(photo by wm. christman)
The staggering number of noodle restaurants, joints and hangouts in Tokyo means that your noodle cravings will never become a problem. A fair number of them also make their own noodles by hand and those are the shops that are worth searching out.
Hegisoba Kon (へぎそば昆) is one that takes great pride in their handmade noodles. So much so that they stay up real late to indulge their patrons with large flat trays of cooked to perfection soba. And that's after a healthy set of izakaya dishes. Or as a friend told me, "you might think that you cannot eat another bite but once you taste their soba, you get hungry all over again".
(photo used by permission of Hegisoba Kon)
On our visit to Shinjuku's Hegisoba Kon, most of the parties already there were tucking to small plates of sashimi-thin sliced roast duck, little bowls of deep fried soba noodles and beautiful green ginko nuts, or collars of salt-grilled saba (mackerel). We did the same and after about an hour, I began to wonder when we were going to get to the main soba event.
"Relax, eat some of this, have some more beer..." was the refrain as we continued to snack on deliciously simple izakaya fare. A yuuba-cheese plate made it way out and the fried tofu skin cradled a bit of medium sharp white cheese. It was nearly oil-less for being fried; crisp, gooey and delicious.
Another hour passed, more beer and shochu was poured and one of our group actually had to catch his last train home and had to, regrettably, forego the soba. Eventually, the remainder of the group decided to order soba. I was about ready to burst from all of the food that we had already eaten.
An enormous tray of soba arrived and I simply didn't believe that we'd be able to eat it all. Although the soba was piled up, the tray was not too deep but it did give the impression of "lots".
Little cups of tsuyu (a thin, broth/soy-like sauce) also appeared with a small amount of wasabi and thinly sliced green onion - this was zaru-soba...cold noodles dunked into tsuyu, a typical way to eat it.
The soba itself was very subtly green as it was made with seaweed which imparted a very slight briny-sweetness. It was perfectly cooked - chewy but slightly soft. Slurping up mouthful after mouthful, the tray was soon empty and every bit was delicious.
Most soba places end their soba course with a small pot of soba-yu (the water in which the soba was cooked) to mix with the remaining tsuyu to create a warming and healthy drink to end the meal. Although you're forced to be a bit of an alchemist to get the soba-yu and tsuyu proportions just right, it is a perfect way to end a relaxing fabulous meal.
one of Hegisoba's soba masters (photo by wm. christman)
Long past the time to catch the last train home, we left Hegisoba Kon just before 2 am but we were barely the last party to leave. You don't have to stay until late but you will want to stay for a while and experience some of the best soba in Shinjuku, if not Tokyo.
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Hegisoba Kon
2-13-11 Shinjuku Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Phone: 03-3354-2927
Open Mon-Sat 6pm-1am Closed Sunday
Nearest station: Marunouchi line, Shinjuku-Gyoen Station. (5 min walk)
Toei Shinjuku line, Shinjuku-San-Chome Station. (2 min walk)
Google Map: 東京都新宿区新宿2-13-11
