On July 11, 2023, Tuesday at 12:30, the popular Lunch A (Tuna and Bonito Donburi) was already sold out. Upon entering, there were 2 customers x 4 already seated, and 3 more customers entered within 5 minutes. It seems to be a popular restaurant, mostly frequented by retirees (perhaps due to its location?). The daily special seems to be the favorite choice. Lunch B (Teriyaki Mayo Hamburger) was disappointing, as it was lukewarm. The first bite seemed odd, only to discover that it was mixed with chopped frankfurter sausages and covered in teriyaki mayo sauce. The portion was around 80g, with the hamburger being about 120g, possibly from a commercial retort package, disguised with mayo to give it an original touch. It was sufficient as a rice accompaniment. The side dishes included pickled daikon, cucumber, and kombu seaweed, which served as a nice palate cleanser. Coffee (hot/iced) and tea were refillable (which was appreciated in the hot weather) for 730 yen. Overall, no complaints. Thank you for the meal.

Located halfway up a residential street, Minori (season) has a parking lot available. I arrived a bit early, so I was the only customer. I had done my research on Tabelog, so I knew I had to try the pork curry! While the seafood lunch is popular here, my stomach was craving curry. The pork curry came with a side salad, and it was filled with plenty of pork belly. The taste of this curry is comforting, like a homemade meal. It was exactly what I wanted and I was impressed by how delicious it was.

I was curious about the sea urchin dish, but today I was treated by someone so I had the tempura bowl for 850 yen. The sea urchin seems to be directly delivered from Rishiri Island, currently it's purple sea urchin, and soon it will be horse dung sea urchin. It would be nice to be able to easily enjoy sea urchin in Asahikawa.

I thought the set udon was a half size, but both the katsudon and udon were regular size. I ordered the udon in a large size to share with my daughter, but was surprised by the huge portion! Seriously, a massive amount of udon! We didn't need to get the large size (resulting in both of us being super full). The flavor was gentle and easy to eat, with a nice broth and noodles that were probably frozen but not as good as Sanuki udon. The texture of the noodles was good with a slight flavor that soaked in well. The katsudon was about 2/3 the thickness of a regular pork cutlet bento, but still satisfying to eat. The half-cooked egg topping the cutlet with simmered onions on the side was a unique style. It was delicious, and we enjoyed it all the way to the end without feeling too heavy or bored. My daughter particularly liked the macaroni salad, which had a good balance of a little bit of onion and canned mandarin oranges. She even reached out for my wife's portion. My wife's pork cutlet bento for 900 yen was very satisfying with a good amount of meat (not too fatty pork cutlet) and the side of boiled komatsuna and enoki mushrooms was a nice palate cleanser. The miso soup with daikon and a rare seaweed (thin seaweed similar to matsuomo but thinner than needle ginger) had a great flavor. Both dishes were very satisfying, and even without the weekday "daily lunch special for 730 yen," it was a very satisfying weekend lunch. Thank you for the meal.

"Katsudon set (with warm soba)" for 980 yen, "Tendon" for 850 yen, "Pork curry" for 700 yen, "Chicken zangi" for 680 yen, "French fries" for 400 yen. We visited a restaurant called "Kisaki - Minori -" located in a complex residential area. They have a wide variety of menu items, so it can be a bit overwhelming without a plan. We ended up playing it safe and ordered the set meals. I wanted to try soba and the katsudon looked tempting, so I chose the set. My companion ordered the tendon and pork curry, also safe choices. But we also ordered zangi and french fries as individual items, which can sometimes make or break a restaurant. The tendon arrived first, with tempura served in a deep bowl, looking delicious. Next was the pork curry, which I tried a bit of - it had a gentle flavor like hotel breakfast curry, with tasty pork belly. Finally, the katsudon set arrived. The katsu was thin, but I like it that way. The soba in the set was delicious! The texture, the flavor of the broth - it was just to my liking. Japanese people seem to enjoy the subtle sweetness within the salty bonito broth. The french fries were ordinary, but the zangi was delicious. The creamy batter was generously coated and fried to perfection. Soba and katsudon - this combination is always tasty. But looking back, I wish I had tried the Hokke from Rebun Island. I'll aim for that next time!"

