One of the great pleasures of travel is experiencing the culture and history of the places you visit.
And food is surely one of the greatest joys of all.
When you travel somewhere, you want to try delicious food rooted in the local community.
One of Kurashiki’s specialties is “Bukkake udon.”
The restaurant that popularized this dish is “Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi.”
Furuichi is a restaurant with a long history in Kurashiki.
Its bukkake udon is also a familiar favorite for many Kurashiki locals.
The late baseball player Hoshino Senichi, who was from Kurashiki City, reportedly often came to Furuichi to eat.
For Kurashiki residents, Furuichi’s yellow sign with a “bu” inside a circle is a familiar sight.
Here, we introduce Furuichi, a taste that holds a special place in the hearts of Kurashiki residents.
Furuichi has locations in and beyond Kurashiki, with its main presence in the city. We visited Nakamise, in the shopping arcade in front of JR Kurashiki Station.
The information presented here is current as of the article’s publication in March 2022. Please note that it may differ from current information.
Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi is a long-established udon restaurant specializing in Kurashiki’s famous Bukkake udon
Furuichi is an udon restaurant chain centered in Kurashiki City.
It is especially famous for its Bukkake udon, which is now so popular that it is considered a Kurashiki specialty.
Many tourists look forward to visiting Furuichi when they come to Kurashiki, and it is popular with visitors from overseas as well.
Furuichi began as a flour-milling business founded about 100 years ago.
It’s a restaurant with a long history.
Nakamise is Furuichi’s flagship udon restaurant, located in a corner of the shopping arcade in front of JR Kurashiki Station. Udon fans from across Japan also cherish it as the “holy ground of Bukkake udon.”
The Bukkake udon that became a Kurashiki specialty has characteristics that set it apart from the Bukkake udon eaten elsewhere in Japan.
Another appealing feature of Furuichi is that it offers several varieties of Bukkake udon alone.
Furuichi competed in the “Udon Tenkaichi Championship,” where udon restaurants from across Japan vie for the title of best in the country (the event ended in 2017).
Furuichi won in both 2016 and 2017, achieving back-to-back victories!
Menu at Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi Nakamise
The menu at Furuichi Nakamise can be divided into the following main categories:
- Bukkake udon
- Soup udon
- Other udon and noodles
- Side dishes
- Shaved ice
The Bukkake udon and soup udon are almost the same at Furuichi’s other locations, but some of the other dishes are exclusive to Nakamise.
Let’s take a look at them in order.
Menu items and prices include consumption tax. Prices are as of March 2022.
▼ Furuichi is known for offering a wide variety of Bukkake udon.
Photo courtesy of Furuichi
You can choose either cold or hot Bukkake udon.
However, some varieties, such as Niku bukkake, are only served hot.
Cold Bukkake udon comes with wasabi, while hot Bukkake udon comes with ginger. You can also ask for ginger with a cold serving or wasabi with a hot one when ordering.
Of course, you can also ask for no wasabi or ginger.
Seasonal Bukkake udon is also sometimes available for a limited time.
▼ Furuichi is best known for its Bukkake udon, but it also offers a wide selection of soup udon.
Photo courtesy of Furuichi
Soup udon is what is generally known as kake udon.
Other options include zaru udon, kama-tama udon, and somen.
▼ Side dishes include tempura, rice bowls, and inari sushi.
Photo courtesy of Furuichi
The shaved ice, popular in summer, comes in a wide variety of flavors. Zenzai is also available.
▼ As a special offer, every Friday after 3 p.m., you can get a large serving of udon at no extra charge—a 100-yen upgrade is free!
Getting a large serving for the price of a regular one is a great deal.
Students must be thrilled.
Popular and recommended dishes at Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi
Furuichi has a large menu.
Even choosing from its signature Bukkake udon options can be difficult.
Here are some popular and recommended dishes.
Menu items and prices include consumption tax. Prices are as of March 2022.
If it’s your first time, start with the classic Bukkake udon
▼ If it’s your first visit to Furuichi, the standard “Bukkake udon (560 yen, tax included)” is the best choice.
Bukkake udon is the most popular dish, accounting for about 20% of all orders.
A quail egg sits in the center, surrounded by plenty of tempura bits, green onions, and shredded nori.
The broth poured over it is characterized by a sweet, rich flavor.
Bukkake udon is available “cold” or “hot.”
That’s according to Mr. Okada, the manager of Furuichi Nakamise.
- Choose “hot” if you want to enjoy the broth or it’s cold outside
- Choose “cold” if you want to enjoy the noodles or it’s hot outside
These are common choices, but whether to order it cold or hot comes down to personal preference.
Popular in summer: “Oroshi bukkake” and “Buttoro”
Although hot Bukkake udon is recommended, cold Bukkake udon is also popular in summer.
The Bukkake udon varieties that become popular in summer are “Oroshi bukkake (670 yen, tax included)” and “Buttoro (670 yen, tax included).”
▼ Oroshi bukkake is Bukkake udon topped with plenty of grated daikon radish.
The refreshing grated daikon is perfect for hot summer days and whets your appetite.
It’s even tastier when the daikon soaks up the broth.
▼ Buttoro udon is Bukkake udon topped with plenty of grated yam.
The smooth, sticky texture of grated nagaimo yam blends well with the udon and broth, creating a distinctive flavor.
We recommend slurping up the noodles with a little more gusto than usual.
Popular in winter: “Niku bukkake” and “Tempura bukkake”
On cold winter days, nothing beats a hot bowl of udon.
The Bukkake udon varieties that become popular in winter are “Niku bukkake (680 yen, tax included)” and “Tempura bukkake (730 yen, tax included).”
▼ Niku bukkake is Bukkake udon topped with plenty of beef simmered in a sweet-and-savory sauce.
