be your favorite Jiro-kei ramen (A Jiro-inspired spin-off shop)?

Momijiya is my favorite, as I went to University nearby and I’ve been having bowls there since my school days. No11 is also good for foreigners. I think it’s one of the easiest places to sit down and eat while also getting an authentic Jiro feel. 

What do your family and friends think of you being a ramen YouTuber?

In the beginning, I honestly didn’t tell my family that I was doing the whole YouTube thing. Maybe two years in, my mom’s friends saw me and told her I had a YouTube channel. But at that point, I had a pretty solid fan base and a good number of subscribers so they were supportive and cheering me on. Nowadays, my grandma watches my videos twice a day. As for my friends, people ask me now to be an MC or speak at their weddings, which is a privilege I’m incredibly happy to have. 

Are there any drawbacks to being a ramen YouTuber?

I love eating all kinds of foods, but with this job, I can’t eat things other than ramen as frequently as I like. The reason I gained weight was because I was eating whatever I wanted along with the ramen I was eating for my videos. In order to stay healthy, I had to limit my daily intake somehow, so finding balance is a bit of a struggle. But editing, shooting, etc has been quite smooth for me. 

Do you have any other favorite ramen shops that you love in Tokyo?

For shoyu ramen, I love Aoshima Shokudo in Akihabara. There are a ton of refined shoyu ramen shops these days, but I quite like the unrefined vibe of Aoshima Shokudo. That really pulls me in. 

How about a shop you haven’t been to yet that you’re dying to try?

Rairai in Fukuoka for sure. 

You mentioned you’re from Aomori prefecture. What is your favorite ramen there?

Ohhh, for Aomori. I’m from Hirosaki and there's a market there called Hirosaki Chuo Ichiba. Inside the market is a ramen shop called Chuka Soba Yamada. That is definitely my favorite. It’s run by an old lady and it’s just like a simple shokudo diner, but I always end up going when I’m back. 

Are there any ramen shops in West Tokyo you wish got more love?

Minmin has a lot of history and culture in their bowls that I think people would be surprised by. It's very good and I think it has a great story. 

It seems like you like the down and dirty ramen shops. What are your thoughts on the more refined ramen?

To me, I enjoy the every day feel and realness of places like Jiro and Aoshima Shokudo. I enjoy that those are places I can go to whenever I want. But for the refined shops, it's almost like I'm going to experience that specific shop, so the mindset when I go to these shops is a little different I guess. 

What are your ramen-related ambitions at this stage? 

I would love to just continue making a video everyday and keep eating ramen everyday. Maybe, one day, I would like to start my own ramen shop… as someone who has eaten so many bowls throughout the country. But for the time being, I want to focus on these videos and eating at as many shops as possible.