Yamagata, a city in northeastern Japan, topped the country's rankings for household spending on ramen for the fourth straight year in 2025, according to government data.
Yamagata's spending on ramen -- the widely popular Japanese noodle dish -- totaled 25,102 yen for the year, marking the highest amount since records began in 2000, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
At Yamagata City Hall, ramen shop owners and other citizens gathered to watch the announcement, cheering as they cracked open a celebratory paper ball to commemorate the achievement.
Ko Sagae, 44, owner of the restaurant "Ramen Megumi," said, "I'm honestly happy. Aiming for a fifth straight title, I want to keep working hard every day and focus carefully on our daily operations."
Niigata, northwest of Tokyo, ranked second after leading the list in 2021, followed by Utsunomiya, Fukushima and Toyama. Spending on ramen came to 19,073 yen in Niigata and 17,211 yen in Utsunomiya, eastern Japan, the data showed.
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