Five of the best soba restaurants in Tokyo
"Steamed soba" and "tempura soba"Explore

I went around trying both "seiro" (steamed soba noodles) and hot "tempura soba."
This time, we'll introduce five restaurants: "Edo Soba Hosokawa," "Namiki Yabu Soba," "Teuchi Soba Narutomi," "Asakusa Hirayama," and "Ishiusu Hiki Teuchi Soba Rakutei." You might understand "seiro" (steamed soba), but with so many varieties available, why "tempura soba" (hot soba)? I understand you might have many questions.
It's simply my personal preference, sorry.

When I go to a soba restaurant, I usually order a bowl of "seiro" (cold soba noodles) first. Next, I usually order either hot "tempura soba" or hot "kamo nanban soba" (sometimes I order "ten seiro" or "kamo nanban seiro"). The point is to savor the flavor of the soba itself before eating the hot soba. There are so many soba restaurants in Tokyo, and it's a fiercely competitive scene with at least 15 excellent establishments. This time, I've excluded restaurants that don't serve tempura such as kakiage, anago, or shrimp, and restaurants that only offer set courses, even if they are top-notch soba restaurants. It's a shame I can't introduce "Soba Osame" or "Tamasho".

"Edo Soba Hosokawa" is the pinnacle of Tokyo.
Eating here makes me want to say that.

Unless it's a long-established restaurant, many soba noodle shops are run by owners who have forged their own paths in the art of soba making through self-study. Soba is something that can turn both the maker and the eater into enthusiasts. "Edo Soba Hosokawa" is at the forefront of such restaurants. In fact, there are many enthusiasts who openly declare that "Hosokawa is the pinnacle of soba in Tokyo."

The interior of the restaurant is truly beautiful. It's luxurious and sophisticated. The earthen walls, tables, and leather chairs all have a color reminiscent of buckwheat grains. It's refreshingly minimalist, stripped of all unnecessary elements. It must be a reflection of the owner, Takashi Hosokawa's, spirit. I'm deeply impressed even before I've eaten.
The buckwheat, sourced from Ibaraki, Hokkaido, and Shikoku, is stored at low temperatures and milled in-house daily. The soba noodles, made with a commitment to freshly milled buckwheat, embody the very soul of the shop owner.

First, we have to eat the steamed vegetables quickly. After boiling, we rinse them in water to firm them up, and then serve them at lightning speed. The aroma will be completely gone in just three minutes. There's no time to take pictures (laughs).

These are truly beautiful, hand-cut soba noodles. They are 100% buckwheat noodles with no wheat flour binder. I've seen videos of it, and the owner, Mr. Hosokawa, is incredibly skilled at cutting the noodles. People often talk about the beauty or ugliness of the noodle strands when it comes to ramen, but the strands here are magnificent. Despite being 100% buckwheat noodles, they are glossy and don't break into short pieces. This is a testament to the owner's dedication and hard work. According to Mr. Hosokawa's book, when grinding buckwheat grains to make buckwheat flour, if the remaining thin husk is not less than 2%, the noodles will break into pieces. It's a very difficult process.

Now, I bring my face closer to this magnificent "seiro" (bamboo steamer) and inhale the aroma of the soba into my nostrils. Then I eat the soba without any dipping sauce. It has a sweet taste. This soba is truly exceptional! I exclaim in admiration. They say you should eat soba with your nose, so I want to savor the aroma and taste of the soba without any dipping sauce at first. That said, with just one serving, I can easily eat the soba on its own until the very end.

Continuing on, you shouldn't be so crude as to submerge all the soba noodles in the broth. Swiftly pick up four or five strands of soba, dip the bottom three or four centimeters in the broth, and slurp them down. Slurping enhances the aroma in your mouth. The taste, texture, and how it goes down your throat follow.

Don't put the green onions and wasabi in the dipping sauce. They're too strong and would spoil the delicate flavor of the soba... I'm trying to sound like a connoisseur, don't I? (laughs) You use the green onions and wasabi after the soba water arrives. You throw them all into the soba dipping sauce and dilute it with the soba water before drinking it. Try it sometime.
You eat it with your nose, savor it as you chew, and enjoy it with your throat. It goes down so smoothly. The whole restaurant is filled with slurping sounds. Hmm, what a great sound. Apparently, today's buckwheat is from Hokkaido.

Next came the "Anago Tempura Soba." At this restaurant, the hot tempura soba is served with the tempura on a separate plate over the soba noodles. The tempura was truly superb, easily on par with that of a top-class tempura restaurant. The owner apparently frequented "Tempura Kondo" in Ginza to hone his skills.
A magnificent, wild conger eel is served alongside lotus root and burdock root. First, you dip each in salt and eat them. You'll be surprised by the lightness and sweetness of the conger eel. There's not a trace of fishy smell. The lotus root and burdock root are also wonderfully tender and delicious. It's clear that every ingredient is of the highest quality.

