Before the current mushrooming of ramen shops across Vancouver, there were relatively few selections.

Among the forerunners were the now-defunct Ezogiku Noodle Café on Robson Street (where Marutama Ra-Men opened its second location) and the long-revered Kintaro Ramen on Denman Street.

Others that followed thereafter, but before the more recent proliferation, included Motomatchi Shokudo and Benkei Ramen.

Another entry into the market a decade ago was Menya Japanese Noodle at 401 West Broadway (at Yukon Street). Unfortunately, the restaurant announced on social media that its final day of operations will be on May 31 as owner and chef Shuichi Hara has decided to retire.

Located near the intersection of Broadway and Cambie Street, this humble 32-seater ramen joint, with its tree-stump stools and casual décor, garnered a following for its menu and has retained some of the most affordable ramen prices in the city.

Hara, originally from Okayama, Japan, trained in Fukuoka City's Nagahama district. Consequently, his restaurant's speciality is Nagahama ramen ($8.50), a Kyushu-style tonkotsu ramen made with pork-bone broth and thin noodles.

Menya is also one of the only ramen shops in Vancouver to offer Nagasaki champon ($11.25), a regional style (credited with being inspired by Chinese culinary influences) that incorporates a mix of seafood, meat, mixed vegetables, and thick noodles.  

Other offerings include jah-jah-men ($8.75), featuring spicy meat sauce, bean sprouts, green onions, and paprika, served with either hot or cold noodles, as well as ramen salad ($9.25), made with seasonal vegetables, cold noodles, and house dressing (served without broth).

The menu also includes a variety other noodles—soba (buckwheat noodles), udon, and yakisoba—as well as bento boxes, donburi (rice bowls), and side dishes.

Diners have until the end of the month to visit them before they shut down.