shippoku at Marugame Udon

I guess I should explain some of these words here. Udon is a type of Japanese noodle, made with wheat-flour and saltwater, which is characterized by its thickness and stiff bite (what the Japanese refer to as having 'backbone'). Shippoku is a style that that udon is sometimes served in. Imagine a hearty soup crammed full of mountain vegetables and swirled with these thick noodles to get a good idea. Actually you don’t have to imagine, here’s a shot for you:
 

shippoku udon

The udon over at Marugame Udon is made to order and will definately fill you up, although locals complained to me over wait times (10-15 minutes? Which didn’t seem like a big deal). Probably this is because most udon joints, which serve it up as-you-order-it quick and cheap to boot, have created an image of udon as a kind of fast food. Salary men in business suits rush in alongside workers in rubber boots and paint splattered garbs, throw down a few coins, and slurp away. In a flurry of chopsticks they’re all rushing off again – maybe they sat down for 3 or 5 minutes - to get back to their jobs. I guess there's a lot of people that just don't have the patience to wait around for noodles while on their tight schedules.

While sipping on hot tea given to us by the hostess, I found the wait at Marugame Udon - with its old-fashioned atmosphere and relaxed pace - to be a refreshing change to the eat-as-you-stand debacle I often encounter. Sometimes a little wait can make food more tantalizing, giving your taste buds time to consider what’s to come. And the price, which was a few hundred yen more than other places, didn’t bother me much when I started eating the hearty home-styled goodness.