Tokyo’s “Delicious Soba” restaurants

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Sushi, tempura, and many other Japanese foods are popular among foreigners, but one traditional dish that is familiar to Japanese people but is not talked about as much as one might expect is soba (buckwheat noodles).
There are many restaurants serving delicious soba in Tokyo.
We hope that many foreigners will enjoy eating delicious soba, a traditional Japanese food.

12 Restaurants of Soba in Tokyo (12 restaurants)
The Origin of Soba in Tokyo and the “Edo Soba Gosanke
If the administrator had to choose one restaurant, it would be

12 Restaurants of Soba in Tokyo (12 restaurants)

The Origin of Soba in Tokyo and the “Edo Soba Gosanke

Along with sushi, eel, and tempura, soba is considered a representative of Japanese food, but its history is surprisingly short and is said to have been invented in the early Edo period.
A cooking book called “Ryori Monogatari” from this period included instructions on how to make buckwheat noodles, and buckwheat noodles quickly spread among the common people of Edo.
Soba enjoyed a huge boom, and nearly 4,000 soba restaurants were established.
The three famous Edo-mae soba families are “Yabu,” “Sarashina,” and “Sunaba.” Each of the three families began with a single soba shop, and then spread through a succession of siblings, relatives, and apprentices.
The characteristics of the three families are sometimes described as “Yabu’s spicy sauce,” “Sarashina’s sweet sauce,” and “Sunaba’s somewhere in between.
Each restaurant now has its own unique characteristics, so we encourage you to taste and compare them for yourself.
The following is a brief description of each of the three families and their characteristics.

●Yabusoba
Yabusoba is a representative of chic downtown soba. It is usually served with salty soba-tsuyu (buckwheat sauce) with a strong taste of soy sauce.
Yabusoba, which has long-established establishments such as Kanda Yabusoba and Namiki Yabusoba, originated at Tsutaya in Nezu, Tokyo, at the end of the Edo period (1603-1868).
Because the store was surrounded by bushes, it was commonly called “Yabusoba,” which is said to have become the name of the store at some point.
Yabusoba is characterized by its light green noodles, and it is said that its unique color comes from the use of buckwheat flour ground from the fruit with the sweet skin still attached.

●Sarashina Soba
Sarashina-soba is characterized by its white, luxurious noodles. Enjoy the delicate, smooth texture of the soba noodles with a light, sweet soba sauce.
Sarashina has its roots in Nunoya in Nagano, Shinshu, where Seiwemon Horii, a native of Shinshu, put up the sign “Shinshu Sarashina Soba Noodle Shop Nunoya Tahei” in the city of Edo (present-day Tokyo).
Sarashina” is said to be a combination of the characters for “Shinshu Sarashina,” where buckwheat noodles are grown, and the character for “family” of the Hoshina family, who were lords of the area.
The stores that continue the tradition include “Sohonke Sarashina Horii,” which is a direct descendant of the founder, “Nagasaka Sarashina Nunoya Tahei,” and “Azabu Nagasaka Sarashina Honten.

●Sunaba Soba
Born in Osaka and raised in Edo (Tokyo), “Nihachi-soba” is served with sweet, thick buckwheat sauce.
Sunaba-soba originated in Osaka. Sunaba is a common name for the area, and it is said that the name derives from the fact that the restaurant was located near Sunaba, which was used as a materials yard during the construction of Osaka Castle.
It is a little-known fact that Sunaba is actually the oldest of the three families, although it was moved to the city of Edo in the mid-Edo period.
Sunaba Sohonke,” “Muromachi Sunaba,” and “Toranomon Osakaya Sunaba” are known as stores that continue the Sunaba goodwill, but it seems that there are no stores remaining in Osaka that continue the Sunaba goodwill.

If the administrator had to choose one restaurant, it would be

I am often asked, “Which buckwheat noodles are the best?” I am often asked “Which soba restaurant has the best soba? As with Ramen, Soba is a food that is difficult to comment on, as personal tastes vary greatly.
If I were to answer that it is my favorite buckwheat noodle restaurant, I would say that it is “Seizoroizaka Soba Ginsei” in Jingumae.
The soba noodles have a nice smooth texture and are just the way I like them.
It is a popular restaurant that fills up as soon as it opens, so I recommend that you make a reservation before you go.

Seizoroizaka Soba Ginsei: 2-3-10, Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

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