🍜 Established in 1961, this old soba shop offers friendly service akin to that of your own neighborhood.

After eating well every day in Hakata, I wanted something light this day and happened to see this shop near the hotel. I had occasionally seen branches of it while shopping in other places and felt that its nostalgic style should make for a good meal, so I decided to enter.

Typically, at old soba shops like this, you might encounter indifferent or unfriendly staff, so I was a bit anxious when I saw that the staff were mostly aunties. However, the service here was very friendly, resembling a long-frequented shop next door 😂.

I ordered the "Tricolor Soba," which came in three layers: plain, grated yam, and a raw egg yolk. Regular soba is served with a cup of dipping sauce, but for this tricolor soba, the dipping sauce was given in a pot, without instructions on how to eat it. I guessed that you pour the sauce directly into the bowl, though I'm not sure if that's correct 😂.

I’m not sure if the different eating method makes a difference, but overall the flavor seemed milder compared to other soba shops. It’s possible that the grated yam and egg yolk balanced out the saltiness.

Soba shops usually serve a cup of white, murky soba broth, which generally doesn't have much flavor but a light soba aroma. I personally like to add a lot of dipping sauce and drink it together.

I don’t consider it an exceptionally stunning soba shop that needs to be included in an itinerary, but the prices are very affordable. It's a good choice for those like me who need to give their digestive system a rest.