Travelers love Sumiyoshi’s kishimen, but there’s a way to skip the long line and get a better deal on your meal.

Nagoya an outstanding destination for traveling foodies, thanks to the city’s numerous tasty claims to fame, including tempura shrimp rice balls, a special kind of local miso, and a unique breakfast culture. Then there’s Nagoya’s representative type of noodles, kishimen, broad udon noodles with a soy sauce-based broth.

Kishimen is so strongly associated with Nagoya that you can even find great places to try it inside Nagoya Station. Travelers regularly form a long line outside Sumiyoshi, a stand-and-eat kishimen joint on the Shinkansen platform.

▼ The Shinkansen platform Sumiyoshi

However, while passing through Nagoya Station the other day we found out that Sumiyoshi also has kishimen stands on three non-Shinkansen platforms, and these are the better ones to go to, for two reasons. First, they’re less crowded, or at least they were when we stopped by on a weekday afternoon. At that time, the Shinkansen platform branch, as usual, had a line to get in, but we could walk right into the Sumiyoshi on the non-Shinkansen Line 5/6 platform Sumiyoshi with no waiting.

▼ The Line 5/6 platform Sumiyoshi

The other reason to visit one of the non-Shinkansen Sumiyoshi branches? The One-coin Kishimen, which is exclusive to the regular-line branches.

▼ ワンコインきしめん = One-coin Kishimen

The “one coin” here refers to the price of just 500 yen (US$3.15), which is also the largest-denomination yen coin. Suiyoshi already charges 450 yen for a bowl of just plain kishimen noodles, and most topping options beyond some simple seaweed will cost you 700 yen or more. The One-coin Kishimen, though, is a thoroughly satisfying bargain.

Along with the noodles, you get a nicely sized tempura shrimp, some aburaage (fried tofu), katsuobushi (bonito flakes) and sliced green onion.

This isn’t a mini portion of kishimen to make up for the toppings, either. It’s a full-sized serving of noodles, with barely any additional charge for all the extras that are in the bowl with them. And the low price isn’t the result of the non-Shinkansen Sumiyoshi branches using lower-quality ingredients or skimping on seasonings either. We asked the staff if there was any difference between how the regular and Shinkansen-line locations prepare their noodles, and were informed that they all make their kishimen the exact same way.

All it took was a single taste to confirm that the staff was telling the truth. This tasted every bit as good as the Sumiyoshi kishimen we’d eaten on the Shinkansen platform on a previous visit, just at a more budget-friendly price.

In addition to the Line 5/6 platform branch that we ate at, Sumiyoshi also has kishimen stands on the Line 1/2 and 3/4 platforms, and it’s a pretty safe bet that their noodles are equally delicious. And should you be looking for dessert afterwards, Krispy Kreme Japan has some special donuts in Nagoya that you can’t get anywhere else in the world.

Restaurant information
Sumiyoshi (JR Nagoya Station Line 5/6 branch) / 住よし（JR名古屋駅 5・6番線店）
Address: Aichi-ken, Nagoya-shi, Nakamura-ku, Meikei 1-1-4, Nagoya Station interior
愛知県名古屋市中村区名駅1丁目1−4名古屋駅構内
Open 7 a.m.-9:30 p.m.
Website

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