Shinoya, a soba restaurant, is one of my favorites in Sapporo. It’s located only 5 minutes’ walk from the Sapporo Prince Hotel.
The soba noodle they serve is called “Sarashina” that uses only the core portion of soba grains and is whiter than others. Sarashina, therefore, is not to enjoy the aroma of soba but rather to enjoy its what we call “trace in the throat.” Noodle making of this kind requires years of hard work and experience, I hear.
The owner chef had unexpectedly passed away last year, however, his son took over the restaurant and its “one of a kind” soba is waiting for me just like before. It seems that Shinoya’s tradition was successfully handed over to his son.