I arrived in a quiet area, where the JR Hidaka Line between Mukawa and Urakawa has been closed and only bus routes are available. In the bustling nightlife, there is a hand-made soba restaurant called "Soba Kobo Harukaze" that opens from noon. There doesn't seem to be a parking lot. It was around 11:20 AM, slightly past the opening time. There were the owner and two women working, with 7 counter seats, 3 tables for 4 people, 2 groups of customers with 3 people each, and 1 customer behind me. I looked at the menu and ordered the "Mori Soba @700 yen". It took 7 minutes for the order to arrive. The tray included soba, chopsticks, condiments, dipping sauce, rice ball, pickles, and tempura flakes. Soba was made with a 80:20 flour ratio from Horokanai, with uneven cuts but a good connection. The aroma was subtle for this season, and the texture was very pleasing. The dipping sauce was outstanding, with a great flavor of kelp, perfect sweetness, and a slightly strong taste of broth. The soba broth was light and simple, but when mixed with the dipping sauce, it became even more delicious. I was considering trying warm soba with this sauce or maybe steamed soba with warm dipping sauce. As I was contemplating, the customer next to me (a middle-aged woman) ordered two servings of "Mori" and "Kake" soba, which was eye-opening. However, she was on a diet and found it hard to eat two servings. A set menu with small portions of "Mori" and "Kake" soba would be a great addition to the menu. The small rice ball served was pre-made but had perfectly firm rice with salmon and lightly pickled cucumber, both subtly seasoned. The hospitality was excellent, and the addition of tempura flakes and other small touches would surely please customers. I will definitely revisit to try the warm soba. Thank you for the meal. Enjoying the Pre-Battle TV show, time passes slowly, like the moving sunlight hitting a marble. By Fullpon Murakami (Publication Approved)

From this day on, it was a tumultuous week of three round trips to the capital city. I have had experiences of staying three nights a week in the capital city, but I don't remember ever doing three round trips a week covering a distance of 450 kilometers each time. First, this time it was a business trip with an overnight stay for a small event the next day. During the trip, I stopped by a soba restaurant in Shizunai that I hadn't visited before. The restaurant has a combination of counter seats and table seats, with a decent number of seats available. I sat at the counter in the back and looked at the menu. In the scorching heat, I only had cold soba in mind. So, I decided to go for the tempura soba (large serving)! I entered the restaurant at 12:30, but there were orders for the three customers before me, so my meal took about 15 minutes to arrive. A generously piled plate of soba was served. The soba noodles looked thin at a glance. I first removed the seaweed, lifted the noodles without dipping them in the sauce, and slurped them up. The texture was wonderfully smooth and elegant, allowing me to fully enjoy the essence of soba noodles. It was quite to my liking. The sauce was not too strong, with a familiar taste typical of Hokkaido, not overpowering the soba noodles. On the other hand, the tempura consisted of shrimp, smelt fish, shiitake mushroom, eggplant, burdock root, and bell pepper, with a decent taste. However, the batter seemed a bit thin and quite heavy. This was probably due to the large cuts of bell pepper and eggplant, making it feel like you had to make an effort to eat them, which might have contributed to the heaviness. I would prefer a bit more refinement to match the elegance of the soba noodles. The mini rice ball that comes as a limited quantity was the size of a ping pong ball and also quite delicious. I would have preferred a normal-sized rice ball. The soba broth at the end was also delicious when mixed with the sauce. The lunch service ended while I was eating. It's a somewhat challenging soba restaurant, but it's a good place where you can enjoy the essence of soba noodles, so I would like to visit again if given the chance. After this, the scorching heat of the capital city awaits me...

It has been 10 years since I last visited Shizunai for work. This time, work brought me back to Shizunai. I tried the Mori Soba for 700 yen, which is a typical Hora-ku-nai Kitawase style soba made with a mix of 20% and 80% buckwheat. The noodles had a soft texture with a slight roughness, lacking in aroma but not fully bringing out the appeal of the 20% buckwheat. The dipping sauce was clean and mild, leaning towards a more common taste, yet it paired well with the soba here. I had high expectations, but the soba seemed like a basic textbook version, lacking a bit of excitement. Perhaps the ambiance of the restaurant enhances the taste. To be frank, it felt like an introductory level for authentic soba. If I were to give advice, I would suggest focusing on what makes the 20% buckwheat soba unique - the smoothness, chewiness, and the type of flavor that opens up because of the 20% buckwheat.

