By chance, I passed by a place with a big sign that said "udon"! I wonder how they were able to draw it so big? I decided to stop by and it turned out to be a kombu processing factory! They serve udon there too? I would love to try their dashi broth. As expected, I ordered the basic udon and it came with deep-fried kombu, using Rishiri kombu no less! How luxurious. I quietly slurped up the udon noodles. The broth was delicious. It wasn't as strong as you might expect in Hokkaido, it was more subtly flavored, but that's because of the kombu. It's not common in this region. The owner even asked if I had any allergies. I told them I would eat anything, and they brought out octopus tempura. Wow! What a treat!

I'm not a fan of udon with meat broth mixed in, but I still wanted to eat beef tendon stew... While waiting, I had barley tea, shredded kelp, shichimi togarashi, and grated ginger. Remembering last time, I tried not to mix it too much and focused on the shredded kelp zone. Today, I added shredded kelp and ate it together. The broth was delicious. The combination of the slimy shredded kelp and the crunchy shredded kelp was delicious! Around the third bite, the sweet broth started to mix in! I quickly added extra ginger and shichimi pepper. I enjoyed it until the end. Thank you for the meal.

I was curious about the bright red udon noodles. My partner found out that the beef tendon meat udon is delicious. Let's go. First, we ordered and paid at the register. Oh, they sell the kelp snacks that we always buy when we go to Otaru. I'll buy them while waiting for the udon. They also have other kelp products, and there is also shredded kelp topping on the finished udon. Is it a kelp shop? Or an udon shop? It was an udon and kelp shop. Next to the register, there are ginger, salt, shichimi pepper, and kelp. There is barley tea and cups as well. I thought it was self-service, but they brought the udon to our table. First, the broth is sweet. Maybe it's because of the beef tendon. The beef tendon stew is very tender and delicious. I accidentally forgot that I'm not a fan of beef on my udon. Then I remembered seeing shichimi pepper written on the menu for beef udon. I added extra shichimi pepper and ginger. Ah, delicious! The flavors became more intense and suddenly my least favorite turned into my favorite taste. Thank you for the meal.

After the final golf game of the season, I stopped by a place that caught my eye. It was like a standing udon noodle spot, but I won't be passing by this way until next year so I decided to check it out. The name was interesting, but when I went inside, there was no one there, and the register to order was hard to find in the back on the right. I saw on the menu that the cheapest option was kelp udon for 600 yen. It seemed like a noodle shop run by the owner, and although I like the noodles, it's a bit pricey, isn't it? If it's a direct-operated store, they should compete with a simple udon dish.

"Journey to Eat Up the Delicious Restaurants in Minami-Horo (tentative title)" has begun! After enjoying a kind bowl of ramen at "Oo Ta," I decided to finally visit the udon shop that had caught my eye. They serve udon with dashi made from Rishiri kelp. I had been curious about it but couldn't go before because they were closed on weekends. Now they are open on weekends, so I decided to check it out. The place has a large parking lot and a big building, but inside, it's a cozy little shop with only about 10 seats. It's kind of a surprising contrast (laughs). I already knew what I wanted to order: "Beef tendon udon (hot) (800 yen)," "Chikuwa tempura (100 yen)," and "Tamogi mushroom tempura (180 yen)." I also asked for the kelp dashi on the side to savor the flavor. When I placed my order, the staff said, "Please enjoy the kelp while you wait," which made me chuckle. So, I snacked on the "Rishiri kelp and rice bran salad" on the table, sprinkling it with ginger, salt, and shichimi pepper while waiting. First, I tried the dashi. It had a mellow kelp flavor with a subtle sweetness since it was kelp dashi. The noodles were pretty standard, smooth and easy to slurp up. The beef tendon I had on the side was well-cooked and tender. The flavor was on the richer side, slightly sweet. Unfortunately, the tempura was pre-fried and not as crispy as I hoped. The tamogi mushroom tempura lacked flavor, which was a bit disappointing. Lastly, I added the beef tendon to the udon, mixed in some green onions, shichimi pepper, and ginger, and took a bite. It was delicious! I finished everything and enjoyed my meal. After eating both ramen and udon in one go, I was super full. Now, it's time to head back and take a nap!"

