In July 2022, I visited an old soba restaurant located on a residential street in Shinjuku. The restaurant had a small and cozy interior with table and counter seats. I ordered the curry soba, which was served in about 5 minutes. The curry was poured over the soba noodles, creating a delicious combination. The dish had a light flavor that didn't get boring until the last bite. The chicken thigh meat was tender and free of any unwanted fat or gristle, which was enjoyable. The simple toppings of green onions complemented the dish well. The soba noodles were thin and slightly soft.

It's noon in Shin-Kotoni, a place that seems strangely familiar. I'm thinking about what to eat and where to go... I know! Let's go there! It turns out that I used to visit a client's house in this area, and there are several restaurants that I used to frequent. One of them is "Mikawa-ya Shin-Kotoni Store." There are a few parking spaces in front of the store. As I enter, I am greeted by the couple who run the place. There is a couple already seated near the entrance. I haven't been here in about 10 years, but looking at the menu, I am surprised that the prices haven't changed. From "Morikake soba @400" to "Tempura soba @850" and "Tempura zaru soba @900," the prices seem incredibly cheap by today's standards. I order the "Kashiwa soba @550." It is served in about 6 minutes. The portion is generous, with diagonally sliced green onions and tender young chicken. The young chicken is good, but it seems like the broth would go well with a more mature chicken. However, at this price, I have no complaints. The broth is rich in flavor with a strong bonito scent. The soba noodles are long and machine-made, but they go well with the broth. This is probably the best soba I've had in town. For some reason, I also like their "Chikara soba," which I used to eat often in the past. I don't know if it's because I've eaten it so much that it has become familiar, but I suddenly feel like eating it again. I'll definitely stop by occasionally. I hope they continue their business for a long time. Thank you for the meal.

I'm really struggling with the unbearable heat every single day... Especially during lunchtime, all I can think of is having soba. So today, I ended up having soba for lunch again. I visited the Mikawa-ya Shinkotoni branch in a residential area in Shinkotoni. I arrived at the location about 5 minutes before opening and felt a bit anxious seeing the exterior, wondering if they were closed due to the pandemic. However, exactly at 11 o'clock, the owner came out with the noren (shop curtain) from inside the store, which relieved my worries. The interior of the store is quite retro and the menu has a nostalgic stand-type design. I ordered the tororo soba from the lineup of classic menu items. The dish was served in about 5 minutes. The tororo soba looked simple and appetizing. I started by trying the soba noodles alone first... They were a bit on the soft side, which I'm not a fan of. The soba dipping sauce was a bit on the stronger side, but when mixed with the tororo, it diluted quite a bit and lacked a punch. I ended up finishing it out of habit, but I couldn't deny feeling a bit disappointed after a long time.

A soba restaurant located in a residential area. It has a traditional and established feel, and the sign for "Nabe Yaki" (hot pot) tells a story. The prices are very reasonable, with a "mori" or "kake" soba costing only 400 yen. I decided to treat myself a little and ordered the "tanuki soba" for 530 yen, which came with fine tempura crumbs, spinach, and naruto fish cake. The soba noodles were thin and just to my liking. The broth had a perfect balance of sweetness. This place is definitely worth a visit for its affordable prices. I'm confident that even the "mori" soba here would be enjoyable. It was really delicious - thank you for the meal!

The TV sound serves as background music. From ordering to serving, it's a leisurely chat by the hearth. Although the parking lot in front of the store is empty, the four table seats inside are full. For the locals, this is a relaxing soba restaurant. The slightly cool interior somehow brings a sense of calm. This atmosphere makes it feel like time has stopped in the Showa era. The Mori Soba costs ¥400. I wonder when the price was revised. I still admire the low price range they offer. The neighboring table's Nabeyaki looks so delicious. The steam and aroma are intoxicating. The sound of rinsing with water is pleasant to hear. The sound of draining water is also nice. "Here you go, sorry for the wait," the vermilion-colored seiro is brought over. The surface feels slippery, but there are no concerns when slurping it up. Slurping the long soba noodles. The broth has a stronger taste of the dipping sauce than the broth itself. The spiciness and sweetness are pulling out the flavor of the broth. It seems like the zaru soba would be good here. I'm curious about the warm soba choice as well. The parking lot in front of the store is neatly cleared of snow, showing the care of the couple who run the place. It was delicious. Thank you for the meal.