In a quiet town, there is a soba restaurant. They seem to use Horokanai soba, as indicated by the sign outside. I ordered the Tsubu-Ten Soba. It was delicious, with not only tsubu-tempura but also plenty of seaweed, kelp, and nori, giving it a rich broth. It had a local touch and I highly recommend it. The fact that it comes with onigiri is also a nice touch.

I'm working in Shizunai, a new town in Hidaka. It's lunchtime and my companion said, "I want to eat soba!" So, we decided to go to "Shunpu", a place we've been to before. Last time, I tried their specialty, Tsubu-Ten Soba, so this time I went for the Kashiwa Soba for 1000 yen. I'm kabo-cha, a self-proclaimed soba critic (laughs). The dish arrived in less than 10 minutes. Let's dig in! The broth for the Kashiwa Soba is richer compared to the light broth of the Tsubu-Ten Soba I had last time. The chicken meat, including the skin, gives a slightly strong chicken flavor. The meat was tender, and the grilled green onions added a nice touch. I also enjoyed the small onigiri they served as a bonus. It was a delicious meal! While my previous visit had some shortcomings, this time I was completely satisfied! I'll definitely come back again.

I will have the extra-large portion of buckwheat noodles with chicken soba here. The broth is excellent and the noodles are delicious, no doubt about it. When you order the large portion, you get a huge amount, and they even give you a small rice ball by default. My stomach is full, and the cost performance is very good. Thank you for the meal! Ψ( 'ч' ☆) ===========

New Hidaka Town Shizunai! I still can't get used to the name "New Hidaka" kabo-cha (-_-;) Today's schedule is... in the morning I was in Urakawa Town, in the afternoon I was in Shizunai, a normal schedule? So I will have lunch in Shizunai. I had been taking notes about "Soba Koubou Shunpu" for a while. It has been featured in books and magazines introducing soba, so I tried to visit several times. But it was closed on regular holidays or had temporary closures, so I couldn't visit. Finally, today I was able to visit. I ordered the "Tsubu Ten Soba" for 950 yen. The menu is hard to see due to the light reflecting on it (^▽^;) Listening to other people's orders, it seems like many people also ordered the "Tsubu Ten Soba." It was served after about a 10-minute wait. Let's dig in! There is a mini rice ball included, which is nice. The broth is very light, it can be described as thin or gentle (^▽^;) The dashi seems to be made from kombu seaweed. There is grated tororo kombu and nori seaweed on top, adding a sea flavor. The tempura shrimp is quite large, about 5-6 pieces, with a satisfying crispy texture. The nori seaweed in the tempura was a nice surprise! There were also hidden grilled green onions. The soba noodles are thin-cut, made from 20% wheat flour and 80% buckwheat flour. Since I had warm soba this time, I couldn't assess the firmness, etc. As for my impression... I think it's delicious as a dish. But as soba noodles... maybe a little lacking? The broth is too light, maybe it would be delicious with udon noodles (^^;) Overall, I think the food is tasty. However, the soba itself could be improved. I am satisfied that I could finally visit the restaurant I had been wanting to try for a long time! The end.

I stopped by to eat Tsubu Ten Soba. "Tsubu Ten Soba" for 950 yen (increased by 100 yen), "Assorted Tempura" for 500 yen. There were about 5 pieces of Tsubu Ten, and it was still cheap! This time, I declined the mini onigiri. The 80/20 cut soba is my favorite type. There was a lot of soba, so I needed help to finish the tempura. I'm thinking now that I should have just ordered shrimp tempura... This time, I came for the annual greeting rounds, so I'm moving on to the next town. I'll come back again, Mr. President~

I extended my journey to Shintoku in search of a soba restaurant, but I couldn't find it... Even with the car navigation and mobile navigation, I couldn't find it... Why??? The only reliable clue was an exterior photo, but the place seemed to be gone... Does that mean it doesn't exist? I hesitated to call them, so I decided to search for a nearby soba restaurant, and that's when I found Harukaze. When I entered, the spacious interior surprised me as it was almost full! Maybe I got lucky! I was seated promptly without any wait. Since I hadn't planned to come here, I was curious about the menu. I noticed the "Tsubu Soba" which had just switched to new soba, and I felt like having cold soba, so I ordered the "Tenzaru Soba." It came with a rice ball and pickles as a service, which was much appreciated. The tempura assortment with the soba for an additional 500 yen seemed like a good deal. The new soba made from Horokanai soba was around 70% buckwheat, I think. New soba is always good. The tempura was crispy, and the dipping sauce was a bit salty, just the way I like it. The odd-looking container for the soba broth was the only thing that felt out of place, but overall, it was delicious. The fact that it was almost full made sense considering how tasty the food was. It was an unexpected visit, but it turned out to be just fine!

