While it is widely accepted that its origin was Toyo in Yamashina, which is already closed, the origin is not clear as there is another possibility that its origin lies in Oike-ramen, which was a street stall near Kyoto station (it is different from present Oike-ramen Samata).
元祖は、今は亡き山科の東洋とする説が有力だが、京都駅近くで営業していた屋台御池ラーメン（現在の御池ラーメンさまたとは別の店）とする説もあり、はっきりしない。