Must-try Soba Restaurants in Tokyo for Sake and Small Plates

This home-style restaurant is known for its selection of appetizers, designed to be paired with sake. The carefully prepared sake accompaniments reflect years of expertise in Japanese cuisine. A popular choice is ni-shoku soba, a two-variety serving. The first is plain soba on a seiro, or bamboo steamer, while the second can be selected from country-style soba, hot soba in broth or herring soba.

Near Higashi-Nagasaki Station, this restaurant has been in business for three generations. The menu includes the classics expected of a soba shop, such as tamagoyaki (rolled egg), sobagaki (buckwheat dumplings) and roast duck. The soba is thin-cut juwari, made from 100% buckwheat, for texture and aroma. Reservations are not accepted at lunch but are essential for dinner.

Close to Asakusa’s Kappabashi Kitchenware Town, this restaurant serves sake accompaniments prepared with the precision the chef honed in kappo dining. Seats at the counter are sought after, where the cheerful restaurant owner welcomes diners with first-rate hospitality.

A short walk from Suiten-gu Shrine, known as a place to pray for safe childbirth, this restaurant offers a wide range of soba-mae, including hot tempura fried at the counter. This popular restaurant doesn’t accept reservations for lunch, so arriving early is recommended.

Close to the Nishi-Azabu intersection, this restaurant is known for its seasonal soba. The chef showcases the versatility of soba through seasonal ingredients, serving hand-made noodles with a refreshing tsuyu dipping sauce.

This restaurant in Kagurazaka serves thin-cut soba noodles. Meoto soba — a combination of soba and udon — is a notable option. After the meal, the streets of Kagurazaka invite a stroll, with cafés nearby for a relaxed pause.