Momofuku Ando's shed
In 1958, Momofuku Ando, founder of Nissin Foods, developed the first instant ramen — Chicken Ramen — in a small shed behind his house in Ikeda, his hometown just outside central Osaka. He went on to invent Cup Noodles in 1971, and the museum stands on the same site as that original shed, with a replica preserved inside.
Chicken Ramen Factory
One of the museum's hands-on workshops lets visitors make their own chicken ramen from scratch, from kneading and steaming the dough through to flash-frying it — a genuinely involved process that gives a real sense of how the product actually works, not just a souvenir activity.
My CUPNOODLES Factory
The other major draw is a workshop where visitors design and decorate their own cup, then choose from a range of soup flavours and ingredients to fill it, taking home a genuinely one-of-a-kind cup noodle. Sessions are popular and sell out, so it's worth arranging a ticket in advance.
Getting there
Ikeda sits on the Hankyu Takarazuka Line, roughly 30 minutes from Umeda, making the museum a realistic half-day trip out of central Osaka rather than a special expedition.