I felt like eating the hot pot udon from Mikawaya that I used to eat in the past after seeing it on a senior reviewer's post, so I searched for it and found that there are only about two locations left in Sapporo. I visited one of them. The place is run by a father and a mother who seemed a bit gruff. That's okay, I don't need them to be overly friendly. The special hot pot udon with mochi and egg was around ¥750. The hot pot takes some time to cook, so I read some Shonen Jump magazines that were on the side. Are Shonen magazines like this nowadays? There were cute girls in tiny swimsuits, with plump buttocks. I see, the boys these days must be growing up well. Anyway, back to the hot pot. I remember it being rich in flavor, but this one was a bit milder. I think there used to be bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms in it, but they were nowhere to be found. There were thinly sliced small bamboo shoots stuck to the bottom of the pot. Overall, everything seemed a bit smaller than what I remembered, but the taste was just like Mikawaya's. It was delicious. Also, I remembered that we used to use the lid to divide and eat the hot pot, but now I prefer to eat it directly from the pot. Thank you for the meal.

I visited the Sanpoya Shinkotoni branch in Kita-ku, Sapporo for the first time. The nostalgic facade has a Showa era charm that draws you in. Despite the temperature being 27 degrees that day, a few people were enjoying hot pot dishes. The hot pot dishes and set meal soba (or udon) seem to be popular here. Considering the temperature, I opted for cold noodles instead of hot pot. The soba noodles were thin and not too firm, and the broth had a slight bonito flavor that paired well with the noodles. Topped with tempura bits, spinach, and grated radish, the dish was refreshing and delicious. Although not authentic, I enjoyed this traditional town soba. Finished off with soba water, it was a satisfying meal.

Upon entering the restaurant, there was no greeting, and the table had dirty dishes left by the previous customer. When I tried to order tempura soba, I was told they were out of shrimp. When I attempted to order a rice bowl dish, I was told it was not available. I ended up ordering curry soba, and I could hear the owner complaining in the kitchen about why I would order hot curry on a hot day. I will not be returning to this restaurant.

In the past, this shop, which used to have many branches in Sapporo, is known for its "nabe-yaki udon". Now, it has only two branches, at Kitajo and Shin-Kotoni. I used to eat nabe-yaki udon often at the Susukino branch. The price of mori and kakesoba was surprisingly cheap at 400 yen. Today, I ordered curry soba for 600 yen instead of nabe-yaki udon. This curry soba is a type where curry roux is poured over kakesoba. The curry itself is thick and uses chicken meat. The curry is surprisingly spicy and flavorful. I ate the soba while mixing it with the curry roux. The soba is thin and cooked soft. It surprisingly has a good portion of soba. Since there was no spoon, I lifted the bowl and finished the soup in one go. This volume at this price is appreciated by salarymen. I still want to eat nabe-yaki udon next time.

This is a quaint and historic soba noodle restaurant called Mikawa-ya. It seems that there used to be a branch in Miyanomori as well. I wonder how many branches this restaurant has now. The cold soba with tempura shrimp and eggplant, topped with spinach and grated radish, seems quite reasonable in terms of content. The noodles are a bit soft, more similar to wheat noodles than soba noodles. It has a familiar feel like a typical local soba restaurant. Overall rating 3.3, taste 3.1, service 3.3, atmosphere 3.3, cost performance 3.7, drinks not rated. Location: 8-6-12 Shinkotoni Gojo, Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Mikawa-ya Shinkotoni branch. ☆☆☆ Next preview ☆☆☆ The season for craving hot udon noodles is approaching!

