Oodles of Noodles:
Tokyo- Gardena- Oxnard 

Interest in dining out, especially on ethnic food has increased exponentially in the last few years. Thus there has been a spate of recent cinema with food as the central theme. “The Big Night” featured a complicated Italian “Timbale” of pasta as the core of the plot.  “Eat, Drink, Man, Woman” was, in fact, one big, continuous and visually stunning Chinese banquet both at a home and at the famous Grand Hotel in Taipei. “Tortilla Soup” was actually a remake of Eat, Drink with Mexican fare as the centerpiece.

 


 

Home of Southern Cal's # 1 noodle maker

In the 25 years prior to that, only two films come to mind based on ethnic dining. The first was the wonderful but austere, Scandinavian “Babette’s Feast”. The second was a remarkable Japanese comic social satire on the quest for the perfect Soba noodle. It was essentially a Western, with Japanese truck drivers as heroic cowboys and the Yakuza (Japanese Mafia) as villains. Once a worthwhile Soba or Udon noodle shop was found, loudly slurping the slippery noodles using chopsticks had serious sexual overtones. We saw the film first in a theater and years later on the IFC channel but fearing the consequences we never ventured into a Soba shop until 2 years ago.


Otafuku Seats About 28

We were strolling around the Shinjuku district of Tokyo looking for fun place to have lunch. Shinjuku may be the densest commercial area in the world located around the famous Shinjuku subway stop. More than one million people move through this station every workday. Thus the area offers countless choices of everything imaginable. We inquired around and were told that, in fact the #1 Soba noodle shop in Japan, Masuoto was on the next street. That was something, since there are 40,000 Soba shops (one for every thousand families) in Japan and a great Soba maker is held perhaps in reverence equal to a sushi master.

The centerpiece of the restaurant was a glass enclosed section where the renowned Japanese Soba maker was continuously creating fresh Soba noodles that were immediately taken to another area to be boiled to fill impending orders. A sushi bar like arrangement was filled only with dark suited businessmen happily and very, very noisily slurping away.

 

 


Making Artisan Soba at Masuoto in Tokyo


We ordered the special of the day, and then looked with consternation at three small separate trays of cold dry Soba with a different sauce for each tray. A courteous diner observed our plight and sat with us to demonstrate the proper slurping and dipping technique. His name was “Miles” Nakahara and guess what?  He was a jazz trumpeter who traveled 30 minutes each way twice a week to lunch at Masuoto. The noodles were served cold. The firm but slithery texture was wonderful and the slurping implications of above mentioned Tampopo became very clear. That entire afternoon was one of the highlights of our sojourn in Tokyo.


It took almost two years before we came close to duplicating that experience. We recently traveled to an obscure and somewhat ordinary but safe area of Gardena to slurp at Otafuku. We had learned that it was where Seiji Akutsu was making stunning handmade Sarashima Soba. Akutsu was raised in a family business that organized formal events, often for the Royal Family. Thus he trained in michi, the Japanese reverence for precise adherence to tradition and protocol. When you enter his simple, clean lined but rustic domain, you are immediately transported to Shinjuku.

In the very low key kitchen and dining area which together are about the same size as your family room, he transforms buckwheat dough into silky strands of noodles. He uses only bottled spring water and the finest imported gozen-kyo flour milled from the heart of the buckwheat. As in Tokyo, the noodles are offered dry on individual trays or plates.
 
.Many noodle houses offer only a hot and a cold broth. Otafuku offers 6 broths to go with various noodles and temperatures. There are three basic styles offered for about $6.50 and for a couple of dollars more you ,can add a topping of succulent absolutely fresh

grilled anago or eel (many Japanese restaurants use a frozen bbqed product), shaggy coated tempura shrimp or toriju, free range chicken. Purists tend to slurp the noodles in sauces only without these garnishes. You can however ask for them in a separate rice bowl for $3.50. As the meal ends a steamy teapot of yu (noodle cooking water) will be brought to the table to mix into the remaining condensed sauce for a warming cup of soup.

Akutsu also makes udon, which are long strands of macaroni shaped noodles. That is where the similarity ends. It’s like comparing a date with Jennifer Lopez to a date with Jennifer Capriati. Finally, for the less adventuresome, any of the noodles can be had in bowls of broth with a choice of eel, shrimp or chicken added. .


The Soba scene has recently expanded in Southern California with machines that knead and cut fresh soba. But nothing can compare with Akutsu’s handmade artistry. As an example if you are not sure about traveling to Gardena just for noodles, you might try the only Soba shop in Ventura county. It is the recently opened Ozeki noodle shop at the Esplanade in Oxnard. They claim to offer fresh soba but in fact admit that it is machine made off premises. However the noodles are certainly acceptable and it is certainly worth the short drive to introduce you to the minor league pleasures of soba. Then you can travel to Otafuku in nearby Gardena for that major league artistic and sensuous experience rather than all the way to Tokyo. It’s your call. 
Masuoto
Shinjuku District Tokyo   Most Credit Cards    Parking is Impossible Take the Subway Meal for Two $30 to $45

Otafuku
16525 South Western Avenue Gardena, (310) 532-9348 Most Credit Cards Ample Street Parking  Meal for Two $16 to $24

Ozeki Noodle
349 Esplanade Drive Oxnard  In the Esplanade Center Food Court (805) 604-4485 Most Credit Cards Easy Shopping Center Parking. Meal for Two $12 to $18