With only 90 minutes on the clock, how much soba can one person eat?

Japan has a lot of impressive eating challenges, one of them even being a famous regional dish, and we at SoraNews24 have always been keen to test our mettle on them. This time, we’re passing the torch to a friend of one of our reporters who was keen to give it a go. The challenge in question is the All-You-Can-Eat Soba at Sagami, a chain restaurant specializing in Japanese cuisine with a focus on soba (“buckwheat”) noodles.

This event is held on the last day of every month, lasts for 90 minutes, comes with a serving of tempura (usually lightly battered and deep fried seafood and vegetables), and costs 2,090 yen (US$13.90).

Our Japanese-language reporter Natsuno Futon learned about this event through her friend and self-proclaimed “big-eater” Koguma-chan, who suggested they visited the restaurant together to take on the challenge. Koguma-chan was confident that she’d be able to handle it with ease, and with Natsuno keen to witness a record in the making, she swiftly met up with her friend and headed out.

They sat down at the table and made their order.

Koguma-chan: “I’m aiming for 12 portions!”

Natsuno: “Did you skip lunch?”

Koguma-chan: “I kept it light, just some harusame glass noodles and a rice ball… oh! And some bread!”

Natsuno: “That’s not light at all…”

The food arrived during their conversation, starting off with three portions of noodles in tiered boxes, along with some okra and grated yam on the side.

Everything in front of them looked delicious, and Koguma-chan couldn’t wait to get started.

Natsuno previously tried two tiers of noodles at a previous event, and walked away feeling stuffed, so she decided to sit out this all-you-can-eat challenge and just watch over Koguma-chan in support.

Koguma-chan began energetically eating, soon polishing off the first tier in no time at all and immediately ordering three more tiers.

Some close observation revealed that she was able to finish an entire portion in about four bites, and one tier of soba noodles is about 160 grams (about 5.6 ounces).

Her momentum seemed to have no end, and she looked like she was having a great time, switching up the flavors with some of the accompanying sauces and seasonings.

It seemed that Koguma-chan would still be eating for a while to come, so Natsuno turned her attention to a different sort of enjoyment, deciding to order the Fresh Melon and Baked Catalana Pudding for 640 yen from the seasonal menu.

The same plate offered both the taste of refreshing melon, as well as the slightly bitter, creamy catalana.

In between mouthfuls, Koguma-chan kept eyeing up the plate of desserts, but Natsuno steeled her heart and refrained from sharing it with her, wanting her to focus wholeheartedly on her soba challenge.

By this point, Koguma-chan had already reached seven portions of noodles.

Unfortunately, after just 30 minutes had passed, Koguma-chan paused to remark that it “might be getting to be too much.”

Soon after, she finally set down her chopsticks. So, what was the final result?

A total of eight tiers of soba noodles!

For some people, like Natsuno who can only finish off two, eight is a remarkable number, but Koguma-chan seemed frustrated that she wasn’t able to eat as much as she had thought.

In terms of weight, she’d slurped down over 1.2 kilograms (2.6 pounds) of noodles. Adding to that the tempura, rice ball, glass noodles, and bread she had just eaten, it’s safe to say that she did surprisingly well.

Natsuno: “If you hadn’t had lunch, you could probably have set a higher record.”

Koguma-chan: “No, no, I need a warm-up.”

Getting up to pay at the cash register, Koguma-chan happened to glimpse the record posted nearby: 89 tiers.

On July 1, Noda Yokouchi Store’s record was 27 tiers. The highest number from all stores for men was 89, and for women 82, and for seniors over 60-years-old, it was 19 tiers.

Koguma-chan was silent for a moment, before vowing that next time she’d crush that record. Still, she left the restaurant looking dejected at not being able to eat as much as she had hoped.

Koguma-chan made one final comment on the meal: “You know… that dessert you had looked really good. Next time I want to eat a lot of sweet foods.”

If you feel you have what it takes to set a record, or just really like noodles, remember to call into Sagami on the last day of the month. Or, if you can’t wait that long and are desperate to drown yourself in noodles, try your hand and stomach at wanko soba.

Photos ©SoraNews24
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[ Read in Japanese ]