It's been 2 and a half years since my last visit. For those who have been there before, you might know that the location where this building is standing is quite scary (;^_^A Well, in reality, it's probably not that scary, but it's kind of in a cool place. You'll have to see it for yourself. It's right on the edge of the Kaguraoka cliff. From up here, it looks like a normal shop. But from below the cliff... it's quite something, haha. Well, it's not actually right on the edge, so there's no need to worry. The parking lot is in front of the shop and also closer to the edge of the cliff. That area has a pretty interesting vibe. They have daily lunch specials - A lunch with fish and B lunch with meat. On this day, they had grilled salmon and chicken motsu donburi. Noodles are also included. Oh, and of course, rice is included as well. It's quite a generous serving, right? Oh, but I might check out some other menu items inside the restaurant. They have quite a variety of options. Besides the daily specials, they have a good selection of set meals at reasonable prices. Donburi, curry, noodles, and set meals. It's a bit hard to decide. In the evening, it transforms into an izakaya-style place. From 5:00 PM, they have a night menu that's more like an izakaya. It seems like it would be convenient for the locals. It's not the kind of place you would drive all the way to... but it seems nice. Apart from that... they also have a variety of snacks for the evening. But I wonder... if you ask during lunchtime, they might make it for you. Even so, this and rice... I think it's a good combination ♡ Pork cutlet curry for 850 yen. Lately, pork cutlet curry has been a trend for me. Not at curry specialty shops, but at other places like soba shops or ramen shops. However, most places charge around 1000 yen or more. In that context, 850 yen here is really cheap. It comes with a mini salad - cabbage and tomato mini salad. It's nice to have some vegetables, even if it's a small portion. However, it would be nice if the cabbage was served on the side of the curry. It took a while from ordering to when the freshly fried cutlet arrived. So, they must be making it from scratch. That's nice, and I appreciate it. At places like service areas, the cutlets are already fried, so it can be disappointing. The freshly fried cutlet is definitely different. Delicious!! The cutlet is quite substantial with a thick and crispy coating. This is the type of cutlet I like. It would be delicious even as a cutlet set meal. I found an affordable pork cutlet curry that suits my taste! The rich and thick curry sauce is also my favorite type. This kind of curry suits my taste. It's not for those who prefer a thinner curry. The spiciness is medium, but leaning towards spicy, which I also like. Hmm, I really liked this curry. I might go back soon and ask if I can film it. Thank you for the meal. ⇒◇During certain times, they also have uni (sea urchin) rice bowls available◇

A restaurant in Kaguraoka, Asahikawa City. Normally, they serve rice dishes and noodles, but the owner is from Rebun Island, so during this season, you can enjoy dishes made with Rebun sea urchin! I visited during lunchtime. What kind of dishes with sea urchin do they have? Sea urchin bowl is 3,500 yen... well, that's about right. It might be a bit tough to have that for lunch... Luckily, there was a more affordable option. "Bukkake Fresh Sea Urchin Udon" (1,380 yen). This should be within the lunch budget, right? I'll order this! It arrived in about 7-8 minutes. Of course, there isn't a lot of sea urchin, but this amount should be satisfying, right? There's also a raw egg yolk on top of the udon, but it would be a waste to mix it all... After pouring the separate sauce, I'll start with the sea urchin first! Truly fresh "Bafun Sea Urchin" from Rebun Island. It's creamy and you can taste the natural sweetness! After eating the sea urchin, mix the egg yolk and udon well! The noodles are like Inaniwa udon, thin and good. The sauce is slightly sweet. Even though I ate the main dish first, the udon was also delicious... Having a bit of sea urchin for lunch made me feel a bit luxurious (laughs). You can also have hot coffee and iced coffee self-service. Refills are free!

Kagurazaka. There are a few restaurants open at night around here, but when it comes to lunch, there don't seem to be many options. So, I went nearby to look for a place to eat...and found a place I didn't know about. It's called Soba Chaya Ki Minori. The location is right on the edge of a cliff. It's hard to describe the exact location...but if you go down a narrow road and keep going straight, you'll reach the edge of a cliff where there's a sharp curve. If you can find it based on that, you're a genius at directions! By the way, there's another restaurant with the same name "Ki" in the shopping park, I wonder if they are related. Inside the restaurant, they were playing FM radio, so maybe they're listening to Hill Morton too. Do you like soba sets? Today, let's see how this place ranks! If you think the food looks delicious in the photos, click the "↓" button! ⇒ Try clicking it once! They also serve daily lunch specials and appetizers. During the day, they offer lunch as well. You can choose between A fish dish or B meat dish. At night, it seems to turn into a small izakaya too. There were quite a variety of sake appetizers on the menu inside the restaurant. The menu is quite extensive and can be a bit confusing to read, so you have to take your time to understand it. The top left is curry, so maybe that's a popular dish here? Starting from the top right are various soba dishes. Wait...are there no set meals? After carefully looking through the menu, I found it written small next to the rice bowls. They also have dishes like Ankake Yakisoba and bento on the menu. Pork Soba - 780 yen It's not what I ordered, but it looked intriguing. I usually add meat when I make soba at home, but I rarely order it with meat outside. The soba that arrived had a generous amount of meat on top. The soba was slightly soft. It's warm soba, and it tasted decent. The broth was quite hot, and you could tell they heated the bowl thoroughly before serving it. The broth had a strong dashi flavor and was slightly sweet, which might be a hit or miss depending on your taste preference. The pork slices were plentiful, almost like a chashu topping in ramen. So, I think you'll feel quite full after eating this with rice. Katsudon Set - 890 yen This set meal is quite affordable. You can choose between katsu, shrimp, oyako, pork, Chinese rice, negitoro, and tendon for the same price. As a single item, it costs 700 yen, and you can choose between soba, udon (hot or cold), and zaru ramen for noodles. Unfortunately, there's no hot ramen option, so zaru ramen is the only ramen choice. This time, I opted for zaru ramen. It's been a while since I had it. Zaru ramen is different from tsukemen. Tsukemen has thicker noodles and a much richer dipping sauce. Zaru ramen noodles are like regular ramen noodles. The dipping sauce was seasoned with ginger and had a slightly Japanese twist, which tasted delicious. The portion was just right for two slices of pork. The rice in the set was about half the usual serving. Even though it's a set meal, the portion of katsu on top was a full serving. It tasted like it was freshly fried and simmered, quite filling. The onions were cooked until soft and sweet, and the half-cooked egg on top was just right. The sauce was a bit on the watery side for a katsudon...but still good. Side Dish: Shirataki with Tarako A small side dish of shirataki with tarako. It's served cold, but it's delicious. I'd love to have it on top of rice. Sometimes you see this type of side dish at set meal restaurants, and it's a nice addition.

