Among noodle shops in Japan, if a soba chef masters its professional and creates own soba, different from others, he/she is recognized as a "soba master" and respected by people. Soba, Japanese buckwheat noodle is simple. For this reason, making soba is difficult and deep. It's like a concept of "zen." One of a famous soba master is Mr. Ishi Jin (石井仁), who has won Michelin stars. His main soba-kaiseki restaurant named "Nigyo (仁行)"is located in Nihonbashi (日本橋). But if you want to taste his soba in a casual manner, there is a hidden place in Yushima (湯島).
 |
| Entrance "Kosetsu" |
 |
| Inside |
 |
| Tempura soba set |
 |
| Soba with hot soup and fresh green laver |
 |
| Soba boiled hot water |
On the underground floor of hotel "Edoya (江戸屋)", a reasonable Japanese-style hotel particularly for overseas travelers, there is a soba shop named "Kosetsu (古拙)." The hotel itself is a bit old, but the interior of Kosetsu was well renovated. Stable and good atmosphere. Even one customer could be relaxed in this shop.
Menu is vary. We ordered a tempura soba set and a soba with hot soup and fresh green laver, one of their specialties. We waited a bit until soba was served, but it was worth for waiting. Tempura was just fried, hot and crispy. The famous soba was very thin and delicate. Unless we eat quickly, it will be stuck. The sophisticated soba was definitely nice, though I personally prefer a bit more dry soba dipping soup.
The other hot soba was more wonderful. The balance of soup and soba was perfect. I got to be addictive. If you are not used to laver, the appearance might not be favorable, but the taste is really nice. If I revisit, I will order this again. The price is 10-20% higher than usual soba shops maybe because of the fame. The portion is also small. If you go often, it might be uneconomical, but tasting nice soba occasionally, it would be OK. My rating is 3.7 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!
