First visit in October 2019 (No.1503) on the last day, I purchased some items that required me to cook them myself, so I needed seasonings from Kyoto. I visited a specialty store established in the Meiji era that specializes in "odashi" without using salt, chemical seasonings, or food additives. One of their affiliated restaurants, Jinne Umeno, is a very popular udon restaurant that may not be listed in guidebooks at first. It is located near JR Nishi-Oji Station, about a 7-8 minute walk back towards Kyoto Station. It is also a bit far from the World Heritage Site, Toji Temple (about a 14-15 minute walk). The shop is located in a place where there are few reviews, which is understandable. I arrived just before closing time (6:00 PM) and purchased a pack of odashi called "jin" (yellow) [7g x 18 packs] for 1300 yen + Tax. It is a product made by powdering bonito flakes from Kagoshima, natural konbu from Rishiri Island, and shiitake mushrooms from Oita Prefecture. It is a delicious and gentle tasting dashi. With my purchase in hand, I headed back to Nishi-Oji Station and took a taxi to the restaurant where I had a reservation for dinner. Thank you for the meal.

I came to buy somen dipping sauce but it ended at the end of August. Instead, I bought soba dipping sauce. I ate it with buckwheat tea soba right away. It was delicious.

Hello, this is Average (^_^). The other day on the TV show "Matsuko no Shiranai Sekai," they talked about somen noodles, and they featured the noodle soup from "Uneno" called "Udon." Matsuko DX highly praised this somen noodle soup, so I decided to buy it as a souvenir for my hometown visit. In Kyoto, there is a direct store called "Nio-mon Uneno" in Keihan Sanjo, and another direct store called "Fu-ya-cho Uneno" in front of Kyoto City Hall. You can also buy the soup stock at department stores in Kyoto. I used the one close to my home. Food (⭐︎3.5) - Somen Noodle Soup - They only have one type of straight somen noodle soup. The ingredients include soy sauce, mirin, sake, bonito flakes, dried shiitake mushrooms, kelp, sugar, vinegar, and salt. It has a soy sauce flavor with a dashi stock of bonito flakes, dried shiitake mushrooms, and kelp, giving it a mellow taste with mirin and sake. It has an elegant dashi flavor, but compared to the fresh dashi made daily at udon or soba restaurants, the aroma is weaker. It is a long-lasting product suitable for home enjoyment, with a gentle Kyoto-style flavor. Service (⭐︎3.6) - Polite customer service. In the store, they were presenting bonito flakes and dashi to foreign customers. However, it is difficult to use the store because there is no nearby parking. Atmosphere (⭐︎3.6) - The store is clean and also sells "bonito flakes" besides the somen noodle soup. Cost Performance (⭐︎2.9) - Somen noodle soup 365ml (880 yen) It is understood that they use good ingredients, but it is quite expensive. Overall, the somen noodle soup has a traditional Kyoto-style dashi flavor, but it may not meet high expectations given the price. It is much tastier than supermarket noodle soup, but slightly inferior to the broth from a delicious noodle shop. It is a somen noodle soup with moderate deliciousness. They have various gift options, so it is recommended for year-end gifts as well.

Umeno-san is known for their popular restaurant located at the Niomon Gate, but they also run this udon shop. Originally established in 1903 near Toji Temple as a specialty store for bonito flakes and kelp, they have been providing the foundation of Kyoto cuisine. I tried their somen noodles, which I purchased at the Isetan underground food market for around 950 yen. The somen dipping sauce (straight type) is available for a limited time, until around the end of September. The ingredients include soy sauce (brewed), genuine mirin, sake, bonito flakes, dried shiitake mushrooms, kelp, brown sugar, brewed vinegar, and salt. It was incredibly delicious. The Satsuma bonito flakes and Rishiri kelp dashi both work wonders. I also use it in other dishes. It goes really well with onsen tamago (hot spring egg). It's the straight type, so it seems like it will run out quickly. I should have bought 2 or 3 more bottles. Oh well, I'll leave a link for online shopping: http://www.oisix.com/ShouhinShousai.ss2-7484_1514.htm

Not very tasty. The inari sushi is also sour.

