For today's lunch, I went to the Benkei Udon Nishikyogoku Main Store. It was my first visit to Nishikyogoku. When I think of Nishikyogoku, all that comes to mind is the athletic stadium, so I didn't expect there to be many places to eat. I visited shortly after opening, so I had to wait outside in the heat for a while. I was tempted to order the cold udon, but I stuck to my original plan and decided to have hot udon instead on such a hot day. The combination of sweet kitsune udon and spicy kinpira was surprisingly delicious. Since I saw others ordering it, I also added a side of mixed rice with toppings. Next time, I'll try the Stamina Curry that the person next to me ordered.

Visited with my wife for lunch on a holiday. Kyoto is very hot. The restaurant was full, including the waiting area, so we had to wait outside. We were soon seated. The interior of the restaurant was very cool. The song "Natsu no Uta" by Udon Gokudoukai was playing in my head. We ordered 2 sets of Udon Set B (with a change to soba) for 980 yen each, with extra large portions for 250 yen each, and sweet kitsune for 190 yen, totaling 2400 yen. I wanted to eat cold noodles, but surprisingly, it was quite expensive. If we had ordered outside, I would have chosen differently, but the interior was very cool. So, it might be better to go for extra large portions or additional items. It felt a bit strange that the extra large portion cost 250 yen for a 980 yen set. However, the extra large portion of soba had a good amount of volume. The extra 250 yen didn't feel too expensive. The broth was sweet and delicious, complementing the noodles well. The tempura was crispy on the outside but juicy and tasty inside. The mixed rice lacked flavor and was dry. Maybe my taste buds were weakened from sweating too much outside. The tofu salad side dish was cold, refreshing, and tasty. Eating udon in a cool room during the summer feels somewhat indulgent. It was delicious, including that aspect. It felt like eating ice cream in a kotatsu during winter. It was delicious. Thank you for the meal. We will come again.

This was my first visit to this restaurant. I love the suji curry udon here. Be careful of the thickness and heat of the sauce at first to avoid burning yourself. You can also enjoy the changing thickness of the sauce. The simmered pork is a bit pricey, but the sweet and spicy flavor is delicious!! I will definitely come back!

I was pleasantly surprised by the delicious dashi broth. The variety of dishes made me want to come back every day, and I could understand the locals' feelings as they lined up to eat. The turnover rate was fast, and it was convenient to wait in the car since we drove there. It was also nice that the food arrived quickly after ordering once seated.

I visited the udon restaurant for several days in a row. The famous Benkei udon. The thin udon noodles were smooth and delicious. My partner wanted to go to Starbucks because their Starbucks coupon was expiring, so we went to Benkei Udon on the way. This is just between us...

After visiting a grave with my mother, we decided to have lunch at Mr. Benkei in Nishikyogoku. We arrived a little before opening time, but there were already several groups waiting. A staff member who came out of the restaurant asked for our names to jot them down. There was a sign next to the "Preparing" sign that said, "Please call out to prevent trouble." I ordered the curry set with minced curry udon, side dishes, and rice. My mother had the meat curry udon. The curry udon with a flavorful broth was different from the usual roux-based curry udon and had a delicious taste. It's a taste I've been enjoying since childhood. The udon here is slightly thin and not very chewy, but the broth seeps in well. While we didn't have it today, the mixed rice and inari sushi are also delicious. Ah, it was so delicious. Thank you for the meal.

The fried tofu udon soaked in the broth was delightful. The broth had a rich flavor and was delicious. The restaurant smelled amazing as soon as I walked in! The noodles were thin and slippery. Next time, I want to try the curry with extra noodles♪ There are counter seats and tables, so it's easy to dine alone.

During a November trip to Kyoto with my family, we visited the Nison-in Temple. We decided to leisurely explore the collaboration of autumn foliage and moss during the paid visit. But before that, we stopped by here for lunch. It's the Benkei Udon Nishikyo-goku Main Store in the Kyoto area. There is a parking lot near the store, but it was already full, so we parked at a coin parking lot and visited. We arrived after the store opened, and it was already full with a line, but we waited about 20 minutes to get in and be seated. The interior has a charming atmosphere. My wife ordered the Tamago Toji for 780 yen. I tried some later, and it had a gentle flavor. The noodles were soft, and the soup was subtly delicious. I ordered the Niku Curry for 1,050 yen. It looked and smelled good. The noodles were soft with a good bite, and the soup had a rich and flavorful curry with a nice thickness. It was delicious. As for the visit to Nison-in Temple in autumn, we had made a reservation for the paid visit in advance, so we were able to explore without it being too crowded. We were very satisfied with that. I feel like I must visit again when the seasons change. Thank you for the meal!

Checking the reviews. It's great that they are open late at night. The first time I had udon with kinpira. Anyway, the kinpira was way too spicy for me! The soup was hot in a good way. I was sweating by the time I finished eating. The second time I had Hiyashi Kara Udon with sweet kitsune. I was hungry so I got a large portion. As I calmly ate, the udon didn't have the firm, thick noodles like Sanuki udon. The soup was tasty, but nothing extraordinary. Also, the staff's friendliness and attention to detail felt lacking. For example, when the water was empty or when customers needed assistance. The large portion was really big, but I think it was an extra 250 yen, so the cost performance was not great.

