Finally arrived after avoiding cows and deer. Headed straight to the soba restaurant I had decided on. It's easy to miss, located along a really narrow side road next to a private residence. They immediately told me, "30-minute wait!" and I said, "Sure, I'll wait." They seem to have a lot of "warm" menu items. For my first time, I went with the standard cold zaru soba. The texture is great! The flavor of the soba is a bit mild. The broth is also on the milder side. Overall, it's a decent soba restaurant! Thank you for the meal.

On the weekend, I went to Betsukai town to have a drink. Today, I planned to go whale watching in Rausu in the morning, but it was canceled due to bad weather. So, I decided to have lunch at "Men-dokoro Mizuki" in Betsukai town. I ordered a set meal of tempura shrimp rice bowl with zaru soba. It was delicious, with two large shrimp on top of the rice bowl and a side of zaru soba.

"Mendokoro Minazuki" in Betsukai, I am alone. It's not like I came here with a specific goal in mind, but I chose Betsukai as my destination because it's not too far and there are some restaurants I haven't tried yet. I decided to have soba for lunch. I have a feeling that the hand-made soba here will be delicious. In Kushiro, there are only two good soba restaurants in Shikaoi and one in Shibecha. In Nemuro, there are two good soba restaurants in Nakashibetsu, but I didn't think there would be any other good soba places. From the outside, this place looked promising, even though not all places that advertise as "hand-made" are necessarily good. I arrived close to lunchtime and was a bit worried, but when I checked with my navigation, there weren't many cars parked outside. It's a house. Even from the outside, I could smell the delicious scent of soba. There are three counter seats facing the window, two counter seats facing the kitchen where a man is sitting, and two tables. There is also a raised seating area. There is a TV. In Kushiro, leaving my 14-hour, 4-month-old child at home to play pachinko, I was so angry and upset. Isn't that murder? I ordered the "zaru soba without nori." It arrived in 5 minutes. The soba looked delicious, and indeed it was. The texture and flavor of the soba were good. The draining was just right. The soba seemed to be machine-cut. It's long, but not too long. It's been a while since I've had such delicious soba. The broth is served in a small pitcher, which is nice. There is a good umami flavor in the broth, but the return flavor is weak. As I continued eating, I realized that the broth could have been a bit stronger. The soba water was poured from a kettle, and I could tell that the broth was actually quite tasty. I wish they had priced the soba without nori at 700 yen. It's just my personal opinion, but if they have a commitment to quality, I would like them to add "mori" (soba served in broth) to the menu. The service was very good.

A couple runs this soba restaurant. The restaurant, which is a renovated house, was bustling with many customers during lunchtime. The soba and dipping sauce were delicious and refreshing.

Before August 2018, there were rumors that a hand-made soba noodle shop would open in the location where soyo used to be. Finally, in August, I visited the new shop. There are a few parking spaces next to the shop. The interior has been renovated and looks very clean, with no trace of soyo left. It was crowded during lunchtime. The menu is simple, offering hand-made soba noodles that can be changed to udon. This week's soba flour is from "Kamikawa", and next week will be from "Horokanai". The udon is made from 100% Hokkaido wheat flour. I ordered zaru soba for 700 yen, yam wasabi soba for 750 yen, chicken rice for 200 yen, and 2 pieces of shrimp tempura for 400 yen. The soba noodles were thin and had a nice texture. The chicken rice side dish is small, so it might not be enough for men. It is recommended to order it with the soba noodles. The taste was good. They also had yuzu powder as a condiment, which added a refreshing touch to the soba. The shrimp tempura was served with rock salt, and it tasted good even without ordering it specifically. The soba broth was clear and had a nice flavor. I look forward to trying the udon next time. Thank you for the meal.