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Metoba Soba

The Metoba River runs through the center of Matsumoto City. On the banks of the river, there is "Metoba Soba" established in 1952. The buckwheat flour is made from fully ripened brown buckwheat selected by farmers in Matsumoto City. The handmade buckwheat noodles, made entirely from homemade "whole-layer" buckwheat flour, which is stone ground with the entire fruit husk, are known for their rich taste and strong flavor.

We recommend the "Mikasane Soba," a specialty that has been on the menu since the establishment of the restaurant. The soba is served in a three-tiered buckwheat noodle bowl and comes with three different flavors: nori (seaweed), yam, and green tea.
Another recommended dish is "Soba Usuyaki," an adaptation of the Matsumoto region's local food "Usuyaki. The simple taste of thinly baked dough made of buckwheat flour and water, coated with a special sweetened miso paste, is nostalgic. In addition, there are soba noodles made with Matsumoto's single green onion, which are available only during the winter season.

Taste the historic flavor in a storehouse-style restaurant

Because of its proximity to Nakamachi-dori Avenue, lined with storehouse-style buildings, the exterior of "Onna-Toba Soba" is also made of storehouse-style buildings with namako-style walls. The building, which is in harmony with the townscape, has received the "Matsumoto Cityscape Award. Inside the restaurant, there is a small tatami room and table seating, and next to the table seating is a private flour mill. Depending on the time of day, you can watch the soba being slowly milled on a millstone.
Stop by during a break from sightseeing along Nakamachi-dori and enjoy excellent soba noodles in a relaxing Japanese atmosphere. It is the perfect location for such a visit.

Onna-Toba Soba

• 3-4-8 Chuo, Matsumoto, Nagano MAP
• 13 minutes walk from Matsumoto Station
• 11:00-19:00
• Wednesdays and the 3rd Tuesday of the month
• 0263-35-8502
• Free of charge

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Genchi no soba

The soba shop is located next to "Genchi no Iido," a well known for its water, which is representative of the "Matsumoto Castle Town Spring Water Group. This well water, which has been used not only for drinking but also for sake brewing since the Edo period, is used for soba noodles and soup stock. The owner, who trained in Togakushi, a famous soba production area in Shinshu, uses a blend of Togakushi buckwheat flour and fine, flavorful Hokkaido buckwheat flour. The soba is handmade and served as nihachi soba. The soba has a glossy surface and is smooth to the touch. The soba has a smooth, glossy surface, and the absence of any cloying taste gives it a sweetness that is unmistakable. The soba is served with a slightly thicker broth made from bonito and additive-free soy sauce. It goes well with soba.
The restaurant also offers soba served in a way that is familiar to Togakushi people: "egoma-soba," which is served with ground sesame seeds as condiments. The flavor of the egoma enhances the taste of the soba even more.

Modern interior with a sense of style

The restaurant is housed in a building that used to be a coffee shop, and what stands out most is the counter seating with a large window and latticework. Colorful chairs accentuate the tasteful space. The window faces the street and allows one to see what is going on inside, making it easy for a woman alone to enter.
Since the restaurant opens at 10:00 a.m. in the morning, starting your day at "Genchi no Ido" as a starting point for sightseeing after having the famous soba noodles will further enhance your travel experience.

Genchi's Soba

• 3-7-8 Chuo, Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture MAP
• 10 minutes walk from Matsumoto Station
• Monday-Saturday 10:00-18:00, Sunday 10:00-15:00
  Sold out soon.
• Thursdays
• 0263-33-6340
• Free of charge

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Gosoba Utsudokoro Nomugi

One alley off Nakamachi-dori, one of Matsumoto's sightseeing spots, leads to "Gosoba Utsudokoro Nomugi" (Soba Brewery Nomugi). It is a popular restaurant with a reputation for both taste and skill, so much so that it is said that when a soba chef trained at this restaurant becomes independent and opens a restaurant, the number of famous restaurants increases.
Soba is basically served only as zarusoba. The ninety percent buckwheat noodles are made from ninety percent buckwheat flour and ten percent buckwheat glue grown in the Ono district of Tatsuno Town, which is adjacent to Shiojiri City. The soba is served on the restaurant's original, well-drained bamboo colander made by a Togakushi bamboo craftsman, and is extremely thin and has an excellent smoothness. As soon as you put it in your mouth, the aroma of the soba will spread out. You can choose from two sizes, large or half, according to your preference.

