Let's read the rakugo story "Toki Soba." Part 2/Japanese Learning Support LLC
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Today I would like to introduce a rakugo story called "Toki Soba."
I previously introduced part 1, so today I'll introduce part 2.
If you haven't seen part 1, click here →
https://nihongojikan.jp/blog/20250907-4379/
Today's Menu
"Toki Soba" Part 2
Another man was watching this scene.
Man 2: "Huh? Why did that guy ask me what time it was while I was counting my money? That's weird."
I tried to remember what the man had said earlier.
Man 2: "Hii, fuu, mii, yo, itu, mu, na, ya... What time is it now? Five, eleven... Huh?? He didn't pay when the soba shop said "kokonotsu"! He skipped "kokonotsu" so he only paid 15 mon!"
That's right. The man from before was a clever guy, and he deliberately asked the soba shop owner what time it was, got him to say "kokonotsu," and then didn't pay a cent.
"Kokonotsu" means midnight in the old time.
Man 2: "That guy!! That was a good one! Okay, I guess I'll give it a try then."
Unfortunately, I didn't have any small change that day, so the next day I gathered up some small change, left the house earlier than last night, and went into town to look for a soba restaurant.
Soba restaurant: "Soba~ Soba~ It's delicious~."
Man 2: "Hey. Smells good. Give me a drink."
Soba restaurant owner: "Welcome. Please wait a moment."
Man 2: "Wow. It's really cold today."
Soba shop owner: "I guess so. I think it's warmer than yesterday."
Man 2: "Oh, yeah... you're right. Actually, I've been feeling a bit under the weather lately. So, I'll order a bowl of hot soba noodles."
Soba shop owner: "Yes."
Man 2: "How's the economy doing?"
Soba restaurant owner: "Other restaurants often say they're in a slump, but we're lucky to have loyal customers, so we're managing to get by."
Man 2: "I see, I see, that's good. Oh, soba shop owner, don't worry. After good things come bad things... Ah, whatever. If you're making money, that's the best thing."
Soba Shop Owner: "Yes, it's all thanks to you."
Man 2: "...Hey, aren't the soba noodles ready yet? I'm an Edokko, after all. I hate having to wait. If it takes 30 minutes for it to finally be brought to me, even the best food tastes bad... Oh well. I'm an Edokko, and I have a lot of patience."
Soba shop owner: "Hey, sorry to keep you waiting."
Man 2: "Oh, you finally did it."
The man said, accepting the soba noodles.
Man 2: "Oh, so they're using disposable chopsticks here? That's unusual. Oh, they're already broken. Maybe someone used them afterwards? Well, this is better because it saves me the trouble of breaking them."
Soba shop owner: "These are new chopsticks."
Man 2: "This bowl is nice too. They say that food should be served in a bowl, but yours isn't very clean. Did you wash it properly?"
Soba shop owner: "I'm washing it."
Man 2: "Well, the problem is the taste. I love soba noodles. I can tell if they're good or not just by the smell. And I like them thin. Sometimes they have soba noodles that are as thick as udon noodles, but yours... this... is it udon?"
Soba restaurant owner: "Soba noodles."
Man 2: "I see, I see."
The man said as he ate all the soba noodles.
Man 2: "Phew, thank you for the meal. Now, how much is it?"
Soba shop owner: "It's 16 mon."
Man 2: "Right now I only have a little bit of money. Can you help me count it?"
The man took small coins out of his pocket and placed one coin in each of the vendor's hands.
Man: "Hii, fuu, mii, yo, itu, mu, na, ya... what time is it now?"
Soba shop owner: "Four."
Man: "It's 11th..."
The man ended up paying more than 16 mon.
So, what do you think?
It was a rakugo story called "Toki Soba."
The final thing the soba shop owner said, "It's four," was an old time, which in today's time would be around 10pm.
I imitated him without considering the time, so in the end I lost out.
Let's eat soba!
Now, I would like to talk about Japanese soba noodles.
Have you ever tried soba noodles?
There are many different types of soba.
Today, I'd like to introduce you to different types of soba and how to eat them.
First of all, what is striking about Japanese people eating noodle dishes is the slurping sound they make while eating.
This is often considered bad manners overseas, but it's OK in Japan.
The reason why we slurp and eat soba is to enjoy the delicious smell of soba.
Please try it next time you eat soba.
Next, I will talk about the types of soba.
Soba noodles can be broadly divided into hot soba noodles and cold soba noodles.
Today, I will introduce three examples of basic soba noodles that you often see on the menus of soba restaurants.
・Kakesoba
It's hot soba noodles with buckwheat noodles in a soup, similar to ramen.
This is the type of soba served at "Toki Soba."
・Cold soba noodles
This is a cold version of Kakesoba, with soba noodles in cold soup.
・Mori soba noodles, Zaru soba noodles
This is a dish where the soba noodles and the tsuyu (soup-like sauce) are served separately. When you eat it, you dip the noodles in the tsuyu yourself.
"Mori soba" and "Zaru soba" are only available cold; there are no hot versions.
Nowadays, soba noodles without seaweed on top are called "mori soba," and those with seaweed on top are called "zaru soba."
In the case of kakesoba and hiyakakesoba, there may be some toppings on top of the soba.
For example, there is "Tempura Soba" topped with tempura, and "Yamana Soba" with wild vegetables.
Wild vegetables are vegetables that can be found in the mountains.
If the menu has a name like this, when ordering it's best to clearly state whether you want it hot or cold, such as "I'd like some cold tempura soba, please," or "I'd like one hot mountain vegetable soba."
Finally, I would like to introduce something called "sobayu."
If you have ever eaten mori soba or zaru soba, you may have seen this.
This is the water used to boil the soba noodles (boiling water), and soba restaurants will serve it to you as a service even if you don't order it.
This soba soup contains a lot of vitamins.
If you drink it as is, it will have no flavor, so try adding some soba sauce to the soup for mori soba or zaru soba.
How was it?
There are many different types of soba. If you've only ever heard of hot soba, be sure to try the cold version as well.
Today, we introduced part 2 of the story of "Toki Soba" and Japanese soba.
That's all for today!
See you again in the next blog.
