I'll be ending 2025 by having New Year's Eve soba at "Soba-ya Oomori" in Nakajima, Hamamatsu, which serves the finest soba noodles made with buckwheat flour selected from all over Japan, changing the flour each week. On New Year's Eve, they will be open earlier than usual, from 10:30 am to 2:00 pm, and will close once the soba is sold out.
When we arrived just before 11 AM, the parking lot was already full. A strong cold wave had hit the Japanese archipelago, bringing with it the bitter cold winds characteristic of Hamamatsu, but this year things went relatively smoothly, and we only had to wait about 30 minutes.
Because parking space here is limited, I arrived in my compact Porsche 991.2 that day, but another customer parked next to me commented, "That's a nice Carrera." He mentioned that he used to own a late-model 996, and from there we had a lively conversation about Porsches. We got so engrossed in talking about our shared hobby that the freezing wait passed in no time, and it turned out to be a truly heartwarming experience.
The restaurant is small and cozy, with a tatami room that seats about 10 people and a counter that seats about 4. The ceiling is high, and the space is filled with the warmth of wood. Opposite seats seem to have been discontinued, and single-slab tables are placed on either side, with customers seated in a single row.
This restaurant is run by the current owner, Masato Omori, who meticulously prepares freshly made soba noodles using hand-ground flour, and his wife, Saeko, who carefully fries the tempura. In recent years, Mr. Omori had begun to consider retirement, which prompted his daughter to take over and help out. The family continues to work together to keep the business running.
The custom of eating soba noodles on New Year's Eve for good luck began in the Edo period and has become an established part of Japanese culture, known as "Toshikoshi Soba" (New Year's Eve soba). There are various theories about the meaning behind eating Toshikoshi Soba, but let's introduce five of the most plausible ones.
1. Exorcism
The most famous explanation for eating soba noodles on New Year's Eve is that they break more easily than other types of noodles, symbolizing the wish to "cut off the misfortunes and hardships of the past year and not carry them over to the next." From this, it is said that the soba noodles came to be known as "relationship-cutting soba," signifying the desire to sever ties with bad things and welcome the new year with a fresh start.
2. Prayer for longevity
Because soba noodles are thin and long, eating them on New Year's Eve is said to symbolize a wish for longevity and good health. The custom of giving soba noodles as a gift when moving also carries this meaning.
3. Prayer for good health
The story goes that buckwheat, the raw material for soba noodles, is eaten as a symbol of good health because it quickly recovers even after being subjected to heavy rain and wind, as long as it is exposed to sunlight in the following sunny weather.
4. Increased financial luck
In the past, goldsmiths would form buckwheat flour into balls, attach gold or silver powder to them, and then dissolve the flour in water to collect the gold or silver powder. Buckwheat flour was also used when rolling out gold leaf, which is said to be how the idea arose that buckwheat is a lucky food that brings good fortune and wealth.
5. Improved luck
In the old Kamakura period, at Jotenji Temple in Hakata, they would serve soba rice cakes called "Yonoshi Soba" (world-reforming soba) to the poor as a way to celebrate the New Year.
It is said that those who ate the "world-reforming soba" experienced good fortune from the following year, and from then on, soba came to be considered a lucky charm, which led to the custom of eating soba on New Year's Eve.
Today's buckwheat flour is "new buckwheat from Ono, Fukui" for the steamed buckwheat noodles and "Hitachi Aki buckwheat from Ibaraki" for the country-style 80/20 buckwheat noodles.
The menu has also changed from the previous, more traditional vertically written menu to a charming, hand-drawn horizontally written one.
On this particular day, I was lucky enough to get my favorite counter seat, and I was able to enjoy watching the kitchen while eagerly awaiting my soba noodles.
"Taste Comparison" ¥1,200
The tasting set allows you to compare two types of soba noodles: seiro soba and inaka soba made with whole-grain buckwheat. The seiro soba in the foreground uses fresh buckwheat from Fukui Ono, and is a vibrant green color with a sweet taste that is very delicious. The inaka soba in the background uses Hitachi Aki buckwheat. This one has a richer buckwheat flavor due to being made with whole-grain buckwheat. You can enjoy the aroma and sweetness of the buckwheat in a different way by eating it with salt. The soba is made with buckwheat flour that has been hulled and ground in an electric stone mill, and is made with a 2:8 ratio of buckwheat to wheat flour, so you can enjoy its smooth texture. First, we recommend adding a little salt from the table to enjoy the aroma. After that, you can enjoy it with the soba dipping sauce.
Tempura ¥900
The tempura comes with five kinds of vegetables: eggplant, green beans, maitake mushrooms, carrots, and sweet potatoes, and one shrimp tempura, which is served with matcha salt.
"Hot Soba Noodles" ¥900
During these days of extreme cold brought on by a cold wave, I crave a comforting bowl of warm soba noodles, and a sip of the broth brings me comfort! After that, I slurp down the piping hot noodles in one go, and finally, I wait for the soba-yu (soba water) to arrive!
It's been a while since I've had "Oomori" handmade soba noodles. I savored the aroma of the new buckwheat and the skill of the experienced noodle maker.
The soba broth, after being swirled around three times, has become thick and creamy, making for a comforting final sip.
Just the other day, he was unwell and confined to bed.OmoriMr. Omori also greeted me cheerfully, saying, "Come by again when you have some free time!", so I was relieved to see him looking well. I was also happy to see his usual banter with Mr. Omori and the others.
Despite the restaurant being extremely busy, we were able to enjoy delicious New Year's Eve soba noodles while feeling the strong bond of the Omori family, making it a very satisfying New Year's Eve. We were able to see many smiles from people who have helped us this year, and we are grateful that we were able to safely ring in the new year. We look forward to your continued support next year.
Soba restaurant Oomori
Address: 1-31-1 Nakajima, Naka-ku, Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture
TEL: 053-463-2879
Opening hours: 11:30 - 14:00
Closed on: Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays, and the first Sunday of each month (please check our official Instagram for details).
https://www.instagram.com/sobaya.omori/
