A 3-minute walk from Omiya Station. "Bushu Udon Akane" was founded 41 years ago. The most popular dish is the "Hamburger Set" for 1,100 yen. 26 years ago, the second generation owner came up with this dish to turn around the restaurant after sales had fallen, and it was born from a completely unexpected idea. A 4-minute walk from Keisei Funabashi Station. "Ramen 963" was founded 15 years ago. The most popular dish is the "Funabashi Honbinosu Ramen" for 1,100 yen. The "secret sign" dish is the "Clam Chowder" which uses Honbinosu, a type of clam. It was ranked number one in Japan using the ramen technique "Kibomoshi Soup". "Chojuan" is a soba restaurant founded 62 years ago in Hanno City. A customer said, "I was looking for Western food and when I looked it up, this restaurant came up." The customer's goal is the "Omurice" for 980 yen. What was the first owner's intention behind the "secret sign" dish? ■ "Exquisite Hamburger" Born from Watching His Father's Back A 3-minute walk from Omiya Station. Bushu Udon Akane, which opened 41 years ago, has long queues at lunchtime. Its signature dish is the 630 yen Bushu Udon, made with Kansai-style broth and chewy handmade noodles. You'd think everyone was here to eat udon, but... Customer: "I was surprised when I first came here." First-time customer: "(Q. What kind of restaurant do you think this is?) A set meal restaurant?" "That's what I heard." There was a reason why customers were confused about what kind of restaurant it was. Regular customer: "One hamburger steak set from the udon restaurant." First-time customer: "It seemed a bit strange, but it's delicious." In fact, the most popular dish at this udon restaurant is the 1,100 yen "Udon Restaurant Hamburger Steak Set" topped with demi-glace sauce and cheese. Sayaka Masuda, announcer: "This hamburg steak is so fluffy that it's the first time I've ever eaten one like this. The demi-glace and cheese give it a Western flavor. Strangely enough, you can also taste a hint of Japanese flavor." The specialty is the fluffy texture created by mixing the ground beef with tofu and tofu. And what is the reason for the Japanese flavor, despite the demi-glace sauce? Yasuaki Sobue (48), second-generation owner of Bushu Udon Akane: "Both the demi-glace and the hamburg steak are kneaded with udon stock." By mixing stock made from dried mackerel and dried bonito into the meat and sauce, a deep Japanese flavor was created. But why hamburg steak at a udon restaurant? There was a reason for this. Sobue: "I came to this restaurant when the restaurant started to go under. I wanted to attract customers' attention." Sobue, who dropped out of university 26 years ago and became the second-generation owner, came up with a new menu to turn the restaurant around. The secret signature dish was born from the work that the father of the first owner did every morning. Sobue-san: "Kneading udon noodles and kneading hamburger steaks. I thought there was a common thread between them, so I thought it would be good." The exquisite hamburger steak was born while watching his father's back. It has now become the "secret signature dish" of the restaurant. ■ "Japan's best clam chowder" available at a ramen restaurant A four-minute walk from Keisei Funabashi Station in Chiba Prefecture. Ramen & Bar 963 is a ramen restaurant that has been in business for 15 years. On weekends, the restaurant, which has 15 seats, is full. A customer who came for the first time said, "It's confusing. I had a really hard time deciding which one to order, but I ended up ordering both." Here too, customers were confused. What is the best dish in Japan that was born from an exquisite ramen? A tourist from Mexico said, "It's delicious! There's no ramen like this in Mexico." "It's amazing! 10 out of 10." The signature dish is ramen made with the local Honbinos clams caught in Funabashi. Its flavor is stronger than clams. Masuda said, "The umami of the clams is amazing. It's like drinking the soup of steamed clams in sake. The thin noodles go well with the soup. The noodles are chewy." The "Funabashi Honbinos Ramen" is a limited edition that can only be served when the clams are landed. However, there is another dish that won the top spot in Japan. A customer who came to the restaurant for the first time said, "It was the best clam chowder I've ever eaten." A customer from Tochigi Prefecture said, "It was shocking." A customer said, "Why clam chowder at a ramen restaurant? I was wondering at first, but when I tried it, I was surprised, it was really delicious." It is topped with cream containing truffles. The "best clam chowder in Japan" is 780 yen, made with Honbinos clams. In Japan, clams are generally used, but in fact, American clam chowder uses hard clams. Masuda: "It's rich. It's delicious, with the umami of mushrooms and the sweetness of fish, shellfish, and vegetables. It's a very elegant clam chowder." "Ramen & Bar 963" Owner Kurokawa Yuji: "The Japanese Clam Chowder Championship was held as a revitalization project for Funabashi, and we won two years in a row." This was a domestic competition held to promote the specialty of Funabashi, the hard clams, and we won two years in a row. We also participated in and won a competition in the United States. We were given the title of number one in Japan, and started serving it at our restaurant. But despite being number one in Japan, why does clam chowder remain a "secret signature dish"? Kurokawa: "Clam chowder is derived from ramen dashi." "(Q. Is clam chowder because of ramen?) Yes." The rich taste of clam chowder comes from the technique used to make the ramen soup. Kurokawa: "It's called a callback soup, and by constantly adding new shells, you can make a rich broth." Clam chowder is made by making broth from about 100 kilograms of hard clams in two batches, which gives it a rich flavor. Nowadays, many customers eat clam chowder with ramen. In response to requests for rice, they have even introduced "chowder rice." ■The soba restaurant's secret signature dish: "Omurice" Meanwhile, in Hanno City, Saitama Prefecture, there is a long line at "Chojuan" during lunchtime. It is a soba restaurant that has been rooted in the community for 62 years, but... A customer who came to the restaurant for the first time said, "I wanted to eat Western food, so I looked it up and found this restaurant. When I got there, it was a soba restaurant." "I wondered what kind of place it was." "It's kind of unexpected, isn't it?" Western food at a soba restaurant!? Many of the customers order the "secret signature dish." What does this mean? The menu that is flying around the restaurant at lunchtime is "Omurice." This has been their secret signature dish since the restaurant opened. Onions are quickly fried with pork and about two cups of ketchup rice, then topped with a thoroughly cooked omelet. Finally, ketchup is poured on top to complete the dish. The omelet rice (with soup and fruit) costs 980 yen. What is surprising is the portion size. Chojuan's second-generation owner, Kazuhisa Yashiro (58), said, "(Q. Is it a large portion?) It's normal." Masuda: "The rice is sweet, but the ketchup on the outside has a good balance of sourness. The egg is thin and has a slight sweetness." A customer who has been here for 30 years: "It's delicious. When I come here, I always have to have the omelet rice." A customer who came for the first time: "It was quite light and easy to eat." The previous owner founded the restaurant in 1962. It was during the period of high economic growth when a bowl of udon cost about 40 yen. Yashiro: "At that time there were no family restaurants, so I thought that if I opened a soba restaurant with a family restaurant feel, it would be possible to make a business out of it..." He aimed to open a family restaurant where customers could enjoy a variety of dishes, regardless of genre, more than 60 years ago. So why does the sign still say "Soba Restaurant" today? Yashiro: "We are a local soba restaurant, so I think of soba restaurants as fast food to begin with." Thanks to the omelet rice, the restaurant is still bustling with customers today... He says he wants to continue adding more menu items other than soba in order to realize the family restaurant his parents envisioned. [TV Asahi News] https://news.tv-asahi.co.jp