Noodle restaurants in Asia
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Sakaeya Honten
A tasty Yamagata speciality is hiyashi rāmen (chilled soup noodles), and it is served up in huge doses here. Facing east from the AZ store, take the first side street to your right.
reviewed
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Resutoran Monju
There are several decent but slightly overpriced shokudō at the southern end of Amanohashidate, including Resutoran Monju, which has asari udon (udon noodles with clams), a local speciality, for ¥1000. Look for the red-and-white sign as you approach Chion-ji (the temple at the southern end of Amanohashidate).
reviewed
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A
Murata
Down the street from the Hakata Machiya Furusato-kan, this lovely eatery makes homemade soba (buckwheat noodles) in the style of the Shinshū area of central Japan (around Nagano), prepared in a variety of ways. Try oroshi-soba (cold noodles topped with grated daikon) for ¥950.
reviewed
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Momiji-ya
This cosy shop near the shrine gate has mountain views out the back windows and dishes like kamonanban soba (noodles in hearty duck broth; ¥1155). Look for the brown-and-white curtain outside.
reviewed
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Matsubara-an
This upscale soba restaurant in a former residence captures the feel of early-20th-century Kamakura, when the area was a fashionable summertime retreat. There's no English menu, but you can't go wrong with the tempura seiro soba (al dente noodles served cold) or the set lunch (ranchi kōsu). From Yuiga-hama Station (on the Enoden line) head towards the beach and then take the first right. Look for the blue sign; the entrance is just to the left, with white door curtains.
reviewed
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Lǐxiǎng Miànshídiàn
This modest eatery serves simple dishes such as wonton soup and noodles, and is handy for a morning meal pre-village-hopping. It's been busily run in a friendly fashion forever.
reviewed
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Lǐxiǎng Miànshídiàn
This modest eatery serves simple dishes such as wonton soup and noodles, and is handy for a morning meal pre-village-hopping. It's been busily run in a friendly fashion forever.
reviewed
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Lǎoyú Lāmiàn
This popular joint runs 24 hours so you'll never go hungry. Grab a seat and join the rest of the patrons slurping down noodles. The menu is in Chinese so you'll have to order by pointing at what the people at the next table are having; or you can always go with the niúròu lāmiàn (牛肉拉面; beef noodles).
reviewed
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B
Lǎomǎjiā Miànguǎn
Simple, popular and unfussy Muslim restaurant stuffed into an old shíkùmén tenement building with a handful of tables and spot-on niúròu lāmiàn (牛肉拉面; beef noodles; Y7) and super-scrummy ròujiāmó (肉夹馍; meat in a bun; Y5).
reviewed
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Lánzhōu Lā Miàn
No-frills noodle restaurant run by a family of Chinese-Muslims. Noodles are all handmade on the premises and service is quick and efficient. Order the hearty beef noodle soup (牛肉面; nǐu ròumìan) or just point at what the next person's having. You can't go wrong as it's all cheap, cheerful and pretty good. Bottomless refills of soup and raw garlic (that we don't understand) accompaniment if you want it…just don't forget your breath mints.
reviewed
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C
Kosendō
The town's most historically significant lunch spot is this wooden schoolhouse. The speciality is the inaniwa-udon (udon noodles in a mushroom soup; ¥850).
reviewed
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D
Kompira Udon
Just short of the first set of steps leading up Kompira-san, this is one of dozens of Sanuki udon joints in Kotohira. Look for the giant udon bowl outside.
reviewed
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Koja Shokudō Honten
One block northwest of the intersection between Ichiba-dōri and Nishizato-dōri, this nondescript noodle house is something of a local legend. For more than 50 years, Koja has been serving up steaming bowls of sōki-soba (¥650). It's across from a parking lot; look for the white tiles around the entryway. The owner speaks English.
reviewed
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E
Kana Izumi
Slurp back freshly made sanuki-udon (a type of wheat noodle) dishes, such as sansai udon (udon with mountain vegetables; ¥650), at this speciality restaurant back from the canal. Full set meals include a tempura teishoku for ¥1600. You can also buy noodles in the attached shop to take home and cook for yourself. Look for the purple flag on the corner with the name in white.
reviewed
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F
Kanaizumi
A self-service, self-explanatory noodle joint that is ideal for famished victims of culture shock. You can choose between shō (small), chū (medium) or dai (large) helpings of kake udon (udon in broth) or zaru udon (cold udon, with a dipping sauce), and then help yourself to a wide variety of toppings. It's located by the Takamatsu City Museum of Art.
reviewed
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G
Jiànjūn Niúròumiàn
This popular restaurant makes an early start but shuts early. Grab a ticket from the desk at front and exchange it with kitchen staff, who will ladle you out a huge, filling and sweltering bowl of delicious beef noodles (牛肉面; niúròumiàn), eye-rollingly spiced up with chilli and coriander.
reviewed
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Izumi Soba
There are less inexpensive soba shops in town, but at this classy little soba shop by Kinrin-ko you can watch the noodles being made in the window before you sit down. The basic is seirō-soba (on a bamboo mat); oroshi-soba comes topped with grated daikon.
reviewed
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Hōtō Fudō
Three branches around town serve this massive stew bubbling in its own cast-iron pot. The honten (main branch) is a brown-and-white barn of a restaurant north of the lake, near the Kawaguchi-ko Art Museum via the Retro-bus.
reviewed
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Happy
Cheap coffee (from Y10) and noodle and rice dishes served in an atmosphere that more or less corresponds with its name.
reviewed
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H
Fujiki-an
The clean, contemporary setting belies this soba shop's history (since 1827) of making fresh soba from the north of Nagano-ken. There's a picture menu: seiro-mori soba (cold soba on a bamboo mat; ¥900) lets the flavour shine; other favourites are sansai, kinoko (mushroom) tempura (¥1400) or nishin (herring; ¥1200).
reviewed
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I
First Noodle Under the Sun
The speciality at this busy place is biáng biáng miàn, a giant, 3.8m strip of noodle that comes folded up in a big bowl with two soup side dishes (Y10). But all sorts of excellent noodle, meat and vegie dishes are available here.
reviewed
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J
Eifuku Shokudō
This hole in the wall is plastered with write-ups from old editions of Lonely Planet. It's also a shrine to 1950s actor Akagi 'Tony' Kei-ichirō. Tony Soba, as it's known, is one of the cheapest places on the island for yaeyama-soba (thin noodles in broth; ¥300), though we recommend the stinky (but tasty) yagi-soba (goat soba; ¥500).
reviewed
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K
Don Don Udonya
A popular spot serving tasty udon, with plastic models in the window. Udon teishoku (udon set) goes for ¥580 and there are donburi standards like oyako-don (¥500). There's a cheaper morning selection. It's in a big black-and-white building on the right as you head away from the station.
reviewed
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Chángrén Huntun
Busy spot with a long history and clean interior; the jīdàn miàn (鸡蛋面; egg and noodles; Y5.50) is salty and tasty, the xīhóngshì dàntāng (西红柿蛋汤; egg and tomato soup; Y5) ample and filling.
reviewed
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L
Bukkake Udon
In the less-than-atmospheric Bios Arcade across from the station, this local chain serves up the tasty Kurashiki udon speciality – called bukkake udon (from bukkakeru, meaning to pour or splash) because you tip the sauce over the noodles yourself. Tempura bukkake is ¥590. Or try a niku (meat) kimuchi bukkake for ¥680. Look for the sign with a ぶ in a yellow oval.
reviewed