I attended a memorial service in Kushiro. In the morning, I prepared for the service and ended up in the Ashino area. In the afternoon, I had some errands to run, so I decided to have a quick meal at Azuma-ya in Ashino, where I ordered my favorite "kashiwa soba" and another person ordered zaru soba. First, we had the soup. Azuma-ya's soup was slightly sweet but the flavor was a bit light. The kashiwa (chicken) in the soba was tender. The soba noodles were standard green noodles. We enjoyed our meal.

"Kashiwanuki" seems to be popular among the people of Kushiro City. The menu includes chicken and duck seiro, with many customers ordering the "zaru oomori" along with it. The bright green chlorella soba is a popular choice for a nutritious meal. The zaru soba is meant to be dipped in cold broth, while the oomori is meant to be enjoyed as a soup. The "Muryoju" dish is elegantly presented with a lid on top, revealing a bowl filled with green soba topped with chopped seaweed and raw egg. The sweet soba broth is served generously at the bottom of the bowl. Mixing the egg yolk with sesame oil enhances the rich flavor of the soba. The square-cut soba noodles have a great texture, making it a delicious and easy-to-eat dish, perfect even for those feeling a bit tired in the summer. The restaurant has a traditional and welcoming atmosphere, with a bright and sunny interior featuring classic soba shop chairs and tables, as well as cozy tatami seating in the back. The female owner in an apron and the male chef in a white traditional outfit add to the authentic feel of the place. This is truly THE★AZUMAYA. They want to liven up the city with their soba dishes. Overall, it was delicious. Thank you for the meal.

I played golf in Kushiro, but it was hot with temperatures feeling close to 30℃ during the day. Suddenly, heavy rain and thunder struck, so I had to leave the course disappointed. I decided to head into Kushiro city in the evening, craving for some cold soba noodles. I wanted to go to either Nagaya or Miyajima, but found out that Nagaya was closed on Thursdays. Miyajima was open, but when I arrived, it was their day off as well. Disappointed, I searched on Tabelog and found Goriya. Although I had never been there before, it caught my interest as it was located in a place I often pass by. However, it was also closed on Thursdays. Thursdays seem to be a common day off for restaurants. I gave up on cold soba and decided to have soup curry at Sama. On my way there, I noticed another soba restaurant. I entered at 5:50 PM, and there were no cars parked in the 3-4 parking spaces available. I ordered the Muryoju soba (850 yen) and a mini oyakodon (500 yen). The mini oyakodon arrived in less than 10 minutes, with a flavorful broth. It was decent. The Muryoju soba arrived in 12-13 minutes, with a fragrant sesame oil aroma and firm noodles. It was a satisfying meal of green noodles after a long time.

Soup, noodles, shrimp tempura, chicken, and tamago-toji (egg drop). Everything is quite average. If I had to nitpick, the soup is slightly diluted and the tamago-toji is firm. It gives off a somewhat "messy" impression. For this level of taste, you could easily make a tastier dish at home using store-bought noodle soup base.

I had lunch in Kushiro! For some reason, I had been craving for Mugenjyu (buckwheat noodles), so I decided to visit Higeya in Ashino, which is known for their Mugenjyu. When I arrived around 1pm, there were 2 groups of customers ahead of me and 1 group behind me. Higeya always seems to have a lot of cars parked outside. This was my first visit. I was quite hungry... I had already decided to order the Mugenjyu, but I couldn't decide whether to get the large size, a mini bowl, or get it without the toppings. After some thought, I ended up ordering the Mugenjyu for 800 yen and the Kashiwa Nuki (buckwheat noodles without toppings) for 480 yen. I also wanted something warm to eat, so I chose this combination. It turned out to be quite a luxurious lunch. The dishes were served in lidded bowls within 5 minutes. I didn't take a picture, but let's dig in. First, I tried the Kashiwa Nuki. The broth was a bit weak, maybe slightly overcooked? It had the reliable taste of Higeya, but it felt a bit rough on the throat, even though it wasn't too salty. The chicken was nicely crunchy and tasty. Then, the Mugenjyu. This was delicious. The soba noodles were firm and packed with flavor. I'm not a fan of green soba noodles, but these were surprisingly good, without a rough texture. The portion was a bit small though. I should have gotten the large size. It was a nice experience to have the Kashiwa Nuki after the cold soba. It's a unique way to enjoy food in Kushiro. Green soba noodles are not bad after all. Thank you for the meal!

