Ramen is one of the most popular Japanese fast foods in the world, and you may have wondered what it would be like to run your own ramen restaurant. Seeing how rapidly this Japanese cuisine is growing in popularity around the globe, is it a one-way ticket to a life of riches, or is there more to the trade than meets the customer's eye?

In an 11-minute mini-documentary by Life Where I'm From, Kunimoto, owner of Tokyo ramen restaurant Mengokoro Kunimoto, gives us insight into what it really takes to own a ramen restaurant in Japan. And with 15-hour+ workdays 6 days a week, the young ramen chef makes it glaringly clear that being a successful restauranteur is far from an easy business.

Although Kunimoto tried working as a salesman in a more traditional 9 to 5 job, he realized that his calling was to make people happy through delicious bowls of ramen. After working for 4 1/2 years as an apprentice at Musashi Menya, one's of Japan's most popular ramen restaurants, he opened his own location. But feeding the empty stomachs of Tokyoites requires an unimaginable amount of endurance, and he's lucky to get a 15-minute break during his hectic hours of preparing broths, serving the busy flow of customers, scrubbing the walls and floors, among everything else that is necessary to run a well-oiled ship.

If you still think you're up for the challenge of running your own restaurant, you could consider getting some training as one of Kunimoto's employees. Who knows, he might be willing to teach a passionate soul about the ins and outs of ramen.

Watch the entire video: