From the west exit of Yoyogi Station, I passed under the Yamanote Line overpass and passed the foot of Docomo Tower to Meiji Dori. To the left was Shinjuku Station, and to the right was Kita-sando and the Harajuku area. I rarely come to the other side of the station, but there was a shop I had been checking out for a while, so I invited Omura (nicknamed Omu-san) from our editorial team to go there.
I arrived at the restaurant I was looking for along Meiji-dori. While reading the lunch menu outside, I suddenly looked across the street and saw a white flag. It read "Ore no Ie" in ink letters on a white background.
"It says 'my house' over there, right? It looks interesting, so can I just go and have a look?"
I looked back at Omu-san and he smiled and said, "Of course!"
I made a detour, intending to just take a quick stroll.
If you go to check out a sign that catches your eye even from afar, you might discover an unexpected restaurant. What kind of restaurant is "Ore no Ie"? Is it one of those "Ore no XX" type restaurants that have been popping up lately? Or maybe it's a nice set meal restaurant... I crossed the street and realized, "Oh." It's not "Ore" but "Taki"... In other words, it's not "Ore no Ie" but "Taki no Ie."
I was the only one who was excited and said "That's my house lol", but it seems that Omu had seen it as a "waterfall" from the beginning. Quite embarrassing. Anyway, it turned out that "Takinoya" was a soba restaurant. The exposed concrete exterior was lined with stepping stones and had a maroon-colored shop curtain hanging. It looked pretty nice.
From a distance, this looked like Orenoya.
It was midday, and the sun was shining brightly. I had walked all the way from Yoyogi-san-chome, and the heat was at its limit. The image of eating soba noodles in a quiet, cool restaurant came to my mind. We immediately agreed that soba noodles sounded great, and decided to try the soba restaurant we came across by chance on our way there.
Takinoya Lunch
The entrance along Meiji-dori that we came through was hidden away from the view into the store, but once we entered the store, we found another entrance on the opposite side, which seemed to be the main entrance.
The interior of the restaurant is spacious. There are tables and seats surrounding the counter, and the counter seats seem most comfortable for those coming alone.
We sat at a table by the window.
The words "Sendagaya Takinoya, Established 60 Years Ago" were printed on the menu. So, this is a soba noodle restaurant that has been in business for 60 years. I was really sorry to have misread the name of such a historic restaurant as "Ore no Ya." I flipped through the menu with a solemn feeling.
I was attracted by the description of the "cold soba" that said "it's refreshing with small shrimp," so I decided on grated daikon radish soba. My mother chose duck soba.
After placing our order, we continued looking at the menu. The a la carte menu had a lineup of classic soba restaurant snacks, such as kamaboko (fish cake), thick omelet, chicken wasabi (steamed chicken), stewed pork cutlet, grilled duck, and tempura. We thought to ourselves, "Let's order a few of these, have a few drinks, and finish off with some soba! Sounds good!" as we both thought about our soba restaurant drinking experience.
This is duck soba.
The thin, light-colored soba noodles came out on a vermilion-lacquered steamer. They said it was Nihachi soba. The soup was poured into a bowl filled with grated daikon radish, and I slurped it down. It was delicious. My son, who was eating the duck steamer, was also smiling. We both kept eating without stopping, and finally took a break with some soba soup.
Until a few years ago, I had no interest in soba noodles at all, but recently, I find myself craving them every now and then. I wonder if I've finally become an adult who can appreciate the goodness of soba noodles.
Now, after finishing my meal, I don't linger around, but pay the bill. I ate quickly and left the restaurant feeling like an Edo townsman.
I made one more detour that day. Diagonally opposite Takinoya, there was a shop that looked like a Showa-era candy store. Ever since I was eating my soba, I had wondered if there was something there. The shop was called "Mosakuro Shoten" and apparently it stocks a selection of local specialties from around the country. It wasn't a candy store, but I spotted some Amami banana popsicles in the freezer case and couldn't help but buy one.
We once again stepped out onto Meiji Dori Street under the scorching sun. With our popsicles melting in our hands, we somehow made it back to Monosas.
Later. Takinoya, night
Bottled beer with chicken wasabi as a snack. The adult world.
A few days later, I visited Takinoya again with the Hiroshima duo from Monosus (Omu-san and Haga-chan).
It was close to closing time, so there was only one other customer. I ordered a beer and a cold sake. The cold sake came in a glass with ice in the middle. From the a la carte menu, I chose a thick omelet, chicken wasabi, and shrimp tempura. The thick, slightly sweet omelet made by a soba restaurant is a dish that you definitely want to order.
Hot fried egg!
The chicken wasabi and tempura were freshly made and delicious. There weren't many dishes, but the food was what you'd expect from a soba restaurant. For the final course, I ordered duck soba, and chilled eggplant and chilled pork shabu-shabu from the "seasonal soba." By the time I finished eating, it was just about time for the restaurant to close. I only stayed there for a little under an hour, but I was able to enjoy my long-awaited soba restaurant drinking experience.
When I went outside, the cool, pleasant breeze seemed like a lie, unlike the heat of the day. I felt it would be a waste to take the train right away, so I decided to just stroll to Shinjuku Station. Even though I was close to Shinjuku Station, there were few people on the streets and the roads were wide. I walked to the station in a good mood, and then we broke up after drinking some hot coffee as a real finale to the night. It was a nice, relaxed evening.
It's quite far from Monosas, but it's only 5 minutes from Yoyogi Station and about 10 minutes from Shinjuku Station on foot.
Takinoya is a place where you can drop in quickly after work to have a few drinks and some soba noodles.
Sendagaya Takinoya
5-15-12 Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
TEL 03-3354-3315
Opening times
11:00-21:00 (weekdays) / 11:00-15:00 (Saturdays)
Closed: Sundays and public holidays
FURIHATA Yukari