Visited on December 31, 2021. Had New Year's Eve soba here. Ordered: - Kashiwa seed soba 830 yen - Duck skin soba 830 yen - Shrimp tempura 330 yen - Small rice 150 yen It was my first time eating soba at a soba restaurant on New Year's Eve. It was very crowded, but the food was delicious.

It's been a while since I had soba. Well, it's only been a week. Laughing, it's from the Ashino Higashie family. They also have unlimited sake here. This time, my son ordered. The princess had cold mountain vegetables and grated yam, while my daughter had cold enoki mushrooms with grated radish. Cold soba with duck meat on the side. I ordered curry soba. I reacted to the "can be made spicy" option. I took off my coat and waited. Of all things, I'm wearing white clothes... Laughing. The soba from Ashino Higashie is easy to chew, with a harmonious blend of broth, sesame oil, and egg that is irresistible. The cold mountain vegetables and grated yam are really good for the body. The cold enoki mushrooms with grated radish elicited a "not too spicy" comment from my daughter after a long time. The curry soba had just the right amount of spiciness. Perfect for the cold season, warming me to the core. Warm... hot... oh, a battle... it's getting hot... laughing. Gradually, it changed. Before I knew it, I was sweating. Like in an opera, I had my sweat wiped by the princess while battling. And this restaurant's feature - the table seats are narrow... Am I just too big...? On a day when my shoulder was really stiff, I finished the soup with my shoulders hunched. Ah, it's hot. Feeling like that, I stepped out of the restaurant and the cold breeze outside was just delightful ♡ Cool... chilly... I love these everyday moments.

On January 5, 2021 (Tuesday), I had my first soba of the year at this restaurant. They are currently holding a special event featuring soba with various toppings. The service was average without any particular smiles. I ordered the "Tane-komi" soba (including tax, 1100 yen). The soba noodles were standard green noodles. The broth had a slightly strong dashi flavor and was quite tasty. The duck meat used in the dish was delicious. The tempura shrimp was relatively soft, lacking a firm texture, but still easy to eat. Overall, it was a well-balanced bowl of soba with toppings. The menu also offers mini soba and mini rice bowls at reasonable prices. In terms of cost-performance, I think Tokoya is not bad at all.

Visit date: September 6, 2020 Lunch on this day was a revisit to Ashino Higeya with a friend. We arrived around 14:25. There were 2 groups of customers before us and no customers after us. Our order was: - Special Kashiwase (880 yen) - Imo Soba (870 yen) - Soba Zangi (400 yen) - Rice (200 yen) The Soba Zangi is made by coating chicken breast with buckwheat seeds, but there was no strong buckwheat flavor. It was juicy and well-seasoned, with a sweet and sour sauce served on the side. The Special Kashiwase and Imo Soba were the same dishes we had ordered last time because they were delicious. This time, we noticed that the soba broth here is made by dissolving soba flour. It was tasty. There was a hand sanitizer machine at the entrance and even masks provided on the tables. They accepted various cashless payment methods like PayPay, d払い, Merpay, au pay, Rpay, Line Pay, and QR code payments. However, the staff seemed unfamiliar with cashless payments (laughs). Thank you for the meal.

I was hesitant about whether to go to the new ramen restaurant opening in Kitami, but ultimately decided to head to Kushiro instead. I thought that I wouldn't be able to make a significant amount of money in Kitami, so I ended up going to Higashiya in Kushiro. The new ramen restaurant in Kitami is definitely delicious, but I decided to go to Higashiya because I didn't want to tarnish my reputation by not being able to register the visit. Later on, Yomesan told me that she had posted about it on the same day, showing that she is a formidable opponent. Today, I visited the Ashino branch. I arrived in Kushiro late, just in time for the opening hours of a soba restaurant. I was surprised because I was sure that I had been there before. However, upon entering, I realized that I had not visited this place before. The restaurant had four tables and four small raised tables. It was not very crowded, and the staff seemed indifferent. I ordered a cold soba without cucumber, but unfortunately, they did not have cucumber. The soba was served in a small bowl with long legs, and the portion was small. The soup was light and the soba noodles were soaked in the dipping sauce, so I couldn't taste the soba itself. The dipping sauce had a sourness to it, making it difficult to discern the soba flavor. The tempura was not soggy and remained intact, a rare occurrence at Higashiya. The soup was decent, but as Kushiro lacks a strong dashi culture, it was not exceptional. The soba water was cloudy, indicating the number of previous customers. Overall, the meal cost 726 yen before tax, which I found to be on the expensive side. The cost-performance ratio was not great, but considering the circumstances, it was acceptable.