Sankoya is a long-established soba restaurant. They used to have 5-6 stores in Sapporo, but now there are only two stores left, one along Kita 15-jo and the other in Shinkotoni. I went to Sankoya Shinkotoni branch and had their delicious nabeyaki udon with a side of small rice. The udon noodles were full of ingredients (chicken, fish cakes, tempura scraps, bamboo shoots, green onions, etc.) and soaked up the broth well, although they were not firm at all. It was as tasty as always. I prefer the chewy Sanuki udon, but the soft noodles that soak up the broth well in nabeyaki udon are also great. Thank you for the meal, I will come again. However, the atmosphere was slightly ruined by the kitchen staff openly complaining to each other, so be careful.

This is a restaurant located in a residential area near Shinkonni Street in Kita-ku, Sapporo. On this day, I had a terrible hangover in the morning, but my appetite finally returned in the afternoon. Since I didn't feel like preparing dinner myself, I decided to have dinner here. The restaurant is a bit hard to find in the residential area and I had to rely on navigation to get there. It was late and there were no other customers. I ordered the recommended tanuki soba set from the menu on the wall. The set includes tanuki soba and onigiri. The soba noodles were slightly thin with a good texture that goes well with the warm broth. Topped with crunchy tenkasu, spinach, and naruto, the dish had a nostalgic appearance. The broth was clear and flavorful with a nice richness from the tenkasu. The onigiri were quite large, with one wrapped in seaweed and the other seasoned with sesame salt, both freshly made and hot. The meal was quite filling and satisfying, warming me up and leaving me feeling content.

Local longstanding soba restaurant. Passed by many times during student days, but first visit today. Wonder where the main store is, despite being labeled as a branch. Nostalgic and calming atmosphere inside. Elderly lady serving as waitress. Despite it only being September, the day was chilly, so I ordered the ■Nabe Soba for 600 yen. Arrived in about 5 minutes. Opened the aged pot lid with the restaurant name on it. Huh? Menu said it includes "mochi and egg," but neither were in the dish! Did they forget? No, that can't be... Questioned myself for a while... Checked the menu again. Then realized... Nabe Soba and Special Nabe Soba are actually different ＼(◎o◎)／! They were written so far apart that I didn't notice!! Oh nooo!! (tears) Ingredients included fish cake, tofu, spinach, seaweed, bamboo shoots, and such. No meat, quite plain. Noodles were pale, lacking firmness, but the flavor was good. The broth was subtly sweet and not too strong, with a gentle taste. Initially thought it needed more sweetness, but ended up drinking most of it because it grew on me. These traditional soba restaurants are becoming rare, so I hope they keep going strong. It was delicious, thank you.

Recently, for some reason, the Kaasan restaurant is still going strong, is this some kind of sign?! Located in Higashi-Ku, Atsubetsu, this restaurant is quietly tucked away. It has a nostalgic Showa era facade that exudes charm. Inside, there are booths lined up and a counter facing the kitchen. Sitting in a booth, I look at the menu. The fact that the "morisoba" is only 400 yen... that's cheap, right? Normally, I would order either "kashiwa" or "mori", but this time, after finishing my workout, my body craved protein, so I ordered the parent and child soba. It costs 600 yen including tax... The two owners of Kaasan move carefully and efficiently. They each have their designated roles. In less than 10 minutes, the parent and child soba is served. The tender chicken pieces are mixed with fluffy egg. The traditional soba somehow makes me happy. Let's sip the broth with a ladle. The clear broth has a gentle and heartfelt flavor from Kaasan. The dashi is subtly present, and the seasoning is mild. The soba noodles are soft, almost melting in the mouth. That's just perfect for this restaurant. The words "fresh soba" truly apply here. The taste of soba from childhood, reminiscent of a cafeteria, is very gentle. Kaasan working diligently is also motivating for me. It used to be in Susukino as well, but now it's only here and in Higashi-Ku. I want to support this restaurant and Kaasan. Thank you for the meal.

