Oshino Soba
The village of Oshino has its own favored noodle dish called Oshino soba. In Oshino, the climate is too cool even for wheat, and farmers turned to buckwheat instead, using it to make soba noodles instead of udon. Views of Mt. Fuji across blooming buckwheat fields from late summer to early autumn are among the village’s most distinctive charms.
Locals believe that using pure spring water from Mt. Fuji is essential to give the dough the proper flavor. Oshino soba is considered by villagers to be another expression of the village’s longstanding connection to springs and streams fed by snow and rain from the mountain.
Soba noodles are a traditional home-cooked meal in Oshino, and many locals still fondly associate the dish with family memories. There are around a dozen Oshino soba restaurants in the village, and each restaurant has its own approach to the dish, with time-tested recipes for dipping broth and garnishes. Grilled miso is one popular addition.