On my way home from work, I felt hungry so I decided to stop by the long-established standing soba shop called "Kameya" in Omoiden Yokocho, Shinjuku. I ordered their popular dish, the "Cold Tempura and Egg Soba" for 510 yen. When the staff called out the price as 510 yen, I thought I misheard, but when I checked the menu, it was indeed 510 yen. Oh no, I can't eat "Tempura and Egg Soba" for just one coin anymore! If it was tempura soba (udon), I would have received change for one coin, but I really wanted the egg. The price has gone up by 50 yen since my last visit... Thank you for the meal.

I entered the restaurant around 8:30 am on the first day of a three-day weekend. I had been wanting to eat soba at this restaurant for a while, but it was always crowded with inbound tourists and trendy people, making it difficult to get a seat. Today, there was only one person ahead of me, so I was able to enter immediately. There were two people in the kitchen, busy with preparations. I ordered the tempura soba, which came with a large piece of tempura on top. I wanted extra green onions, but decided against it due to the high prices. The tempura was crispy, even though it didn't seem freshly fried. It had a nice crunch. The soba noodles had a good texture, with a firm bite. The broth was rich and flavorful. As I ate, I started to crave some white rice to go with the tempura that had soaked up the broth. By the time I finished my meal, there were six more customers in the restaurant. It was getting busier. There were some Western-looking customers gesturing to place their orders. I guess I came at a good time. Thank you for the meal.

I visited the restaurant on a regular night after drinking. There were 3 people waiting in line. There were many foreigners at the counter! It seems to be a tourist spot. I ordered the Tempura Soba for 510 yen and paid in advance. The food was served quickly after ordering. A few years ago, I remember the broth being very strong, but it wasn't as strong this time. The noodles were soft, the tempura was a bit soggy. The egg was runny and delicious. There was a line next to the restaurant, with many foreigners waiting. There were also many foreigners at the tables, which made the turnover slow. This restaurant is definitely a tourist spot.

I went for a 30km bike ride to strengthen my butt muscles because it's said to be the original! It's located in Omoiden Yokocho, so it's a bit hard to find. I ordered the Tempura Soba, which cost around 510 yen and was served in a bowl. The broth goes all the way to the edge of the bowl, so you have to be careful not to spill it! The soba noodles are firm and substantial. The broth is delicious without being too sharp! The tempura mainly consisted of onions, and I couldn't tell what else was in it. The soft-boiled egg is a nice addition! I enjoyed slurping up the noodles, thank you for the meal! I'm off to the Shinbashi branch now!

The best stand-up soba restaurant in Shinjuku. I arrived after 3:00 pm, so there was no line and the seats were half full, so I was able to sit down right away. I thought I was lucky, but later I encountered an unexpected pitfall... I usually love the warm soba with tempura, but since it was hot today, I ordered the cold soba with tempura for ¥450. Maybe because it was past the peak hours, the noodles were pre-cooked and the tempura was cold. I realized that it's better to wait in line for freshly cooked noodles and tempura during peak hours.

It's hot and I only want to eat cold food on a day like this. I need to eat something. A quick and easy place to eat. "It's still only 11 o'clock, maybe I can go to Kameya," I thought, visiting after a long time. No line at all. During lunchtime, there is usually quite a queue. Because of this heat, I opted for cold tempura soba. The broth here is quite strong in flavor, so ideally, cold soba should be served in a seiro. But I chose the easier option of cold tempura. Well, the service is fast from ordering to serving. It's like you can go get your water while waiting for your order. It's that quick (laughs). Not only during lunchtime, but there are also queues at odd times. A confusing shop. Because of the heat, I chose cold soba, but I actually prefer warm soba. The hot tempura with a strong sweet and salty broth is delicious! However, the soba itself can be hit or miss. They often mix the new batch of boiled soba with the old one to save time. This continuous loop of soba can go on forever. Sometimes, they serve soba that is cut into pieces. The chances are high, so it's a bit of a gamble. When you're short on time, this place is a lifesaver with its quick service. The speed here is incomparable to other self-service places. It's recommended when you're busy! Thank you for the meal.

