Yakisoba is likely my favorite Japanese food. Yet, yakisoba is rarely every made from real soba, which is a buckwheat noodle. Real soba, though, is highly underrated, typically coming in third when people think of Japanese noodle dishes (ramen and udon first). This is a shame, because soba boasts a truly unique texture and flavor. Fortunately in Torrance (and now in West LA), there is a restaurant dedicated completely to soba called Soba Sojibo.
There are plenty of soba choices at Soba Sojibo, with yakisoba nowhere to be found. It can be ordered cold or hot, with a combo, in a soup and so on. They even bring out crispy soba to snack on before the meal. After much deliberation, and with a little help from our waiter, I made my choice: Curry Nanban Soba.
This curry came in soup form and I have a known affinity for Japanese curry, so it seemed to suit me. Also, it came with pork, which is usually a good sign. Turned out I made a great choice, as my soba was simply oishii. The broth was a bit lighter than ramen, but otherwise had a delicious pork broth flavor and the soba noodles were a real treat. I am nothing if not a texture man and these noodles fit the bill.
I’m glad Soba Sojibo recently opened up in West LA, because the world outside of Japan really seems to be missing out on the awesomeness that is soba. This is not necessarily a knock on ramen, but simply a recognition that variety is the spice of life. And also that udon is stupid.
