A temple lane lined with soba shops and sweets
Jindaiji, an old Buddhist temple on the western side of Tokyo, has some 20 soba shops around its gate, making buckwheat noodles with the spring water that flows through the area. Pray at the temple, eat a bowl of soba, then rest with dango, sweet rice dumplings, or a soba manju, a small steamed bun. It is about 15 minutes by bus from Chofu or Kichijoji Station, both easy train rides from Shinjuku.
A temple said to have been founded in the 700s, among the oldest in Tokyo, set among tall trees and springs. You can see a bronze statue of the Buddha that is a National Treasure, and the soba shops begin right outside the gate.
A soba shop founded in the Edo period, with seats looking out on a pond. It is closed on Mondays, and there may be a line at busy times.
Besides soba, this shop makes dango, mugwort buns and anmitsu, a bowl of agar jelly with sweet bean paste and fruit, by hand, only as much as it sells each day. It is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
A shop of hand-cut soba that also makes its own soba dango and soba manju, sweets flavored with buckwheat, so you can have noodles and dessert in one stop. It is closed on Mondays.