Today it is raining since the morning. The September rain is falling on the back of the seat where I am sitting. I ordered the classic "tendama soba" with warm soba noodles topped with grated tororo kombu. The dark-colored broth becomes even richer. The flavor is also intense. However, when eaten with tempura, it is incredibly delicious. The warm egg makes the rich broth milder and dipping the soba noodles in it is also great. I enjoyed my meal today as well. Thank you for the delicious food.

Recently, I had been giving up on trying to eat here because there always seemed to be a long line whenever I peeked in from the street. Maybe they have a lot of inbound customers. But today, surprisingly, there was a seat available so I quickly sat down! I ordered the original cold tempura soba for 490 yen, which used to be 450 yen. The tempura here goes really well with the cold soba. It's crispy and crunchy, which I think is why. I found myself unintentionally eating more tempura than soba, so maybe I should have ordered the large size. But I was just the right amount of full in the end.

Seiro of Tenyoku for 490 yen at the Shinjuku Nishiguchi Omoide Yokocho noodle shop. It used to be a standing soba shop, but recently they have started to set up chairs as well. On a sweltering night, I wanted to eat seiro. I ordered the Tenyoku seiro. The dipping sauce stands out with the flavor of bonito flakes and the richness of soy sauce. The crispy tempura has a lot of batter and is a bit firm, but when dipped in the sauce, it becomes deliciously moist. The fresh soba, which emphasizes freshness, has a smooth and pleasant texture, not too soft or too hard, with just the right amount of firmness. When mixed with the warm egg, it puts you in a happy mood.

Today's lunch was cold zaru soba from Kameya near Shiojiri, for the first time in 9 years! The addition of a warm boiled egg got me excited! With just one bite, you can tell that the tempura flakes are of high quality. The soba noodles are not long and stretchy, but you can feel a slight al dente texture when you bite into them. The custom here is to dissolve the rust on the noodles in the dipping sauce! It's also fun to time when to break the warm boiled egg! As a bonus, they even serve soba broth on the side! A delicious and enjoyable soba restaurant experience!

On a hot summer night, I ordered the tempura soba (430 yen) at the Kameya Shinjuku branch. I chose the warm soba instead of the cold one. I added some shichimi spice, which is delicious here. The seats were all taken, with more than half of the customers being foreigners who seemed to be enjoying their meal slowly, taking about three times longer than regular customers. Even though it made the meal a bit longer, if these customers are helping the restaurant stay in business, then it's inevitable. Eating hot soba on a night where you start sweating just by standing up may seem odd, but once you see the freshly fried tempura, it becomes worth it. I recommend trying the warm soba instead of the cold one. I finished every last drop of the dipping sauce. Thank you for the meal. I will definitely come back again.

I ordered tempura soba. The soba was really delicious! The tempura was a bit hard. The soba is tastier than the soba at another restaurant. The service was faster than at that chain store. It was great to be able to eat delicious soba quickly. I'm really curious about the other items on the menu. This soba shop is a definite repeat for me! It's located in Memory Lane, so the atmosphere is also great.

I had the "Tentama Soba" at Kameya-san. It had been a while since I last had it, but the soba here is so delicious that you wouldn't think it's a standing-eating place. I went at a less crowded time, so it was empty. It's usually a popular place. However, it was hot in the summer, so I had the cold soba, but I wished I had the hot one. Thank you for the meal.