I visited here, "Nabe Yaki Mikawa-ya Branch," located along Shin-Kinu Street. I parked in front of the store, but there was quite a snow-covered step, so low cars need to be careful. Let's go inside the store... Wow, this is a truly Showa-era interior, very cozy. I sat at the counter and ordered the Tempura Soba (800 yen). The fact that the Kake and Mori soba are only 400 yen is amazing. It's always full, and I can see why. There are three people working in the kitchen, probably a family. The tempura chef is a grandma with a triangular headscarf that suits her well. After waiting for about 10 minutes, the Tempura Soba arrived. Oh? Grandma is also serving the dish. She works hard. The broth has a nice bonito aroma, light and refreshing. The noodles are machine-made, thin Moretsuka noodles, with a good texture and a nice throat feel. It's a nostalgic soba. The toppings include two shrimp tempura, seaweed tempura, spinach, and a side of green onions. The shrimp tempura made by grandma, with a hidden knife, is perfectly crispy. The batter is just right, not too thick or too thin, showing her experience. The shrimp is fresh and has a firm texture, very delicious. By leaving the shrimp tempura for a while, the oil flavor comes out, allowing you to enjoy the change in taste. Of course, I finished every last bit. Next time, I want to try the curry soba or the Tempura Soba, which is not seen in many places nowadays. [2013 April revisit note] I visited Mikawa-ya again, this time for the Curry Soba (600 yen). I entered the store and sat at the counter. There was a customer before me, but the Curry Soba arrived in less than 10 minutes. The bowl was filled to the brim. First, I mixed the noodles with the curry sauce and broth... The spice level was good, slightly spicy and delicious. The noodles stood up well against the hot curry sauce, with a good texture. The toppings were chicken and Nanban, a classic curry soba. The chicken was very flavorful, as mentioned in other reviews. As I continued to eat, the sauce thickened, so there was less sauce. This made it easier to slurp the noodles. With the bowl in one hand, I alternated between noodles, broth, and noodles, finishing everything. Eating curry inevitably made me sweat. It may look sweaty to others, but for me, it was a refreshing sweat. Thank you for the meal. [2014 December revisit note] Oh my, it's been almost two years since I last visited! I often pass by the store, but...I came to rest my stomach, tired from consecutive drinking parties, with some soba. I ordered the Tempura Soba (530 yen). It seems like they haven't raised prices even after the tax increase. After about 5 minutes of hearing the sizzling oil, the Tempura Soba arrived. As expected from the price, it's a simple bowl without tempura flakes. Let's start with the broth... I wanted to sip it, but the bowl was too hot to hold. The tempura was freshly fried, so it was crispy and hot. I enjoyed it while breaking it apart. The high-quality oil made it very fragrant and delicious. This oil is truly amazing. Despite being quite hungover, I ate vigorously. The Nanban was finely chopped, which was a bit disappointing. It would have been nice if it was chunkier. The broth had a slight bonito aroma, and the seasoning was strong and crisp. It soaked into my dry body very well. Along the way, I added more Nanban and finished every last drop, breaking a good sweat. I ate so enthusiastically that grandma gave me a smile. Thank you for the meal.

This is a udon and soba set meal restaurant located in a quiet residential area that resembles the olden days. The building is old-fashioned, typical of the Showa era. I ordered the soba set meal for 650 yen. The soba was, well, just delicious. It may not be the latest trendy soba, but it has a traditional and familiar taste. The side dishes in the set meal were also quite impressive and tasty. The ingredients seem to be of good quality. The elderly couple running the place are doing a great job. It's no wonder it's a long-standing establishment. I unexpectedly liked it. Restaurants like this hidden in quiet residential areas often turn out to be delicious. It's important for such places to be both delicious and reasonably priced. It may not be worth a special trip from far away, but if it's nearby, it's a place I'd like to visit occasionally. The soba large portion costs an additional 100 yen.