Work took me out to Izumo Airport, and with a little time to spare I dropped by a soba shop nearby. Not skiving off, mind you, strictly an extension of work. I’m such a diligent, all-work type that everyone around me worries about me… okay, I’d probably get stones thrown at me for saying that. Anyway, after a filling lunch, nothing beats soba for cleansing the palate ^_^
I think it was about 200 meters from the airport, and I had no idea there was such a high-caliber soba shop in a place like this. From the outside it had the sign of a soba chain that’s fairly well known around here, so honestly I wasn’t expecting much, but it turned out to be the chain’s factory plus its flagship shop specializing in hand-made soba and udon. They moved an old traditional house here as it was and run the business in it, so the atmosphere inside was full of character too.
Kamo nan seiro soba
This is soba you dip in a duck broth. Soba really is all about enjoying its dynamic flavor. The fresh, nutty aroma spilling over the tray, noodles that feel springy when you pick them up with chopsticks and slip smoothly around your mouth as you chew, and a refined tsuyu with a nice kick from fresh wasabi, all at once; that bliss is nothing less than a gala show of flavor playing out in your mouth. I love soba, so I got a bit carried away there ^_^ Since this is kamo nan seiro, the dip isn’t the usual tsuyu but a broth simmered from duck. Winter is creeping in, and I was suddenly craving a duck broth to warm me up. It was a little sweet, but it was a carefully made broth. On top of that it comes with grilled leeks, which are a treat of their own. Even in Tokyo there aren’t many places that serve soba this properly, and here I found one out in the sticks… And the price is reasonable too, around 1,000 yen.
Soba-yu
Out came soba-yu (the buckwheat cooking water) of my favorite kind, so rich it was almost thick. It was so good I kept drinking it and it ran out fast, and they brought me a fresh pot of the lighter, not-so-thick kind. The service really touched me…
Soba ice cream for dessert
I asked if they had any desserts, and it turned out they had a whole range of soba desserts. Out of those I ordered the unusual one, soba ice cream. Honestly I hadn’t expected much from the desserts, but it was surprisingly high-level. It was nutty like peanuts or almonds, and I could enjoy the slightly gritty texture of the buckwheat husk.
After a pleasant meal I went back to the office and switched into work mode. And then a company dinner in the evening… It sounds like an excuse, but I’ve been living way too busy a life lately. There’s so much I want to do, and I’m not sure I can do all of it well… Maybe I’m just too greedy… Whatever else happens, I at least want to do a good job with this blog…