After drinking, I had soba noodles as a finishing touch✨️ It was crowded with tourists in Golden Gai. The portion was just right, and the crispy tempura was delicious. If I feel like eating soba in Shinjuku next time, I will definitely go here☺️

I revisited "Kameya" in Shinjuku in early August 2023, after several years. What caught my attention was the taste of the broth. Perhaps it was too strong because I had just returned to Japan, and the flavor of bonito flakes and soy sauce was overpowering. It felt a bit too strong. Normally, when in Japan, the soy sauce-based flavor is taken for granted, and the high salt content doesn't bother me much. However, I remember feeling overwhelmed by the saltiness of Japanese food when I returned from living in the United States. But gradually, as I eat in Japan regularly, it starts to feel normal. This time, living in a developing country, I still felt that the salt intake in Japanese food was high. Japanese people may unknowingly be increasing their salt intake. In the past, when there were no cars or trains and people walked tens of kilometers every day, Japanese people used to lick miso paste as it was to replenish the lost sodium due to sweating. But for those working in air-conditioned rooms, excessive salt intake is not necessary. It's better to be careful. When I used to visit Tokyo occasionally when I lived there, I didn't feel that the flavors were strong or the salt content was high, but Japanese people may have an average high salt intake. By the way, Kameya is the standing soba division of "Kameya Issuitei," an eel restaurant in Ueno. So, the cooking and ingredients should be of good quality, and maybe my palate is not accustomed to the taste of Tokyo soba.

I made a solo attack on Kameya, a roadside noodle shop next to the Shinjuku station on my way to work. Even though I have a lot of experience visiting roadside noodle shops, I always feel nervous when visiting a new one. There were two roadside noodle warriors inside. I tried the "天せいろそば" which looked delicious when the roadside noodle warrior next to me was eating it at Kameya in Kanda last time. It's good to have cold noodles during hot weather. I finished with soba-yu at the end. #EarlyMorningKameyaClub #RoadsideNoodleFirst #SobaForBreakfast

I visited "Kameya" a while ago and was drawn in even though I wasn't hungry haha. It was just now on Saturday, July 29th around 3:00 PM. The broth was really sour (-.-;) Not sure if it was spoiled or just too fishy or overcooked. I wonder if I should have mentioned it... But I hope the staff at the restaurant are okay. They had the air conditioning on, but I'm worried they might collapse. Take care!

On weekdays, there is always a line, but on Sundays they are closed. We decided to go on Saturday at 2pm and luckily there were two empty seats available. I heard that the popular dish here is the "tendon" so I ordered the cold one while my husband ordered the hot one. The tempura was surprisingly big, with onion, carrot, and a little green vegetable tempura. It was fried in clean oil, as it was very light in color. The overflowing broth was rich and delicious. The soba noodles had a good texture, and mixing them with the hot spring egg made me feel happy. The tempura had too much batter, so I ended up leaving quite a bit uneaten. Since it was my first time, I chose the popular tendon, but the soba noodles themselves were delicious, so next time I would like to try the "mori" (plain soba noodles) for a lighter option.

Located in Memory Lane near Shinjuku Nishiguchi, this restaurant stands out for staying open late and offering incredibly affordable prices. The food tastes amazing after a few drinks, creating a magical dining experience. Despite it being 2 a.m., the place was packed and I had to wait for about 5 minutes before being seated. The turnover is surprisingly fast, giving it a standing-eating-like atmosphere. On this particular day, I ordered the following: "Tororo Konbu Soba for 380 yen" and "Egg for 60 yen." I remember exclaiming, "Tororo Konbu Soba for 380 yen!! So cheap!!" The broth was perfectly rich and paired well with the drinks I had. While ramen is a common choice for a late-night meal, this soba shop is sure to please anyone you bring along. I've never been here without having a drink, so I apologize for not being able to provide a review in that scenario (laughs). For a drink-free, atmosphere-independent soba experience, I highly recommend it! Thank you for the meal. ✨

I love the Tendo Soba here! I always choose the cold version in the summer (*^^*) I've been coming here for about 20 years. If you come during the daytime to evening, it's almost always full. It's a standing soba shop near the station, but you can enjoy delicious tempura soba that is a bit different from the usual.