Make Your Own Instant Noodle History

At a Glance

The CupNoodles Museum Yokohama (officially the Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum) sits on the waterfront of Minato Mirai. It honours Nissin Foods' founder Momofuku Ando (1910–2007) with a hands-on, two-workshop format that has made it one of Japan's most popular family museums since opening in September 2011.

Building & Momofuku's Story

A five-story red-brick cube stands out among Minato Mirai's glass skyline. Ando invented the world's first instant ramen, Chicken Ramen, in a backyard shed in 1958, then the Cup Noodle in 1971. The first-floor exhibition reconstructs his workshop in miniature and traces how both products were developed.

What to Do

• MY CUPNOODLES FACTORY: decorate your own cup, then combine soup and toppings to build a personalised instant noodle. Walk-up, about ¥500.
• CHICKEN RAMEN FACTORY: a 90-minute process from dough to frying, resulting in a packaged ramen you take home. Reservations required.
• Instant Noodles History Cube: about 3,000 instant ramen packages since 1958, including Korean, Southeast Asian, and European localisations.
• Noodles Bazaar on the third floor: mini portions of eight Asian noodle dishes.
• Space Ram: the zero-gravity instant ramen sent aboard Discovery in 2005.

Visiting Tips

Eight minutes on foot from Minatomirai station, or ten minutes by taxi from JR Yokohama. Arrive at opening on weekends to skip the MY CUPNOODLES queue. Pair with a 30-minute waterfront walk to Cosmo Clock 21 and the Red Brick Warehouse. Check the site for Tuesday closures.