After watching a game in Nishikyogoku, I was taken to this restaurant. It seems to be famous locally. I ordered the curry udon and oden set. I waited in a beautiful yet atmospheric tatami room. The udon was classic, not particularly unique but right in the middle of orthodox. The oden was well simmered. I chose egg and rolled cabbage! There was a line outside when I left. It was indeed a popular restaurant. I heard that there used to be many signatures from Kyoto Sanga players and kabuki actors here...

A famous udon restaurant in Kyoto. Ordered the Benkei udon. The large serving was too big for the bowl. Tried taking a photo with chopsticks for scale, but it might not convey the size well. You might struggle with the large serving if you're not hungry. I devoured it because I was hungry that day, but the ingredients included beef belly meat, spicy kinpira, and more. The broth seemed to be made from bonito and kelp, clear and delicious. It's a taste that makes you want to drink it all up. The noodles were thin and had a soft texture, quite ordinary. The "spicy kinpira" served as a great accent. It was quite spicy, adding excitement to the otherwise gentle udon. Perhaps that's why it works well. Amidst the gentleness, the stimulating spiciness of the kinpira kept things interesting. Having it made the dish enjoyable until the last bite.

I really love the udon here, and whenever I say "I want to eat udon!" my family would say, "Benkei udon, shall we go?" The spicy kinpira goes really well with the udon and is very delicious! The mixed rice with various toppings is also very tasty and sometimes sold out depending on the time. Today, I topped my usual order of Benkei udon with an egg. Of course, boiled egg topping is also available. Kinpira, sweet and savory fried tofu, these are a must for me. Also, I'm curious that you can change the udon to soba or ramen. Ramen with udon broth...?? I'm curious, I want to try it. But when I come, I always end up ordering udon. Ah, writing this review makes me want to eat it again...

On the way from Yasaka Koshindo to Suzumushi-ji Temple, I stopped by a udon restaurant called "Benkei Udon" in Kyoto. It seemed to be a local favorite as there was quite a wait even though it was close to closing time in the afternoon. I ordered the Benkei Udon and some rice toppings. Being from Nagoya, I'm not used to sweet toppings on udon, but the broth here was sweet and I didn't mind it. I thought about adding some spice, and when I looked at the side dishes, I found the Kinpira, which had a sweet and spicy flavor that paired well with the udon. The sweetness followed by a kick was a great combination with the beef and burdock. It was a great choice to casually drop by this restaurant. Thank you for the delicious meal!

I visited the sister store, Yodo store, about 6 years ago. I remembered this place and headed there to prepare for work in Nishikyogoku. When I arrived around noon, despite the unfortunate rainy weather, the restaurant was full. There was a stall set up outside, reminiscent of the original stall at Tenkaippin Kujo store and Tenkaippin 1st Shotengai Toba store. I wrote my name on the registration desk like at a family restaurant, and there were three groups of waiting customers ahead of me. After waiting for about 20 minutes, I was finally seated inside. The dining room was managed by two older ladies wearing bandanas. The lady who guided us inside surprised me by remembering all the customers' names just by glancing at the registration desk. To the left of the entrance, there were three counter seats and four more counter seats spaced out. On the right side, there were two tables for four people and one table for six people. Looking at the menu, I noticed that the difference between this store and the Yodo store was that each menu item could be chosen with udon, soba, or Chinese noodles. Chinese noodles were not an option at the Yodo store. I casually ordered from the curry udon menu, which turned out to be the same menu as the one at the Yodo store. The "Sujikare" curry was priced at 870 yen. Unlike the Nagoya style with a thick texture, the curry here had less thickness and a stronger dashi flavor compared to the Yodo store. Even though it was called "sujikare," the meat was well-cooked, almost like pieces of Hiratake mushroom?! (laughs) It didn't feel like you had to chew a lot to bite through it. The noodles were not as soft as Osaka udon nor as firm as Sanuki-style men-men noodles with a sharp edge, similar to the Yodo store. Comparing the curry menu between the two stores, the prices and menu items differed slightly. Yodo store had more menu options and slightly higher prices. This might be due to the difference in tenant rent or maybe because it's close to the horse racing track, targeting customers who have won big on horse betting. I look forward to visiting the remaining sister store, Higashiyama store next time.

Is this also Kyoto udon? I stopped by after a baseball game around 2 PM when the lunch rush was over. Even though it was past 2 PM, there were quite a few customers! I ordered the Tajin Special! I'm not sure if it's named after the famous reporter Tajin, but the ingredients included scrambled eggs, beef tendons, kinpira (spicy sautéed vegetables), and oboro (shredded fish or chicken). It's quite unique! The kinpira is slightly spicy and adds a nice flavor to the broth. The beef tendons were delicious and there were plenty of them, making it worth the price! I usually prefer the firm texture of Sanuki-style noodles, but these were also quite good!

On a weekday at 9 p.m., there were many customers, and the restaurant was bustling. Even after that, there was a steady flow of people coming in and out, indicating its popularity. I had tempura soba with shrimp tempura. The tempura had a lot of batter, and the shrimp itself was very small. A bit disappointing. However, the taste was delicious.

Today's final stop was Benkei Udon Nishikyogoku branch. This place is open late at night and even has a free parking lot, making it a really nice udon restaurant. I went around 9:30 PM and there were quite a few customers inside. It's a popular place. I ordered tempura udon, chirashi sushi, and haikara udon. The freshly fried shrimp tempura was delicious. The chirashi sushi was also good. It's been a long time since I ordered haikara udon. It was topped with lots of tempura flakes (laughs). So good, so good. Really good~♪