I missed the ramen shop I was aiming for and ended up at a soba shop. I decided to try the "Mini Tanuki Tamago Don" as I had never eaten it before while ordering the zaru soba. I was a bit worried that the taste might be too strong after ordering it, but the zaru soba didn't leave much of an impression. However, the Mini Tanuki Tamago Don was surprisingly delicious. The fluffy egg contrasting with the crispy tempura bits, the flavor was just right - not too strong, not too weak. I couldn't help but give it a high rating.

Visit date: June 26, 2019 On this day, I once again wandered around looking for a soba restaurant. The first place was closed, the second place was closed, and by the third place, it was already past their business hours. As a soba refugee, I finally arrived at Asuno Higeya. I arrived around 7:30 pm and there were no other customers. I ordered: - Special Kashiwa Seiro (soba with chicken) for 880 yen - Imo Soba (soba with sweet potato) for 870 yen The Special Kashiwa Seiro has double the amount of chicken compared to the regular Kashiwa Seiro, but the broth didn't stand out much. However, the soba and broth complemented each other well, making it a tasty dish. The soba lacked a chewy texture, maybe because it was served warm. The Imo Soba was chosen by my companion, who felt that the soba lacked the chewiness they were looking for. The broth was on the sweeter side, possibly due to the egg effect. The crunchy texture of the sweet potato was delicious. The soba-yu (soba dipping broth) served at the end had a thick consistency and was quite tasty. As a last customer arrived close to closing time, I assumed that closing time meant last order. I found delicious soba at this unexpected restaurant. Thank you for the meal. Oh, and they accept LINE Pay, PayPay, and Origami Pay, as there were QR codes available for payment.

I visited this gazebo for the first time in a while and decided to try the chicken soba after much deliberation. The meat was very tender and incredibly delicious. Looking at the menu, I noticed that you can also get extra chicken, so I definitely want to try the extra portion challenge next time.

I had the special kashiwa soba with extra kashiwa on top. It was delicious, with twice the amount of kashiwa compared to regular kashiwa soba. There are many menu options to choose from, making it difficult to decide.

I visited a PayPay eligible store and received a 10% point reduction. I had a Tamago Toji Soba for 660 yen (excluding tax).

Chilled noodles for 660 yen. The rich flavor of the sauce was delicious, and I enjoyed drinking it all up after mixing it with the soba broth.

Kashiwa: 720 yen

My partner and I were off together, but due to my hangover, we decided to go out in the evening. We were discussing whether to buy a bento box when I suggested that some stomach-friendly soba would be good. My partner agreed, so we decided to try a new place this time. The restaurant had a parking lot in front and on the side, which could fit about five cars. It was a bit tricky to park due to the small space, but we managed to find a spot as one car left. Inside, there was only one other group of three customers, and the restaurant had four table seats. The seating area was a bit tight, but the space between tables was well-maintained. My partner ordered tempura with chicken and I ordered curry tempura soba. The food arrived promptly, and even though I ordered the large portion, it wasn't that much. The chopped green onions and quail eggs were a nice touch. The soba was smooth and had a good texture. The shrimp tempura was small, like for a child. My partner seemed to enjoy the meal. Overall, it was a pleasant dining experience.

The parking lot had a few spaces in front of the shop. On a cold day, I was planning to have warm soba noodles, but a couple who came in after me ordered "two servings of curry soba". I usually have either tempura soba or curry nanban soba when I go to a soba shop. When I smelled the curry from the couple behind me, I couldn't resist and ended up ordering curry nanban soba with a side of rice as well. The green soba noodles were not too strong in flavor, and the curry broth had a nice aroma of curry powder and soba sauce. If it had a bit more thickness, it would have been the perfect curry nanban soba for me! While I was at the shop, there was a constant flow of customers coming in and out, with everyone having a short stay, which surprised me. I also enjoyed a warm cup of soba tea and took my time to enjoy the meal. Thank you very much, it was delicious!