It's all about the location, South Horocho is located at 11-14 Nishi 1-chome in the Bansui Industrial Park, but for more detailed directions, as always, please check the map on Tabelog. On September 15th, a ramen shop that relocated from Higashi Ward in Sapporo to South Horocho opened, but unfortunately, they were already sold out when I arrived. I then tried to visit another popular ramen shop in South Horocho, but they were unexpectedly closed. So, this time I decided to visit a nearby shop instead. Upon arriving, I parked my car in the spacious parking lot and entered the shop. I looked at the menu on the wall and decided to order the "Chikuwa Tempura Udon" as I also wanted some tempura. I paid upfront, took a seat at the empty counter, and waited for my order. Within 3-4 minutes, my dish arrived. It seemed to be the basic "Rishiri Konbu Udon" with added chikuwa tempura. I first tried the udon soup, which had a strong dashi flavor from kombu and a soy sauce base that was slightly salty. Then, I tasted the udon noodles, which were machine-made and had a square shape with rounded edges. The texture was soft, typical of udon noodles commonly eaten in Hokkaido. The toppings included chopped kombu and grated tororo kombu, which had a mild acidity and allowed the natural flavor of the kombu to come through. The chikuwa tempura, however, seemed to have been kept warm rather than freshly fried. Overall, I visited this shop as a last-minute choice, but I still prefer the udon from major udon chain restaurants.

There was a unique udon shop that I had been interested in, and finally today, I had the opportunity to visit. Arriving at the store around 1 PM, I was curious about what made it so different. It turns out that it is a shop operated by Hokuyoshokusan, a seafood processing company based on Rishiri Island, to promote their own products. They use their processed kombu to make udon broth, hence the name udon shop. I decided to try their "Cold Bukkake Beef Tendon Udon" priced at 900 yen including tax. I paid upfront and waited for my order at the counter seat. The udon portion wasn't particularly large, but the broth that came with it was abundant. The beef tendon also seemed to be served in a decent amount. The udon was delicious, with a softer texture and the beef tendon was well-cooked and easy to eat. After finishing my meal quickly, I tried drinking the leftover broth and found it to be well-made, likely due to the expertise in kombu flavor. I also received a sample of smoked hokke as a service, which was decent but left me unsure if it was actually hokke. Overall, the food was tasty, and the experience was enjoyable.

A large red sign can be seen from the main road. It reads "Udon-ya" but the actual name of the restaurant is "Konbu-san." Next to it seems to be a konbu seaweed manufacturing factory. The inside of the restaurant is clean and well-maintained. You order at the register and it is a self-service type of place. - Gobo Tempura Udon 780 yen Sesame konbu is served as a complimentary side dish. It is not sweet, so you can add soy sauce to enhance the flavor. Delicious! Just this alone makes me want to eat a bowl of rice with it. There were also konbu products lined up for sampling. The udon came with smoked hokke fish, which is rare. The soup had grated konbu on top. It may be a service, but it was a bit too much. The udon itself doesn't have the strong texture of Sanuki udon, which is fine with me as I'm not a fan of strong textures. The broth has a strong konbu flavor. I feel like adding more bonito flakes would be better, but even as it is, it's delicious and konbu is the highlight. The only downside was the gobo tempura, which seemed to be prepared in advance and was cold. The texture wasn't great either. It felt like they were emphasizing the konbu a bit too much. The udon is tasty, so if you like konbu, definitely give it a try! Thank you for the meal.

It was the perfect place for lunch, so I visited for the first time! It has a unique name - apparently it used to be a kombu (kelp) shop that started serving udon. The broth is made only with Rishiri kombu. You pay at the register first. The staff is an older gentleman, maybe the owner? The kake udon is 500 yen, and the tempura is 180 yen. The udon noodles are average. People seem to come here during work or elderly locals. Freshly made fried bread came out at one point and sold out quickly at 50 yen each.

I visited for lunch. I was in Nanporo for work. I found this place on Tabelog and decided to try it out. This time, I ordered the "Beef Tendon Meat Udon" and "Salt Rice Ball". You can enjoy an appetizer while waiting for your order! It's a rice bran salad with Rishiri kelp. It's really delicious when you add a little soy sauce. It could also be a good snack with alcohol! The rice bran salad is also included in the udon. I prefer eating it separately. The meat udon has plenty of meat! It's delicious. I would like to come back to eat here again. Thank you for the meal٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶

I had a meaty udon noodle dish. It was filled with plenty of beef tendons, truly a meaty udon. The menu also had a regular meat udon, but if there is a choice between meat udon and meaty udon, I would go for the meaty one. Besides the generous amount of beef tendons, it also had kelp, shredded kelp, and green onions on top. Personally, I was delighted to see the shredded kelp. It feels very good for the body. The beef tendons had some fatty parts, and when you slurp them together with the udon in the broth, the meaty flavor oozes out. Yum! I have discovered another delicious restaurant. As it was a new item, they included a piece of smoked hokke fish as a sample. It was also delicious. I definitely want to enjoy it with some Japanese sake. So, I bought a pack to take home. Haha. Thank you for the meal. Let's find some delicious Japanese sake to go with it!

