Today, we had a quick and lovely lunch at Shokodo, after a morning of exploring another UNESCO site Horyuji 法隆寺, the oldest Buddhist temple in Japan, founded in 607 by the aristocrat and figurehead of Japanese Buddhism, Prince Shotoku 聖徳太子, in memory of his father Emperor Yomei 用明天皇. Horyuji is dedicated to the Buddha of healing Yakushi Nyorai 薬師如来, and located in the rather obscure outskirts of Nara Prefecture. Shokodo is just outside the main entrance to Horyuji, and you won't miss its big banners offering local specialties such as plum-flavoured noodles, and kuzukiri, a dessert made from Japanese arrowroot (kuzu) starch. I was actually more attracted by the former, which I thought to be rather unusual, and decided that we should give this little eatery a go, before hopping on a bus back to the main city.
What we both ordered:
梅湯葉そば定食（毎日数量限定）
Plum yuba (tofu skin) soba set (limited sets available daily)
As one would expect of a very local and traditional eatery, everything here is made in-house, from the broth to the preserved plums (known as 'umeboshi' 梅干し in Japanese) and noodles. The brown rice (previous photo) is claimed to be of the same cultivar and high quality as ancient Nara-period grain, enjoyed by the imperial family even today. It had a nice firm and chewy bite, and the black sesame seeds sprinkled atop the rice enhanced its delicate nutty aroma very effectively.
Bits of umeboshi are generously wrapped within rolls of rehydrated dried yuba, and a whole umeboshi even sits on top of the noodles, together with a shiso leaf, slices of kamaboko (fishcake), and finely chopped scallions. The tart and mildly salty taste of umeboshi and the characteristic minty freshness of shiso (which had also been absorbed by the accompanying dashi broth, giving it an unusually crisp aftertaste) was perfect for stimulating one's appetite and keeping things very light to the last mouthful, despite the predominance of carbohydrates. The buckwheat noodles had a lovely soft bite and were perfect for slurping. This was a truly original combination of ingredients - I had never seen a bowl of soba like it - and only a limited number of portions are available daily!
自家製くずきり（吉野産本葛使用）、黒蜜だれ
For a small supplement of 540 yen you can have another of Shokodo's specialties, homemade kuzukiri with kuromitsu (brown sugar syrup), for dessert. The kuzu (arrowroot) comes from nearby Yoshino District, widely regarded as the best place in Japan for kuzu cultivation and processing - hence the prefix 'hon' in 'hon-kuzu' from the area, meaning 'real' or 'pure'.
The starch powder derived from kuzu, in a long and laborious process, was mixed with water, boiled, allowed to set, chilled, and finally cut into thin and wide strips to create this dessert. It was served chilled in a small pool of water with ice. Despite looking similar to flat rice noodles, this was actually really firm, gelatinous and light, just like plain unsweetened agar-agar - amazingly guilt-free, without a single tinge of starchiness. Jellied kuzu starch is in fact tasteless on its own, and is enjoyed mainly for its texture and detoxification properties. Picking up the translucent and silky smooth strands with chopsticks (as one would for noodles) and dipping them into the side bowl of syrup (similar to molasses, but more watery - like a sweet version of the dipping sauce for cold soba noodles) made for the perfect end to a simple and comforting meal. I could easily have eaten a few more servings of this, but I didn't want to miss the next bus!
In summary, a lovely quaint lunch spot with very local and unique offerings - don't miss it if you've already made it this far out within the Nara region.
Details for Shokodo (松鼓堂)
Address in kanji: 奈良県生駒郡斑鳩町法隆寺1-5-37
Telephone no.: +81-745740908
Business hours: 11 am to 4 pm daily
Cash only
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