Shí Shàn Chǎng Sēn Xié - 幕別町

Visited in October 2019 and ordered the Burdock Tempura Soba (850 yen). Cold tofu was served first, as this restaurant seems to also specialize in tofu dishes. I lightly drizzled soy sauce on the tofu and it was delicious. After a little wait, the Burdock Tempura Soba arrived. The noodles were flat and slightly chewy. The broth was on the sweeter side. The burdock tempura was served separately on a plate and was much larger than expected. It was divided into four pieces, which were then dipped into the broth one by one. The sweet broth soaked into the crispy tempura coating, making it delicious. The texture of the burdock was also excellent.

There was a sign at the entrance saying "Our popular item with lots of orders, Burdock Tempura Soba," so I ordered it in a large size. However, the waitress told me, "We don't have large size here," as she placed what seemed like a tofu dish as a service. It was my first time experiencing "no large size" at a soba shop in Tokachi. But when the burdock tempura came out, I was surprised by how big and thick it was! Even though Tokachi is known for its burdock, this was too big... The waitress said, with a smile, "If you can't finish it, you can take it home," hinting at the portion size. The amount of soba in the kakebukuro style was decently generous, making me understand why there was no large size option. The medium-thick noodles made with whole wheat flour mixed with a bit of outer skin were slightly soft. The crunchy and thick burdock tempura was cut into four pieces for easy eating, and I dipped each piece in the cold dipping sauce as I enjoyed it. As expected, I ended up leaving a quarter of the tempura but finishing all the soba.

I never knew there was a restaurant like this in a place like this.