I went to an udon restaurant in Nanporo Town - it seems to be located in the Bansui Industrial Park ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ Udon-ya Konbu-san. 473-1 Minami 11 Sen Nishi, Nanporo Town, 11:00-15:00, closed on weekends and holidays, 011-380-4101 ★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ This place is said to be a company that deals with dried goods, but they serve udon with dashi made from Rishiri Konbu. It seems to have opened in July 2020. There is a spacious parking lot making it easy to park. The interior is simple and the staff, wearing a neat apron, will assist you. Please set your own tea and condiments. While waiting, you can enjoy the Rishiri Konbu rice bran salad. The layout is spacious with a counter. Very refreshing. Niku-Niku Udon - 800 yen The udon arrived in about 7 minutes with their own konbu on top. The salted rice ball also does a great job later on. This will be irresistible for big eaters later on. The meat is beef tendon, which is super tender. This will make you want to have some sake!! Well, I couldn't drink any. Personally, and due to the coronavirus... I mean, this meat is dangerous!! I love beef tendon, but this one takes the top spot. I had the cold udon. It's a round and chewy type with a good texture. I will try the hot udon next time. So, be sure to try the Niku-Niku Udon at this Nanporo restaurant!

【Completely Smoke-free】Founded in 1955 in Rishiri Town on Rishiri Island, Hokuyo Shokusan Co., Ltd., a seafood processing company, opened a udon restaurant in the Namporo Factory established in Namporo Town, Nanshiki-gun in February 2002. The udon is made with homemade noodles produced at this factory. The restaurant also sells Hokuyo Shokusan's processed products, and hosts a special "Chinmi Market" on the third Saturday of every month. Located near Namporo Onsen in Namporo Town, closer to Ebetsu, the facility is along the Kirara Highway, about 250 meters from the diagonal intersection with traffic lights on Prefectural Route 1056 towards Ebetsu. Look for the red udon sign to find the place. Visited again after 1:30 pm on April 28, 2021. In just one month of April, I have covered a total distance of 833 km. The total distance traveled this year is 1457 km. My weight has not decreased much, but my muscle mass has increased. Naturally, with increased calorie consumption, I get hungry more easily, as it is the growth period in spring. So, even though I had a bowl of udon, I felt somewhat uneasy... What should I do? If I run in this strong headwind, I might not have enough calories, and I will end up with low body temperature as usual. While thinking about these things, the udon noren fluttering in the wind seemed to be appealing to me, as if pleading. Interestingly, the udon I had just eaten was... udon again. Is it a coincidence? No, it's fate!!! I convinced myself. Inside the restaurant, there were no customers at first, but three customers came in later. I received an explanation of the system from the staff lady and placed my order before paying. Condiments and drinks were self-service, and the kombu salad was all-you-can-eat. Since it was not seasoned, you could season it with soy sauce, etc. I hesitated a bit, but finally decided on the Niku Udon for 700 yen. Of course, I also ordered a salted rice ball for 120 yen. The wait for the food was only a few minutes. There was more meat on the udon than I had expected. I wonder how much meat would be on the meat lover's one. I'm curious. The first thing served was the Rishiri kombu rice bran salad. It seems to use relatively young kombu before drying it. The tea served was barley tea. I had about three cups. Then the udon arrived. The condiments were placed on a stand, so you could add them yourself. The udon had a good chewy texture of fresh noodles. There was also a little tororo kombu on top, which was nice. The beef tendon was, of course, perfectly stewed and tender. The recommended way to eat it at the restaurant is to put the beef tendon and soup in a bowl with a rice ball inside. But I, of course, dipped the udon in the soup when the udon was almost gone. By the way, I realized that I had udon earlier and then ate porridge. Coincidence? No, it's destiny!!! I convinced myself. The udon was so good that I decided to add the rice bran kombu to the udon as an ingredient. The combination of the fatty part of the beef with soy sauce flavor and the kombu was excellent for me. By the end, I had eaten all the rice bran kombu that was originally plated on the dish. Kombu goes well with the soy sauce flavor of the beef fat, right? In the end, I bought the rice bran kombu to take home. Even after eating two bowls of udon, I didn't feel any heartburn at all. All's well that ends well!