Next, of course, I dipped the conger eel into the soba broth and ate it. The soba broth was light and didn't overpower the flavor of the soba at all, but even when I dipped the tempura in the broth, the tempura itself remained intact. Next time, I want to try the "Kamo eggplant soba" or the "cold oyster soba."

This is a fantastic restaurant I would love to visit again and again.

I ordered the "Tempura Soba" from "Namiki Yabu Soba".
I want you to experience it at least once.

The reason I chose "tempura soba" this time is because the version at this restaurant always stays in my memory and whets my appetite.

The "Yabu" chain is one of the three major soba noodle restaurant chains of Edo, alongside "Sunaba" and "Sarashina." Namiki Yabu Soba was founded in 1913 by Katsuzo Hotta, the third son of Shichibei Hotta, the founder of Kanda Yabu Soba. The current store is a reconstruction that retains the atmosphere of the old store. The "Yabu" chain includes Kanda Yabu Soba, Ikenohata Yabu Soba (closed in 2016), and Namiki Yabu Soba, but many people say that Namiki Yabu, located in front of Asakusa Kaminarimon, is their favorite. I am one of them.

Needless to say, the soba is delicious, but when you combine the dimly lit, old-fashioned, and tranquil atmosphere of the restaurant with the attentive service of the waitresses, it's definitely my favorite soba restaurant in Tokyo. The soba is made with a blend of several domestic buckwheat flours and 20% udon flour, making it a 2:8 soba. It's apparently kneaded by hand and then finished with a noodle-making machine. The 2:8 ratio is probably a tradition they've followed.

Here, "seiro" is called "zaru soba." According to a certain food critic, the dipping sauce for the soba (mori dipping sauce) is "the spiciest in Tokyo." But I want to tell him to taste it for himself. It's not spicy at all. Rather, it's incredibly rich and has an unfathomable depth of flavor. The dipping sauce here possesses an irresistible charm.
After all, the "kaeshi" (soy sauce base) is left to mature in earthenware jars buried in the ground. Of course, it is then combined with the dashi (broth) to make the soba dipping sauce.

The soba noodles are made with an 80/20 ratio of buckwheat to wheat flour, so the aroma and flavor are admittedly a little weaker compared to 100% buckwheat noodles. Because of the binder, they are smooth. They have a good bite and go down easily. The dipping sauce is rich (as is always the case), so you shouldn't just dip the noodles all in at once. As usual, you just dip the top 3-4 centimeters into the sauce, then slurp them down in one go with such force that all the Westerners around you frown and think, "What a barbarian!"

Next up is the piping hot "tempura soba."

Wow, this is amazing! The freshly fried tempura, perfectly shaped, is sizzling and popping in the soba broth! The tempura, filled with numerous small shrimp, is perfectly fried, but what I love most is the process of it blending with the broth. The tempura here is truly one of a kind. To describe its shape, the batter looks like a collection of snowflakes. First, I cut it with my chopsticks and eat the tempura. Then I eat the tempura, which has started to absorb the broth, together with the soba noodles.

Eventually, the batter, which has become soggy from the broth, scatters and spreads throughout the soup like cherry blossom petals floating on a lake! The fine tempura flakes cling to the soba noodles like a sprinkle. In other words, the final form, after the small shrimp have been removed, is the finest tanuki soba.

Well, these are three variations of "Kakiage Tempura Soba." Trust me, just once, try the "Tempura Soba" at this restaurant.
When I paid the bill, I received my change in crisp, new bills. That's the kind of thing that shows the spirit of a long-established business.

The texture of the 100% buckwheat noodles and the tempura were superb.
There is a handmade soba noodle restaurant called "Narifutomi" in Ginza.

It's a neat and tidy shop with a modern Japanese style.

If you sit at the counter, you can watch the owner, Masaaki Narutomi, boil the soba noodles and prepare the tempura right in front of you. There probably aren't many soba restaurants where you can get this close to the chefs. The owner has a beard and looks like a true soba craftsman, which is a pleasant surprise, but the female assistant next to him has a crisp, clear aura about her, which is also nice.

First up is the "seiro" (steamed buckwheat noodles). These are also beautifully presented 0% buckwheat noodles. They apparently use "Hitachi Aki Soba" from Ibaraki Prefecture, known for its high flavor, and "Kitawase Soba" from Mashu, Hokkaido Prefecture, a representative summer buckwheat variety. By the way, it's written as "北早生" in kanji. The noodles seem to be about 5 mm thicker than those at "Hosokawa".

It smells wonderful. I slurp it down and then chew it, and it's so chewy it makes a squeaking sound. Hmm, this is amazing. It feels so good. The dipping sauce is delicious too. As usual, after I finish eating, I add finely shredded green onions and wasabi to the dipping sauce, dilute it with soba water, and drink it all down.

Next came the "Scallop and Green Onion Tempura Soba."

Since the tempura had been drained of oil for a while after frying, it didn't make any noise in the soba broth. First, I drank the broth and ate the soba on its own. The broth was also mild and perfectly complemented the flavor of the soba. I cut off a small piece of the tempura and ate it. The scallops were plump and delicious. The green onions were very sweet. Indeed, the combination of scallops and green onions must be the chef's final answer. This is a magnificent tempura.

