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"Please come and try the new standard of Waseda cuisine!"

Ren Fujimura, 4th year School of Education

In front of the Waseda branch of "Tokyo Ebi Tomato"

In October 2023, Fujimura Ren opened a ramen shop called "Tokyo Ebi Tomato" just a five-minute walk from the main gate Waseda Campus on Waseda Street. As the name suggests, the signature dish is Tokyo Ebi Tomato, a ramen made with plenty of shrimp and fruit tomatoes. In order to open the shop, Fujimura learned how to make ramen from scratch, and did everything himself, from fundraising to designing the interior of the store. We spoke to Fujimura about the circumstances that led to the opening of the shop, Fujimura's commitment to making ramen, what Fujimura learned at university, and Fujimura's future prospects.

--Please tell us how you came to open Tokyo Ebi Tomato.

During the Inter-High School Championships in the summer of the third year of high school

When I was a second-year university student and did a self-analysis in preparation for job hunting, I looked back on my life and remembered my childhood dream of becoming a soccer player. I wanted to be a player who could dodge opponents with unique plays, score goals, and excite the crowd. I gave up on that dream a long time ago, but I realized that what I wanted to do was to move the hearts of many people with unique efforts.

When I thought about how I could achieve this, I came to the conclusion that I should become an entrepreneur. I thought that as an entrepreneur, I could have an impact on society by creating something from scratch. And I thought that I could achieve this ambition by using ramen, which is a popular national dish, so I decided to deal with ramen as part of my business.

Tokyo Ebi Tomato Waseda store, opening day

While searching for a new ramen that could make a splash in Waseda, a ramen battleground, I came across "Tokyo Ebi Tomato" in Shinjuku and was shocked. I thought "I want to offer this flavor in Waseda too!" and approached the owner directly. I trained there for about three months from August 2023. However, opening a store requires about 10 million yen in capital. So I negotiated directly with company presidents I knew, showed my enthusiasm, and got them to invest. At the same time, I looked for a property and worked on the interior design myself, and was able to open successfully in October 2023.

What exactly do you do as a manager?

I do everything from start to finish related to running a store. Specifically, I buy ingredients, make the ramen, serve it, clean the store, manage part-time staff, and manage inventory. I also set sales targets and plan how to achieve them, and handle financial management. I also work on marketing, coming up with strategies to raise awareness among Waseda students. Other than that, I work to meet the needs of customers. For example, we've seen an increase in the number of Chinese international students visiting recently, so we're planning to renovate the ticket machines to include Chinese language not only in Japanese and English.

A ticket machine installed inside the store. Not only the menu but also detailed descriptions of all four types of ramen are written on it.

--What do you pay particular attention to when making ramen?

We are particularly particular about our ingredients. We use a generous amount of lobster, a luxury ingredient, including the head, to enhance the flavor. We also use fruit tomatoes ordered from a contract farm in Italy, which are sweeter than regular tomatoes, so they are easy to eat even for people who don't like the sourness of tomatoes.

I always serve ramen thinking, "This is the best bowl," but the challenge is that there are always more ways to improve it, and that's what makes it fun. For example, I realize that a certain step is unnecessary, or that if I prepare this in advance, I can serve the ramen to customers faster. Since I can improve every day, I approach it with the feeling of clearing a difficult game.

Photo on Left: Making soup  using lobster
Photo on the right: A relaxing restaurant with 14 seats. The simple and stylish interior is impressive.

--Please tell us why you enrolled in Waseda University and what you studied there.

Fujimura at Entrance Ceremony

I chose Waseda University because I liked the culture and atmosphere of Waseda and had always admired it. In a society where various debates are unfolding, I had a strong desire to become an adult who can properly hold my own opinion. I also thought that the education system was about to enter a new turning point, so I chose School of Education to learn about its structure and background.

At university, I belong to a seminar on education and am researching extracurricular activities outside of class, such as school trips. Specifically, I am researching the history of extracurricular activities and the impact they have on students. I also make a conscious effort to actively learn about things outside of my field of expertise. For example, in the open course "Entrepreneurship Training Course II 1" (a course offered by School of Commerce), I was able to use the stories of various business owners to help me run my own ramen shop. I was particularly impressed by the story of the struggles that Murakami Taichi, CEO and Executive Officer of Livesense Inc., told me when Murakami started Murakami' business.

--Isn't it difficult to balance your studies with business management?

We don't have fixed holidays, so we're at the shop every day. Since I opened the store, the only time we took a day off was on January 1st this year. I'm always conscious of providing the best bowl to the customers in front of us, and when I think of the faces of the people who enjoy our ramen, I can't bring myself to take a day off. There are days when I come to the shop early in the morning to prepare the ingredients before heading to class. As with anything, it's important to make progress day by day, so I keep the shop open every day with the hope that as many people as possible will become repeat customers.

Fujimura making ramen in the kitchen

--Please tell us about your future prospects.

I plan to open an abura soba restaurant near Waseda university by the time I graduate in March 2025. I am currently developing a "really delicious Aburasoba." I will definitely make something that is on par with the top three Aburasoba restaurants at Waseda, or even better! I plan to become the owner and leave the restaurant management to Waseda students, creating an opportunity for them to learn about business management in a practical way.

 Aburasoba currently under development. With an emphasis on healthiness so that it can be eaten every day, this new style of "soup oil soba" uses rich pork bone soup instead of oil.

In the future, I would like to develop the Wasemeshi culture. When asked about the attractions of Waseda University, many students mention Wasemeshi, as it is a culture that symbolizes Waseda. However, current students are essentially only consumers. If students could also become the promoters of Wasemeshi culture, "Wasemeshi of students, by students, for students" could be realized. I feel that there is great potential to contribute to the development of Waseda culture, so I will continue to work hard every day to develop this brand with that expectation in mind.

――Finally, please tell us what your recommended menu item is.

"Tokyo Ebi Tomato" is a dish that allows you to luxuriously experience the flavors of shrimp and tomatoes! The soup is made using a whole sweet fruit tomato, so it has just the right amount of acidity and can be enjoyed by anyone. You can soak the remaining soup in a baguette or order "cheese rice" separately to eat it like risotto. Of course, it goes great with the noodles, so we are proud to say that many customers finish the soup.

"Tokyo Ebi Tomato" (980 yen) and "Cheese Rice" (General: 290 yen, Student discount: 190 yen). Also, if you scan the QR code posted in the store and add them as friends on LINE, you can display a stamp card that gives you discount coupons.

No.877

Interview, text and photography: Waseda Weekly Reporter (SJC student staff)
Ukiya Hinari, 3rd year School of Culture, Media and Society

店舗情報
【店名】東京海老トマト早稲田店
【住所】東京都新宿区早稲田鶴巻町44-45 グランプラス早稲田 102
【TEL】050-6871-9953
【営業時間】11時30分～15時00分、18時00分～21時00分
【定休日】なし
【Instagram】@tokyo.ebi.tomato.waseda

*All prices in the article include tax.