Today, I finished work in the morning and went to the hospital in the afternoon. After that, I had a meeting in Iwamizawa, so I decided to stop by a restaurant that is only open on weekdays before heading there. The restaurant is called "Udonya Konbu-san." I arrived around 2:30 pm and luckily they were still open. I ordered the Rishiri udon with onion tempura. The udon was served with a generous amount of grated konbu on top. The udon had a strong texture, similar to Sanuki udon. The broth tasted mainly of konbu, which was a bit overpowering. The onion tempura was thick and crispy, with a sweet onion flavor. Overall, it was a satisfying meal, but considering the price, I'm not sure if I would visit again. My wife wants to try it, so maybe I'll come back if there's a chance. It was a nice experience to visit a restaurant that is only open on weekdays. The food was delicious!

Today, I had a meeting at the Kurayama site in the afternoon, so I decided to have an early lunch at this restaurant. I arrived three minutes before opening time. The flag was up, so I entered. I was greeted by a smiling lady and ordered the "Beef Udon Cold 700 yen" from the menu, received a number tag, and sat at the same table as last time. About 10 minutes later, the lady brought the udon on a tray and placed it on the table with condiments. It was thoughtful of her to let me add my preferred condiments. Thank you very much. I added chopped green onions and returned to my seat. First, I tried the broth. It was cold, but had a strong kombu flavor. Now, I tried the noodles. They weren't as soft as last time, probably because of the cold broth. The beef tendon in the dish was tender and delicious. I savored the flavors as I quickly finished the meal. After finishing, I put the kombu snack in my pocket and returned to my car. I wonder what I'll try next time (laughs).

Today's hot spring visit was Namporo Onsen. While driving along Kirara Kaido after a long time, I saw a large building with a big sign saying "Udon-ya!" Curious, I decided to check it out. There was a sign at the entrance saying "Open today, Meat Udon." Since I hadn't had lunch yet, I parked my car and went inside. A friendly lady greeted me and explained the menu and ordering process. I ordered the "Rishiri Udon Thick Noodles, Hot" for 500 yen, paid, and took the number tag given to me to a nearby seat. While waiting, I had some "Rishiri Kombu Rice Bran Salad" as an appetizer. It's great as a snack with alcohol (laughs). In less than 5 minutes, the lady brought me a tray with the udon. First, I tried the broth... it was delicious with a strong kombu flavor! Then, I tried the noodles... it reminded me of my late grandma's udon! The slightly soft, well-rounded noodles that I've been eating since I was a child. The toppings were tororo kombu and wakame, but they didn't stand out much. I added all the chopped green onions and condiments and enjoyed it in one go. It was a udon just like my grandma used to make, so I savored the flavor as I quickly finished it. Thank you for the meal. After finishing, I told the lady, "I usually have a small appetite and leave some noodles, but this was so delicious that I finished it all!" She then shared with me the story of the restaurant and more about their udon. I thanked her and said, "I'll definitely come back again!" and left the restaurant. I'll challenge the thin noodles next time! (^O^)/

It's a bit of a journey to get to this place, as it is located at Nishi 14, Minami 11, Ban Sui Industrial Park in Minami-Horocho. You can always check the exact location on the map on Tabelog. I found this place on my way back from a ramen shop in Minami-Horocho, and decided to visit it for the first time. When I arrived, it looked like a factory, so I entered the building and checked the menu on the wall. I then went to the counter to order the basic udon, "Rishiri Udon," paid for it, received a number tag, and sat at the available counter seat to wait. While waiting, I had the "Rishiri Konbu Rice Bran Salad" as a snack, which had a nice umami flavor from the konbu and a good texture. After a few minutes, my number was called, and I received my udon from the waitress. First, I tried the slightly light soup, which had a soy sauce flavor with a strong konbu dashi base. Then, I tasted the udon noodles, which were made in a nearby noodle factory and had a square shape with rounded edges, offering a familiar chewy texture. The toppings were simple, with just grated konbu that had a mild acidity and rich umami flavor. I added chopped green onions and condiments to my liking. Finally, I enjoyed a konbu sweet as dessert and finished my meal. This place is not just an udon shop but also a producer of specialty foods, so I look forward to visiting again on a discount day to purchase some of their unique products.

I used to enjoy the tempura here because it was always freshly fried and delicious. This time, I ordered a tempura set with Hokkaido kelp udon, burdock, and taro, but when it arrived, I was disappointed to find that the tempura was very cold. It seemed like they had been kept in the refrigerator. I felt bad, but I ended up leaving it uneaten. If you plan to order tempura, I recommend asking for it to be freshly fried when placing your order.