《 January 2021 First Visit 》 This is a traditional soba restaurant located in the main area of Shizunai district in the town of Shin-Hidaka. I had been wanting to visit this place for a while, and finally, my wish came true with this first visit. My first impression was that the restaurant is surprisingly spacious compared to its exterior appearance. There is a soba-making area on the left-hand side near the entrance, followed by the kitchen. Alongside them, there is a counter seating area extending towards the back. There are also a few table seats on the left-hand side, but there seemed to be more seating further back, although it was not very clear. I ordered the "Tempura Soba (1200 yen)", which included shrimp, sandfish, and five types of vegetables as tempura toppings. The tempura consisted of shrimp, sandfish (a common choice for tempura), burdock, pumpkin, eggplant, bell pepper, and shiitake mushroom, totaling seven ingredients. The tempura itself was slightly oily, which may indicate that the oil temperature was a bit low. The soba noodles, made from Hokkaido-grown buckwheat, had a good texture and flavor, although personally, I prefer them a bit thinner. The meal also came with a small rice ball and pickles as a side, which was a nice touch. However, I found it strange that there was a water pot on the table but no cups or water available. Another minor issue was that the soba broth was served directly in a small cup, making it difficult to enjoy the soba broth fully. Overall, this restaurant is a rare find in this area with its authentic soba offerings.

The shop I was planning to go to was closed, and the second shop only had one serving of soba left. It was a late outing, so I ended up walking to my usual spot, Harukaze. The weather outside was getting colder, but I was still in the mood for some cold soba. I ordered the tempura soba, which came with two crispy and juicy shrimp tempura, along with shiitake mushrooms, green peppers, eggplant, pumpkin, and burdock. All of this for 1080 yen, which I think is a good deal. I also ordered the herring soba, which came with herring, grated yam, and tempura bits for 950 yen. I personally prefer a stronger soba broth, but this was still delicious. They were out of the complimentary mini rice balls, so they gave me a 50 yen discount on each dish. Another satisfying meal at Harukaze!

The buckwheat noodles are delicious! The rock seaweed and grated yam kelp go well together. This portion for 850 yen is quite cheap. I think in Sapporo it would be over 1000 yen. The new buckwheat noodles from Hokkaido are here! It was good when it first opened, but I think it's even better now! Warm buckwheat noodles are also good. The limited-time curry buckwheat noodles have started! If this restaurant was nearby, I would definitely become a regular customer! Even if you go outside of lunch hours, there are still customers inside. It's a favorite place of mine.

It's quite humid today. I went to Harukaze with my husband, who took a paid vacation, to have some refreshing soba. We had the following dishes: ★Zaru Soba (cold buckwheat noodles) ★Ebi-Ten Soba (cold buckwheat noodles with shrimp tempura) ★Gobo-Ten (fried burdock root tempura) The soba was delicious. When I tried to order Zaru Soba and two orders of Ebi-Ten separately, they suggested that I could have Ebi-Ten Soba as a cold dish. So, Zaru Soba was 700 yen, and two orders of Ebi-Ten Soba were 450 yen each (150 yen x 3) = 1150 yen. Ebi-Ten Soba was 950 yen. It seems that you can have the menu items served cold instead of hot, which is a better deal.

I had lunch in the neighborhood. I had been curious about this place for a while but never had the chance to go until today. I decided to visit because I was in the mood for some light and smooth food. I tried the "Tsubu-Ten Soba" and the "Duck Seiro." The soba noodles were smooth and delicious, and it was nice to have a good soba restaurant nearby. The tempura was also tasty. I think I'll try the Tempura Soba next time!

Before a soba restaurant opened near the station, I used to go there occasionally. It looks like I went there in February this year. It's a rare lunch spot around here. The staff at the restaurant are kind, and they even helped me when I got lost. I might have the chance to go there again. Thank you for the meal.

On my second visit, the weather was still hot so I chose zaru soba. It came with a small onigiri and was delicious.

Even condiments like grilled green onions and mountain vegetables are included in extras such as garnishes, mini rice balls, and soba noodles, giving a sense of value.

I like eating soba noodles, and I tried herring soba for the first time, and it was delicious. I would like to eat it again.

We ordered the meat set meal this time because the person I went with always orders it. The owner seemed to be in good spirits, which was nice to see.

Gobo Tempura Soba (900 yen including tax) is a type of soba with gobo tempura that doesn't include kakiage. The gobo tempura gives off a confident impression. The soba noodles are thin and the dipping sauce is delicious. The mini onigiri also adds to the satisfying portion size.