Niku soba

A little before the main subject! What is niku-soba?
For those who don’t know, let’s talk about niku-soba.
* (Hereafter, excerpt from the website of the Kahoku Cold niku-soba Study Group)

Before the war, people going for a drink used to go to the soba shops as they were the only place that served alcohol.
At that time, there were few options on the menu, and most customers drank sake with boiled horse meat as a snack.
And the finished their night out with a dish of soba.

When I think of soba, I think of soba on a plate, but during those days, soba was served in a bowl.

It is said that one day, a customer tried to eat his remaining stewed horse meat over soba and found it unexpectedly delicious.
It then came to be ordered like that by regular customers and became a popular off-the-menu item.

Niku soba is a dish born from the requests of the customers.
It is soba noodles in a chilled soup of chicken stock and soy sauce flavor.

The meat is not pork or beef, but chicken.
It features a countryside soba that is as strong-tastedas the rich dashi stock.

The  soba is topped by crunchy chicken and green onion cut into small pieces.

It is a simple dish, but once you try it, you’ll want to eat it again …
It is a taste of Kahoku Town that has been loved by the locals for a long time. 

I see, it was an off-the-menu dish!

It originated in Kahoku Town, Yamagata Prefecture, about 40 minutes by car from Yamagata City.
I knew it was, but not that it was the horse meat that was on top in the first place!

Oh yeah, niku-soba broth is basically chilled.
You can choose the hot version too, but I definitively recommend the shilled one!
It is better than the warm one that will soften the noodles too much.
So if you want to eat niku-soba, I want you to choose the chilled version!
Well, let’s get back to the main subject (laughs)

Soba shop Hiro, famous for niku soba

The Soba shop Hiro is located in the Shima district of Yamagata City.
It is one of my favorite soba shop and I go often.

It’s quite far from the nearest station, so if you don’t have a car, take a taxi or rent a car.

It’s in an open place, so it’s easy to find!

The shop is always busy and there are many cars with plates of outside the prefecture during the Golden Week holidays! It’s a popular shop!

Niku soba

Of course I love soba! However, actually, I eat niku chuka instead of niku soba every time.

It’s not soba per say but Chinese noodles, so I will introduce both this time! (Laughs) Because both are delicious!

I ordered niku chuka. However, I always hesitate…

Of course, my lunch companion ordered niku soba.

If two people ask for different things, you can share! (Smile)

I always ask for ladies’ size, but even so it will fill you up!

The servings at Hiro are large to start with.
I think that the normal size is quite satisfactory.
Check how hungry you are and place an order (laughs)

The price of a normal size niku soba is 700 yen,
The ladies’ size will be 650 yen, which is a 50 yen discount.

Somewhat cheap!

With this volume, it’s delicious and this price… That’s right (laughs)

The recommendation is to order gesoten (squid tentacle tempura) or mimi nanten (squid fin tempura) together!
I always order gesoten together.

The taste

I want to eat this every day!
The slightly sweet soup stock worked, but it wasn’t too thick, it is delicious soup that makes you want to drink it all.

The soup is cold, so the noodles are chewy and delicious without getting soggy.
I can’t find any words other than delicious…

Of course, niku soba is also delicious! The noodles are a little thicker and have a satisfying taste!
And gesoten with a little green seaweed in the batter! Crispy! Hot!

I’m happy!

From beginning to end, everything is just delicious!

Both niku soba and chuka soba are delicious from start to finish.
If possible, I really want to take this broth home and drink it every day.

As a side note…
The taste of the broth for niku soba and niku chuka is slightly different!

After all, it seems that soba is suitable for niku soba, and Chinese noodles are suitable for chuka soba.
Both are delicious and I’m really in trouble. I wish there was a combo dish… (laughs)

Both my stomach and my heart are filled! Thank you for the meal!

Finally...

Hiro seems to be serving only soba during the Golden Week holidays, so you won’t be able to order niku-chuka during that time!

Shop information

Genre
Soba, ramen, tsukemen

Hours
11:00~15:00 & 17:00~20:00
11:00~20:00 on weekends and holidays

Closed
Wednesday, and when out of noodles

* Opening hours and days may be different due to COVID-19. Please inquire directly with the shop before visiting.

Nearest Stations
JR Aterazawa Line (Fruit Line Aterazawa Line) Higashi-Kanai Station: approximately 2.5 km
JR Ou Main Line (Yamagata Line: Fukushima-Shinjo) Uzen-Chitose Station: approximately 2.5 km

Parking
About 20 cars

Seats
There are table seats and tatami mat seats (all seats are non-smoking)

Recommended Items (introduced in this article)
・Niku soba (chilled or hot)… 700 yen
・Niku chuka (chilled or hot)… 700 yen
・Gesoten (squid tentacle tempura)… 250 yen
・Miminanten (squid fin tempura)… 350 yen

* Information as of November 2018

Click here for recommended articles about Yamagata soba

Soba Country Yamagata! Four shops in Yamagata, Kaminoyama and Tendo
https://www.visityamagata.jp/en/post-2977-en/

Zabun! New popular soba shop
https://www.visityamagata.jp/en/post-950-en/

Azumaya! Handmade soba recommended for children
https://www.visityamagata.jp/en/post-1388-en