Maki no Udon Hakata Bus Terminal

While Tonkotsu Ramen is the most famous gourmet food in Hakata, Hakata Udon is another local delicacy that should not be forgotten. Characterized by their “softness and lack of firmness,” udon is the exact opposite of Sanuki udon, which is currently popular nationwide. Perhaps for this reason, word of mouth on the Internet has pointed out that the appeal of udon has not been properly conveyed, and perhaps the people of Fukuoka Prefecture feel frustrated every time udon is mentioned.

Although this is not exactly what the people of Fukuoka think, I do not like the current trend of “only” Sanuki udon (Note: I am not an enemy of Sanuki udon by any means). ) So, when I have the opportunity, I would like to introduce more and more tasty udon dishes all over Japan on this blog, and in particular, I have always been interested in Hakata udon, which has characteristics that contrast with those of Sanuki udon.

So this time, among the many popular Hakata udon restaurants, I would like to introduce you to Kamaage Maki no Udon, located in the Hakata Bus Terminal next to JR Hakata Station. The udon here is famous for a strange phenomenon that occurs: the noodles do not reduce at all even though you are eating them…

I have never seen such a long line at an udon chain restaurant… Kamaage Maki no Udon Hakata Bus Terminal Branch is like this…

I arrived at Kamaage Maki no Udon Hakata Bus Terminal just before opening time on a Saturday…

At this point, there were about 15 people in line. I followed them and started waiting in line, but within 5 minutes before the store opened, more and more people started gathering, and by the time the store opened, there were over 30 people in line. I was surprised at this. At a quick glance, it looks like a very ordinary udon shop. No matter how accessible it is from JR Hakata Station, there are many other restaurants, including Hakata Udon restaurants, and there was no line at Uchino Tamago Chokubaijo inside the station, which I visited the morning before… To be honest, I have never experienced such a long line at an udon chain restaurant before. I have never experienced such a long line at an udon chain restaurant.

However, this restaurant has the capacity to accommodate such a long line, with 38 counter seats and eight tables (six with seating for two and two with seating for four), which can seat about 60 people at a time. It is good to be able to sit in a chair and slurp udon noodles with the speed of a standing noodle shop. You can get on a train or a long-distance bus as soon as you finish eating, and there is no doubt that this restaurant is extremely convenient.

Meat Udon: One of the two most popular menu items at Kamaage Maki no Udon, “Udon that doesn’t diminish even after eating”.

What I ordered at Maki no Udon Hakata Bus Terminal this time was the meat udon, one of the two most popular menu items at the restaurant (price: 660 yen including tax). When I handed the ticket to the waiter, I was asked how much I wanted the noodles cooked, but since this was my first visit to the restaurant, I chose “normal”.

After about 5 minutes of waiting, the meat udon noodles arrived in front of me…

A small kettle came with the udon, which is actually the key to the udon here. I will explain about it later. At first glance, it looks like there is so much udon that you feel the soup stock is too little.

Now, let’s start with the noodles… The thickness is about the same as a typical Sanuki udon. I had a preconceived notion that Hakata udon noodles are soft and squishy without firmness, but this udon is not like that, and even though it is not firm, it feels reasonably chewy.

The dashi broth for this is quite sweet, like sukiyaki wariage (of course, it is a normal concentration to drink). I took the first sip and thought, “Is this to match the meat topping?” but it seems that this is the default broth. The relatively low temperature may have made the sweetness of the broth a little too strong. If you find it too sweet…

It would be better to quickly change the taste with chili peppers provided at the table.

The beef topping is pretty average, but compared to udon restaurants on station platforms, I think they put in a good amount of beef topping. The price of 660 yen is reasonable for such a large amount of toppings.

Now, let me explain about the kettle. This kettle actually contains udon soup stock. The reason why it is necessary to add more broth is because the udon absorbs more and more broth as time goes by. As a result of the udon absorbing the broth and expanding, the phenomenon of “udon that does not decrease even after eating” occurs. But you know…

Udon noodles that have absorbed this soup stock are delicious. Without exaggeration, they are like fluffy marshmallows. It is not the same as when the udon is stretched. There is none of the crunchiness of stretched udon noodles, but the noodles become fluffy, glutinous, and very tender to the bite. This softness may even surpass the udon of Sanuki Udon Byakuan, a Michelin-starred restaurant in Osaka, which is described as “Shiratama. I was really surprised at this.

I might as well have had udon in such a fluffy state from the start. If I have a chance to visit the restaurant next time, I might add all the broth in the kettle first and wait for about 5 minutes before eating it… Well, it seems difficult to control the fluffy and sticky state as I wish, though. In fact, the fluffiness of the noodles that were lying under the broth was different from the noodles that were on the outside, and the texture was sparse (well, I guess you can enjoy them in that state).

Examples of other menu items at Kamaage Maki no Udon Hakata Bus Terminal (prices include tax)

• Curry (udon or soba) 680 yen
• Zaru soba noodles 580 yen
• Kamaage (udon) 530 yen
• Gobo (burdock) tempura (udon/ soba) 520 yen
• Kitsune (udon and soba) 520 yen
• Tamago (egg) (udon or soba) 510 yen
• Kake (udon or soba) 420 yen

Note: Maki no Udon Hakata Bus Terminal also offers a take-out menu in addition to the eat-in menu…

There are 18 Maki no Udon restaurants in total, centered around the main store in Kafuri… To get to the Maki’s Udon Hakata Bus Terminal Store, 2-minute walk from the nearest station, JR Hakata Station.

In addition to the Hakata Bus Terminal branch introduced here, there are a total of 18 other Maki’s Udon restaurants in operation, mainly in the southwestern part of Fukuoka. However, Maki no Udon currently only opens stores in locations that are within an hour and a half travel time from the Kabusato head office on Itoshima. The reason for this is “because the quality of the soup deteriorates while transporting it from the main store. Do not underestimate the fact that it is a chain restaurant. They have taken every precaution to ensure that the taste is of the highest quality so that customers can enjoy the same flavor at all of their restaurants.

There is no way not to take advantage of this popular Hakata udon restaurant, especially if you are an udon lover, which you can never have in Tokyo or Osaka, right? It is located very close to JR Hakata Station, so why don’t you head to the restaurant first thing when you land in Hakata?

Here are the details of the restaurant…