Today, I decided to visit a shop near To-ji Temple in Minami Ward, Kyoto City, that specializes in dashi, a Japanese soup stock. Kyoto, To-ji, Une no Kyoto is a long-established shop known for its Kyoto-style dashi, which is popular among temples and shrines in Kyoto. The shop mainly focuses on selling products rather than serving food. Inside the shop, there is a kitchen counter where cooking classes and workshops are held. They offer a variety of dashi and tsuyu (dipping sauce) in different forms, with a rich selection of bonito flakes for making dashi. They have a commitment to using no chemical seasonings. They have affiliated shops that serve dishes like oden and udon that showcase their dashi, which I have been curious about for a while. I decided to purchase udon dashi to take home. I also bought some udon noodles to enjoy together at home. The "Ichiban Dashi" is a liquid dashi that does not contain any chemical seasonings or extracts. The package lists ingredients such as bonito flakes from Satsuma, natural kelp from Rishiri Island, and shiitake mushrooms from Oita. It can be used not only for udon but also for dishes like takikomi gohan (seasoned rice) and chawanmushi (savory egg custard). So, I bought some Kujo green onions and tempura to make Kyoto-style udon. The dashi is light yet has a deep aroma of kelp and shiitake mushrooms, making it delicious. It pairs well with the udon noodles! The dashi from a specialty shop truly stands out compared to store-bought dashi, with a rich and elegant flavor.

Une no Honten, a dashi specialty store near Nishioji Station, offers the opportunity to enjoy authentic restaurant flavors at home in an easy way. They have a variety of products ranging from bonito flakes to dashi, but what I recommend during this season is their set of somen noodles and dashi. The slightly thicker somen noodles paired with Une no Honten's dashi are truly delicious! I also recommend their rich zaru soba dashi.

We sell dashi and kombu, etc. at the factory. You can also taste them. The vegetable dashi is interesting.

Revisiting the udon restaurant, I purchased the closest dashi to the one at Nio-mon Uneno-san in November. It's been a month since I inputted this memory into my brain, and I haven't forgotten to purchase it. The dashi pack I bought is made from sardines, mackerel, and shiitake mushrooms, and it seems to be a better match for noodles than the yellow one made from bonito flakes, kombu, and shiitake mushrooms. It's a gentle Kyoto-style dashi that doesn't overpower the natural flavors of the ingredients. This is the fourth time I've tried this dashi, and it's a delightful experience. Thank you for the meal.

The Footprints Left Behind Everywhere Overtime Meal Bento Box + One More Dish. A famous dashi shop supervised the freeze-dried white miso soup. The taste is characterized by a subtle miso flavor with a prominent dashi taste. It might be a waste to pair it with a simple cat-shaped bun (^^;

In February 2018, I found "Katsuomiso-bushi" by "Uneno" at D&DEPARTMENT KYOTO in Mt. Bukkouji Temple, so I bought it and brought it home. The product description for 951 yen (from the store's website) is as follows: Katsuobushi is marinated in miso. Enjoy it by cutting it without washing it. It can be eaten with rice or as a snack with drinks, and can also be used in salads by shredding it. "Uneno" mainly deals with dashi, and their main store is located near the Nishitera ruins. I tried the Katsuomiso-bushi at home right away. (This time, I just cut it and ate it as it is.) The texture is slightly firmer than canned tuna, and you can taste the umami of the bonito, with a nice miso flavor. It goes well as a snack with alcohol, and can also be used as a filling for onigiri. Thank you for the meal~

This is a review of a shop called Uteno near Toji Temple in Kyoto, which was visited during a department store event at Sendai Mitsukoshi. They sell various types of bonito flakes and dried fish products. I tried three different blended dashi packs at the event and ended up purchasing the yellow one that I really liked. The dashi packs are made from bonito flakes, dried bonito, kombu, shiitake mushrooms, and have a very refined dashi flavor similar to what you would find at a Kyoto restaurant. No salt is added, so you can adjust the seasoning to your liking with a little salt and soy sauce to make a delicious soup base. While making dashi from scratch is the best, these dashi packs are a great help for busy homemakers. After making dashi, you can fry the leftover ingredients and season them to make tasty furikake, so there is no waste. If I have the chance to visit the antique market at Toji Temple, I would definitely like to visit their main store as well.