Enjoy seasonal flavors at a restaurant where you must wait in line

The restaurant has 12 seats. Although the restaurant is small and cozy, each table is decorated with flowers, which shows the attention to detail. Not only locals, but also visitors from all over Japan and abroad come to try Nomugi's soba, and during peak season, lines form even before the restaurant opens. Seating reservations are not available, and the restaurant closes when all the soba is gone, so it is recommended to visit a little earlier than lunch time.
A la carte dishes using seasonal local ingredients, such as wild vegetables from spring to early summer and mushrooms in autumn, are limited to what can be made. In winter, the menu features unusual items such as roasted local bee larva with salt and pickled inekoki rape, a traditional vegetable from the Inekoki district in the western part of Matsumoto City. Only in winter, visitors can enjoy hot soba noodles with shiitake mushrooms, deep-fried tofu, spinach, and other ingredients.

Nomugi Soba Brewery

• 2-9-11 Chuo, Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture MAP
• 10 minutes walk from Matsumoto Station
• 11:30-14:00 *Close as soon as sold out
• Tuesdays and Wednesdays (open if Tuesday or Wednesday is a national holiday)
• 0263-36-3753
• None

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Teuchi-Soba Aruppusu

Teuchisoba Aruppusu was established in 1894. The fourth-generation owner's skill shines through at this restaurant, where you can enjoy soba noodles. Three types of soba noodles are prepared using buckwheat flour made from unpolished buckwheat and mineral reduced water that is close to rock water. You can enjoy the flavorful Jyuwari Soba, the smooth Nihachi Soba, and the elegant Mizu Soba. The soup is made from kelp, bonito, dried bonito, Soda-bushi, dried sardines, and dried shiitake mushrooms, and is combined with locally brewed soy sauce to create a deep, spicy flavor. We recommend the "Yamabiko Set," which allows you to enjoy three types of soba. You can compare soba noodles, each of which has its own distinctive characteristics.

To enjoy soba in three different ways, the soba is served with water and salt. For the connoisseur, soak the soba in a little water to enjoy the aroma and smoothness of the soba. You can also eat soba with salt on your chopsticks and enjoy the sweetness of the soba, or with soba-tsuyu (soba sauce), which enhances the sweetness of the soba.

A tatami room with a view of the Japanese garden

The restaurant has both tatami room and table seating, with a view of the well-kept Japanese garden at the back of the restaurant. Since foreign tourists also visit the restaurant, English-language menus are available and include information such as "Why drink sobayu" and "Origin of nihachi soba". Partitions are placed between the seats, so you can relax without worrying about the seat next to you.

Teuchisoba Aruppusu

• 3-1-13 Asama hot spring, Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture MAP
• From Matsumoto Station, take the Matsumoto Dentetsu bus bound for "Sengen Onsen via Shinshu University" (approx. 20 min.), get off at "Hot Plaza Sengen-mae" and walk 1 minute.
• 11:30-14:30(L.O.), 17:30-20:30(L.O.)
• Wednesday
• 0263-46-1471
• Free of charge

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Matsumoto Soba Restaurant Motoki

Motoki is located on the north side of Matsumoto Castle, not far from the "Old Kaichi School," which is designated as an important cultural property of Japan. High-quality brown buckwheat noodles purchased from contract farmers in Nagano Prefecture are milled in-house on a millstone every day. The "ginjo soba" is made from only the most delicious part of the buckwheat, which takes 10 days to grind down to the "heartbeat," which is only about 30% of the whole buckwheat, and has an elegant, clear flavor with no cloying taste at all. The soba is complemented by a soup stock with just the right amount of sweetness from the dried bonito that was carefully selected by visiting Yaizu.

We recommend the "morisoba," which shows off the flavor of the buckwheat. The "Moriten-soba," which consists of one cold soba and one hot tempura soba, is especially popular among soba connoisseurs, who come from far and wide to enjoy the excellent soba both hot and cold.
Tempura is made with seasonal ingredients, such as wild vegetables in spring and summer vegetables in summer, and a la carte dishes incorporating local ingredients, such as hitted beans and mushrooms, are also offered.

Various types of seating, including small rooms and tatami rooms

The restaurant offers a variety of seating options, including comfortable tables, tatami rooms, and a small Western-style room, allowing diners to choose the style that best suits their needs. The Japanese-style rooms are decorated with hanging scrolls and flowers, while the Western-style rooms are decorated with pictures and objets d'art, each with a different flavor, offering a fresh experience each time you visit.
This is a perfect place to stop by between historical walks, such as Matsumoto Castle and the former Kaichi Gakko (a school in Matsumoto).

Matsumoto Soba Restaurant Motoki

• 2-2-32 Kaichi, Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture MAP
• 16 minutes walk from Kita Matsumoto Station
• 11:00-15:00
• Tuesdays (open if Tuesday is a national holiday)
• 0263-36-3410
• Free of charge