By the way, I heard that the owner trained at "Hosokawa" for soba noodles and "Tempura Kondo" for tempura. No wonder it's at such a high level. It all makes sense now. The restaurant serves shichimi chili pepper with hot soba noodles. That's one difference from "Hosokawa," which doesn't serve shichimi.
I don't think you need shichimi (Japanese seven-spice blend). Because it's delicious just the way it is. After I finished scooping up all the tempura and soba noodles, I added just a little bit to the dipping sauce. And I drank every last drop.

Wow, that was delicious! ...Wait, am I a sumo wrestler?!

Seasonal à la carte dishes also shine.
"Asakusa Hirayama" is undoubtedly a famous restaurant.

This is another neat and tidy shop with a modern Japanese aesthetic. Like "Narifuto," shops run by former employees of "Hosokawa" all share a common characteristic of having a beautiful storefront.

The owner, Mr. Hirayama, apparently trained at "Ginza Kojyu." No wonder they have such a great selection of seasonal dishes. "Molokhia and tomato salad," "Spanish mackerel and cucumber with sake dressing," "Duck breast simmered with sansho pepper," and so on. Everything looks so tempting. Looking at this menu, I'd love to come in the evening, enjoy various appetizers and sake, and then finish off with soba noodles.

Sitting at the counter, just like at "Narito," the kitchen is right in front of you. Apparently, they ground buckwheat from Fukui today. The 100% buckwheat noodles are beautiful. The aroma is wonderful, and the taste is excellent. Of the three restaurants in the "Hosokawa" group, this one has the largest portion. Since they don't have "tempura soba" on the menu, I ordered "kake soba" and conger eel tempura at the same time.

As expected, the tempura was superb. Crispy on the outside and moist and sweet on the inside. Okra and pumpkin were also included as a bonus, and they were just as good as those from a high-class tempura restaurant. At first, I ate each piece of tempura with salt, but then I dipped them in the broth of the kake soba. I love the way the oil from the tempura soaks into the kake soba broth. I must also mention that the service at all the "Hosokawa" restaurants is excellent. I'm sure it's something they all learned from General Hosokawa. Yes, it's a great restaurant.

They also serve handmade udon and hiyamugi noodles.
"Stone-ground, handmade soba noodles at Soba Rakutei"

This is a famous restaurant with long lines, which has produced many apprentices. I signed up 30 minutes before opening and was second in line, so I was relieved. The number of dishes is extremely large, and it's an overwhelming place. They are particular about making their noodles by hand, and they serve not only soba but also udon and hiyamugi, so I'm sure they are swamped with activity before opening every day. This is the fifth restaurant I'm introducing, so I'll throw something a little different.

They use buckwheat from Aizu. Naturally, their soba noodles are handmade, and they're also known as a pioneer in serving handmade hiyamugi (thin wheat noodles). And, happily, they offer a dish called "Mugimeoto," which is a combination of soba and hiyamugi. Incidentally, they also have "Meotomori," a combination of soba and udon. How luxurious!

The soba noodles are made with 100% buckwheat flour and have a rich flavor. They are crisp to the touch and have a firm texture. The hiyamugi noodles are similar; they are translucent and smooth, but above all, they have an incredible chewiness. You can also taste the wheat. It's quite impressive. I appreciate that they provide two kinds of dipping sauce, one for the soba and one for the hiyamugi. For the hiyamugi, adding green onions and ginger is definitely the way to go.

Next up was the "tempura soba," which was fried right in front of me. The soba noodles and tempura were served on separate plates. There was shrimp, eggplant, and maitake mushroom, and after I ate the shrimp, a piece of whiting was added, so it's not in the photo.

At first, I ate each piece with salt. The tempura was perfectly fried, with a thin batter, and very tasty. Next, I dipped the tempura into the kake soba and ate it. Actually, the kake soba here contained spinach, shredded green onions, kamaboko (fish cake), dried shiitake mushrooms, and mitsuba (Japanese parsley). Personally, I think it would be better if there were no ingredients to let the tempura shine.

They have so many tempting items on the menu, like "Tomato," "Chilled Nameko Mushrooms," "Curry Dipping Sauce," and "Young Sweetfish Tempura Soba," that I'd love to visit again.

Author profile

Bassey is a foodie who has been eating around for over 40 years. In addition to Japan, he regularly goes to Hong Kong to eat Chinese food at his own expense, and also travels to Taiwan, Singapore, Bangkok, and Seoul for delicious food. During his time as the editor-in-chief of a travel magazine, he visited many Michelin-rated restaurants around the world, especially in Europe, and later on in the World's Best 50 restaurants. We want everyone who loves food to try ``Crab Miso Bean Paste Noodles'' from ``Tenkorou'' (Hong Kong). Actually, I like the Chinese food at this restaurant the best in the world. Another example of the best Western food is "El Seger de Can Roca" from Girona, Spain, which was ranked number one on the World's Best 50 list. Ah, I want to go there again.