The savory beef, the sweet-and-savory simmering sauce, and the broth go perfectly together, creating a rich flavor.
The kelp and the onions simmered with the beef also did a great job.
▼ Tempura bukkake is Bukkake udon topped with one shrimp tempura.
The large shrimp tempura has a crispy coating. After that satisfying crunch, you can enjoy the plump texture of the shrimp inside.
We also recommend dipping the shrimp tempura well into the broth so it can soak up the flavor.
There is also “Niku-ten bukkake (850 yen, tax included),” which adds shrimp tempura to Niku bukkake.
Niku bukkake and Niku-ten bukkake are only available hot.
For udon connoisseurs who’ve tried every bukkake: Kizami udon is a popular soup udon
In addition to Bukkake udon, Furuichi offers a wide variety of soup udon.
Soup udon is kake udon, and Furuichi has served it since it first began offering udon.
Soup udon has a longer history than Bukkake udon.
What’s more, Furuichi takes great care with the broth for its soup udon, making it one of the restaurant’s signature dishes.
That’s why it’s popular with longtime fans and “Furuichi connoisseurs” who have tried every Bukkake udon.
Among the soup udon options, “Kizami udon (660 yen, tax included)” has been popular for a long time.
▼ Kizami udon is a hearty bowl topped with special fried tofu and plenty of other ingredients.
Fans of Furuichi since it first started serving udon say, “When you think of Furuichi, you think of kizami udon.”
Heaping bowls of shaved ice are popular too. The key is the same chunky red bean paste used in Fuman
Furuichi’s shaved ice is also popular.
Menu items and prices include consumption tax. Information as of March 2022
The defining feature of Furuichi’s shaved ice is its generous portions.
The mountain-high servings are something you’ll want to try at least once.
Another secret to its popularity is the wide variety of flavors.
Among them, the “Kintoki” series is especially popular.
Kintoki is shaved ice topped with chunky red bean paste.
Furuichi’s Kintoki shaved ice uses the same chunky red bean paste as its Fuman.
Fuman’s red bean paste remains popular to this day because it is made using the same method as when the shop was founded.
Fuman is short for “fufu manju” (married-couple buns), known in other regions as obanyaki, imagawayaki, or kaitenyaki.
How to enjoy Bukkake udon
Bukkake udon is Furuichi’s signature dish.
Since we were there, we asked Mr. Okada, manager of Furuichi Nakamise, to share his recommended way to enjoy Bukkake udon at its best.
The best way to eat Bukkake udon is to mix it well first!
▼Let’s give it a stir.
▼It’s beautifully arranged, but mix it thoroughly without hesitation. No need to hold back.
The trick is to thoroughly mix the udon, toppings, and broth.
The joy of Bukkake udon is savoring the complex, deep flavor created when all the different toppings and broth come together!
▼Once it’s mixed well, dig in and enjoy the udon.
It looks like a hearty dish, but when you eat it, you can enjoy the rich flavor of all the different tastes coming together.
The flavor changes depending on the toppings and whether you have it cold or hot, which makes it interesting.
I’d love to try it with all kinds of Bukkake udon.
Furuichi Nakamise retains its old-fashioned atmosphere
As of 2022, Furuichi has 14 locations in and outside the city.
Of all Furuichi’s locations, Nakamise is the one that retains its old-fashioned atmosphere.
Originally, udon was sold alongside Fuman and other items at the main shop, but eventually the udon business separated into a specialty shop, and Nakamise was established.
That’s why Nakamise is known among udon lovers as the “holy ground of Bukkake udon.”
Incidentally, according to Mr. Okada of Nakamise, there used to be another branch a little way from Nakamise, and the shop was named “Nakamise” because it was located between the main shop and the other branch.
He says that “naka” is written with the character meaning “companionship” rather than “middle,” perhaps in reference to Nakamise Street in Asakusa.
Here’s a look inside the shop.
The interior photos were taken during our first visit in August 2019.
The shop has since obtained the “Okayama Prefecture Food Service Establishment Third-Party Certification for Infection Prevention Measures” and is taking measures to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
▼The first floor of Nakamise has the register, kitchen, and table seating.
▼There were plenty of tables on the second floor.
▼The counter seats are by the windows on the second floor.
Bukkake udon has now become a Kurashiki specialty.
We spoke with Masakazu Okada, manager of Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi Nakamise, which has been making Bukkake udon for many years and enjoys tremendous popularity among local residents and tourists.
Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi Nakamise details
| Name | Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi Nakamise |
|---|---|
| Address | 2-3-23 Achi, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | 086-422-2389 |
| Parking | None |
| Hours | 9:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. |
| Closed | Irregular holidays |
| Payment methods |
|
| Reservations | Not accepted |
| Seating | 43 seats |
| Smoking | Entirely non-smoking |
| Restrooms | Western-style toilet |
| Families with children | Children’s tableware and small plates available. However, if you need stroller access or a child’s chair, we recommend visiting the nearest location in the city (such as the Nakashima, Horinan, AEON MALL Kurashiki, Matsushima, or Mizushima locations) ⇒Location details |
| Accessibility | If you require accessibility accommodations, we recommend visiting the nearest location in the city (such as the Horinan, Nakashima, AEON MALL Kurashiki, Matsushima, or Mizushima locations) ⇒Location details |
| Website | Kurashiki Udon Bukkake Furuichi |
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We recommend hot Bukkake udon if you want to enjoy the flavor of the broth, and cold Bukkake udon if you want to enjoy the noodles’ chewy texture.
The broth’s flavor comes through more in the hot version.
That’s why we recommend hot Bukkake udon, which lets you fully savor the broth.
On the other hand, the cold version makes the noodles chewier.
Cold Bukkake udon is the way to enjoy the noodles’ firm bite.