Marugen Ramen（ブランドの英語名。運営会社の英語ページより。店名「姫路保城店」の公式の英語表記は見つからず）

Before you go

• The shop stands on National Route 312, a national highway, opposite Châteraisé Himeji-Kita across the road, with a large parking lot; by car it is about 10 minutes from Himeji Station and 7–8 minutes from Himeji Castle (route estimates without traffic).
• Without a car, the nearest station is Nozato on the JR Bantan Line, a 13-minute walk (1.0 km) on unnamed side roads with many turns. Shinki buses from Himeji Station's north exit, via Nozato-ekimae, stop at Hoshiro Jutaku, a 2-minute walk away.
• Two other Himeji branches, Imajuku and Miyata, are easy to confuse with this one, and the official store page gives only a Google Maps link, so show a driver this branch's name, Himeji Hoshiro, and its phone number, 079-262-6260. The official page gives the address as 651-1 Hoshiro, though one directory lists 588-1.
• Across the chain, 12:00–13:00 and 17:30–19:00 tend to be busiest, while opening to 11:30 and 14:00–17:00 tend to be quiet, and in October 2020 this branch had a waiting list to sign at the entrance. Tatami seats can go first: at a branch in Aichi, it was quiet at the 10:30 opening on a public holiday, but by about 11:30 every tatami seat was taken and people were waiting, and at another branch one family waited about 15 minutes for tatami seats on a full Saturday around 11:30. Booking is limited: the Retty review site (last updated April 2020) says dinner only, and the official page offers booking only to travel agents, so aim for the 10:30 opening, or the chain's usual afternoon lull (though this branch still had quite a few diners around 3 p.m. on one rainy Saturday in October 2020).
• The official store page lists hours of 10:30 to 1:00 a.m. (last order 12:30 a.m.), but listing sites give closing times from midnight to 1:00 a.m., so check before a late visit. Major credit cards, WeChat Pay, Alipay and transit IC cards are accepted.
• Food arrives hot: staff pour the egg around a hot iron plate at the table, and one family's child kept reaching for it; freshly made ramen is hot enough that one diner burned their tongue a little. Seat a small child away from the plate and split the kids' ramen into a small bowl first, as one mother did; at one branch, a child's bowl, spoon and fork came without asking. The kids' menu is only for children up to elementary-school age.
• No nursing room is listed (a parenting site says the chain's shops generally have none), and changing tables vary by branch, so plan feeds and changes before you arrive; the chain says staff provide hot water for formula, though services can differ by branch. The allergy chart covers 8 allergens and warns of cross-contact from shared equipment, and children with food allergies may bring their own meal; for other baby food brought from outside, ask staff.