I visited this place for the first time in 20 years. The location remains the same (it's a bit hidden on a side street, not easy to find). It used to be an izakaya, but now it's more like a dining hall. The A lunch set comes with fish, the B lunch set comes with meat, both served with noodles (hot or cold soba or udon, or zaru ramen), rice, and a few side dishes, all for 730 yen including tax (a great deal!). They have self-service hot tea, coffee (hot or cold), and ice available. On this day, the fish was just a simple grilled salted salmon, while the meat was a hamburger with white sauce, which was more like a thick stew with baby corn, lotus root, onions, and carrots. Compared to the A lunch with salmon sashimi and a bit of salted fish roe, the B lunch was more luxurious. The hot soba and zaru ramen were both delicious, and for 730 yen including tax, it's really a great deal. I forgot to take photos, sorry about that.

I have used delivery service from this restaurant a few times. I didn't realize this place existed until now. Tonight, I'm in a "soba mode" for dinner. I'll try not to think about my favorite restaurant and explore new places instead. I don't really remember how the delivery service was, but let's give it a try. Following the GPS directions, I finally arrived at the restaurant located in a somewhat harsh location. Surprisingly, there were signs and banners with "uni" (sea urchin) on them. I open the door with curiosity, even though my mind was set on soba. My daughter suggests trying uni, but I decline since I have to drive later. I have important guests to meet and my birthday event coming up. I still have things to do before dying. Despite that, my daughter insists on ordering a uni bowl. I tell her to pay for it herself after giving her 1000 yen. She ends up ordering a uni bowl and soba for 1900 yen. I suddenly remember the previous soba delivery experience. I order a "nabe-yaki udon" instead. The restaurant seems popular for delivery, as the phone keeps ringing. The strict rule of pressing the call button for service is explained. Even if the staff is right in front of you, you must press the button to get their attention. This rule applies to both ordering and paying. It seems like a restaurant with strict rules. (Looking for rule breakers... haha)

- Visit on 7/4 - I had noticed this restaurant before when leaving Kagurazaka and heading towards Route 237, so I decided to bookmark it. On this day, I arrived around 12 o'clock and found 3 groups of 5 customers already seated at the 2-person tables. I ordered the "slippery soba" from the waitress who brought me water. It arrived about 10 minutes later, after the B lunch of the previous customers. The main ingredients were okra, natto, and grated yam, all slimy textures (laughs). The soba noodles were thin with no firmness. I poured the dipping sauce that came separately over the noodles. The okra and grated yam were delicious. The other customers all had the daily lunch set with soba. The lunch set included a drink after the meal, which felt like a good deal. It seems like a restaurant that caters to salarymen. They seem to be particular about their ingredients, but personally, since the soba itself was not that great, I won't be visiting again.

It is a normal house-like shop standing on top of a hill. They use soba flour from Etanbetsu to make their soba. However, unlike hand-made soba, the flavor and texture are average. They seem to have a strong commitment to using local ingredients from Hokkaido. For lunch, you can choose between meat or fish dishes. Both options come with a drink afterwards for 680 yen, which I think is a reasonable price. They have a variety of seafood dishes, so I recommend it to those who like seafood. It was crowded when I went for lunch. I would like to try different menu items next time.

"Soba Tea House Minoriki" offers daily lunch specials. Inside the restaurant, there seems to be a gathering place for postal delivery workers, with about 10 red bikes parked. During lunchtime, only postal workers were taking a break, making it a slightly unusual sight. I sat at a table near the entrance and checked the menu. The restaurant mainly serves set meals centered around soba noodles. I chose the daily lunch set with fish (Option A), but it turned out to be not so healthy with scallops, fried squid, and rice included. The soba noodles were average, and I wasn't a fan of how they were presented. For my drink, I chose the Orange Juice, which was surprisingly sweet. The menu claimed that no artificial flavorings were used, but it seemed to contain sweeteners, flavorings, and colorings. Overall, it was a decent meal, but the marketing claims on the menu were a bit misleading.