Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch

Fuji in the summer of 2024, I had decided to have lunch at Houtou Fudo Higashikoji Branch. I was somewhat interested in the building, which was the only one designed by a famous architect among the four Houtou Fudo restaurants operating in the Kawaguchiko area.

Well, when I got off at Fujikyu Kawaguchiko Station to head to the Higashi Koji Branch after successfully paying my respects to the shrine, the story goes. I saw a sight that I could not imagine at first glance. The scene was…

Of course, the restaurant was not closed. It was a sunny summer weekend as usual. The train to get here was packed with foreign tourists. The Kawaguchiko station area was also crowded as usual.

I had avoided the Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch for a while because of the unbelievable lines I had seen so many times before, but with this unimaginable reality in front of me, I had no choice but to go there! And that way, I can spend the rest of my afternoon more meaningfully…

Some differences from the Kawaguchiko Kita Head Shop…Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch is like this …

Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch is located right in front of Fujikyu Kawaguchiko Station, across the street from the rotary in front of the station. The first floor of the building where the store is located has both exterior and interior in the style of an old wooden folk house, and in a sense, it has an atmosphere more like a local restaurant than the Kawaguchiko Kita Head Shop.

The restaurant has a total of 110 seats, including both table and tatami room seating. However, it is a bit cramped because the restaurant seems to be packed tightly against the size of the interior. It is better to refrain from visiting the restaurant if you are carrying a large baggage. It is also the only one of the four Houtou Fudo restaurants that does not have a parking lot, so if you are visiting by car, it is more convenient to go to one of the other three restaurants.

Another major difference from the Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Kita Head Shop is that the menu is more extensive. The main store, as I recall, only had a side menu of snacks other than houtou, but the Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch had a main food menu of kakuni rice bowls and zarusoba, as well as dessert items such as anmitsu, oshiruko (sweet red bean paste) and ice cream. So, when accompanied by small children, the Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch is more likely to please them. Well, there are not that many items on the menu, but the store can be used like a café in front of the station.

Examples of other menu items at Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch (prices include tax)

• Kakuni rice bowl: 1,210 yen
• Zarusoba 815 yen
• Large zarusoba (with rice): 915 yen
• Stewed pork (limited to 20 servings) 660 yen
• Anmitsu (sweet bean jam) 720 yen
• Oshiruko (sweet red-bean soup) 660 yen
• Ice cream 600 yen

But, I came all the way to Yamanashi, so I had to have this… Fudo Houtou, the signature dish at Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch.

So, although I had more food choices, I ordered the signature dish, Fudo Houtou (priced at 1,210 yen including tax) at Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch. After about 10 minutes of waiting, an iron pot filled with Houtou was brought out in front of me…

This is it! At a glance, it is hard to imagine that it is for one person. The white miso-based broth, the irregularly shaped thick noodles, and the abundant ingredients, including wild vegetables… Naturally, it is exactly the same as the houtou I had at the main restaurant a year ago.

The soup stock is a light white miso base, but the broth from the vegetables soaks into this soup, giving it a warm and gentle taste. Although it is very hot in the summer, this dashi broth soaks into the body. Since it is low in salt and does not burden the body, it makes me want to fill my entire stomach with this dashi broth.

The extra-thick noodles in this broth have a perfect homemade feel to them, as their shape and thickness are very uneven. On this day, the noodles were cooked softer than before, and I was able to enjoy the soft and sticky texture from the start.

There were 7 to 8 kinds of ingredients, including pumpkin, cabbage, string beans, and carrots. There are no meat-based ingredients in this dish, so it is healthy and even vegetarians and vegans can enjoy it without worry. If I had to say something, I didn’t get the sesame oil flavor this time that I got from the vegetables a year ago… but that’s ok.

This homemade shichimi (seven spices) is the most powerful item to change the taste. It adds a refreshing aroma of yuzu to the houtou soup stock, and the mild miso flavor is spiced up and tightened, making it a very high-class miso soup! If you don’t mind spicy food, you should definitely try this flavor change. Also, I hope they will sell this homemade shichimi by mail order in the future…

Homemade noodles for souvenirs are sold in the restaurant…Access to Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch is a one-minute walk from the nearest station, Kawaguchiko Station on the Fujikyu Line.

Houtou Fudo Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch sells homemade noodles inside the restaurant…

A box of fresh noodles for souvenirs is 800 yen for three servings. However, these noodles do not come with any ingredients or soup stock, so they are completely for people who can cook. Also, homemade shichimi (seven spices) and other merchandise items were sold exclusively at the restaurant. When I went to the main restaurant last year, did they sell homemade noodles and homemade shichimi? I like the Kawaguchiko Ekimae Branch’s products better because they are more original. I think they may be selling them at the main store or other stores now, but in any case, they are not available by mail order, so if you like what you see and taste at the store, don’t forget to buy them at the cash register…

Now, here are the details of the restaurant…