Soba is one of Japan’s traditional dishes. These buckwheat noodles are the star at “Teuchi Soba Keyaki” in Roppongi, Tokyo. This place is all about embracing the age-old traditions of soba, serving dishes with a clear focus on quality.
Traditional Japanese soba in the heart of Roppongi
When it comes to soba, it’s all about the taste, smell, and the nodogoshi, the pleasant sensation of food as it glides down your throat. Teuchi Soba Keyaki takes these factors seriously, especially the aroma, aiming to make it stand out. To deliver the best soba experience, they stick to three main traditional practices.
The first one involves grinding soba grains, with their husks still on, right there in the restaurant using a stone mill. This method results in a mostly coarse soba flour, keeping wheat flour usage under 10%, which really lets the soba flavor come through.
The stone mill at Teuchi Soba Keyaki
The second key practice is the mizumawashi (water mixing) step, where water is evenly mixed into the soba flour. This step is crucial; the tastiness of soba noodles is said to depend heavily on it. At Teuchi Soba Keyaki, they adjust the water amount and how fast they mix it by hand every day, based on the day’s weather and humidity, always striving for the best balance without using machines. This is where the artisans’ skills, honed through long years of experience, truly shine.
The last step is cutting the soba. Teuchi Soba Keyaki’s noodles have a perfect balance of aroma, released with every bite, and smooth nodogoshi. Just like with mizumawashi, this step also requires great skill to perfect.
The dipping sauce plays a big role in bringing out the soba’s best flavors. Just like most soba restaurants, Teuchi Soba Keyaki prepares two types of dipping sauce, one for cold soba and one for hot soba. For the cold soba, they use a top-notch type of bonito flake called honkare honbushi, aged over two years, that really enhances the soba with a deep umami taste.
“Kamonanban-soba,” a must-try for hot soba lovers
For the hot soba, they use a mix of bonito and mackerel for the stock, paying a lot of attention to the aroma. The moment they bring it to your table, the delicious aroma wafts through the air. Among the hot soba dishes, their “Kamonanban-soba,” with its savory duck flavor blending into the soup, is particularly notable. The portions of duck meat, large enough to cover up the noodles, will surely draw your attention.
“鴨南蛮そば,” Kamonanban-soba 2,990 JPY (tax included)
The duck in the Kamonanban-soba is not just large but also thick, which makes for a really satisfying chew. The restaurant chooses to cut the duck thicker on purpose, so you can truly appreciate the texture of the meat.
This thick duck meat is incredibly juicy, releasing rich flavors with each bite. Seasoned and cooked to perfection before being served, it has a satisfying crunch. The richness of the meat is complemented by a dash of seven-spice powder from the table. This addition of spice provides a pleasant zing, making the duck even more delicious.
The meatballs are made from a mix of chicken and duck, and they’re full of ginger, giving them a refreshing aftertaste that’s not too heavy.
In sum, Teuchi Soba Keyaki’s Kamonanban-soba combines juicy duck, a broth rich in sweetness and umami, and carefully crafted soba noodles into a dish that’s meant to be enjoyed one bite at a time.
Tempura rice bowl full of seasonal delights
Though Teuchi Soba Keyaki specializes in soba, they put just as much effort into their tempura, rivaling even specialized tempura places in terms of quality.
“小海老天丼卵黄添え せいろのセット,” Koseiro set with rice topped with shrimp tempura and egg yolk 2,390 JPY (tax included)
The tempura is served with the restaurant’s special sauce featuring Japanese soy sauce. As it’s situated in Roppongi, a place frequented by visitors from abroad, the restaurant values this ingredient, a favorite among those seeking an authentic experience. The secret, sweet-and-savory sauce saturates the kakiage tempura, which is then topped with an egg of a special brand noted for its brightly colored yolk. The rich yolk adds a delicious richness to the tempura, making it exceptional.
At Teuchi Soba Keyaki, the tempura rice bowl changes several times during the year because they want you to taste what’s in season. If they can’t get seasonal ingredients, they won’t serve it, making it a rare item on the menu. This shows how seriously they take choosing their ingredients.
But it’s not just the tempura rice bowl. This care goes into everything they serve, like the soba and the sauce. They do all this because they really want everyone who visits to enjoy their meal.
Exterior of Teuchi Soba Keyaki
Information
| Store name | 手打ち蕎麦 欅 Teuchi Soba Keyaki |
|---|---|
| Address | West Walk, Roppongi Hills 5F, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
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| Access |
Roppongi Station 2-minute walk from Roppongi Station Nishi-Azabu Gate
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| Phone number | 03-6459-2152 |
| Reservations | Accepted Phone, official website |
| Payment |
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| Service charge/Table charge | None |
| Hours | 11:00-23:00（last order 21:30） |
| Closed | No holidays excluding Roppongi Hills holidays |
| Seating | 28 seats 2 counter seats, 22 table seats, 4 private dining room seats |
| Smoking | All seats are non-smoking |
| Official website | https://sobakeyaki.com/ |
| Ohter information |
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※Menu contents, prices, store information, etc. are current as of March 2024.
