Rustic Japan -A Guide to Rural Japan & Off-the-Beaten-Path Countryside- 日本語

Chugoku & Shikoku

Utazu: Okasen, a Renowned Udon Shop

Kagawa Prefecture

Okasen's hiya-ten oroshi: cold udon topped with two large shrimp tempura, vegetable tempura and grated daikon, with dipping sauce
Where
Kagawa Prefecture
When
February 2026, 3 days, 2 nights
Route
Tokyo Station → (JR Shinkansen Nozomi, 3 hr 15 min) → Okayama Station → (JR Limited Express Shiokaze, 35 min) → Utazu Station → 10-min walk
Cost
¥70,000

Every part of Japan has its own local specialty. In Kagawa Prefecture, where the town of Utazu is, it’s udon. Kagawa is packed with renowned udon shops. The firmness of the noodles, the flavor of the broth, creative takes on udon, and so on: each shop sets itself apart with whatever it does best.

Every one of them is far better than the udon I usually eat. And cheap. It depends on the shop, but at many places a bowl costs under ¥500.

Back when I lived in Hiroshima Prefecture, I once took an eat-till-you-drop udon trip around Kagawa. That’s when I came across Okasen, a renowned shop in the town of Utazu. Popular as it is, there’s always a line.

A long line of customers outside Okasen, a udon shop in Utazu with a large red sign reading "handmade udon," on a sunny day

Every udon shop in Kagawa is good, but Okasen’s signature dish, the hiyaten oroshi (chilled udon with tempura and grated daikon), was in a class of its own.

The firm chew of the noodles, the lavish shrimp tempura, the way the noodles and broth go together: every bit of it was top-notch. It was the best udon of my life. The inside of the shop is nice and clean, too, which I really like. Even now, if someone asks me what the best udon is, I say hiyaten oroshi. Ever since, whenever I come to Kagawa, I always have the hiyaten oroshi at Okasen.

At over ¥1,000, the hiyaten oroshi may be on the pricey side for Kagawa udon, but it’s so good it still feels cheap.

Hiyaten oroshi at Okasen: chilled udon topped with two large shrimp tempura, vegetable tempura, grated daikon and scallions

Inside Okasen, a large umbrella-style paper lamp hangs over diners eating udon at counter and tables

Besides Okasen, Kagawa has plenty of other great udon shops. Even now, living near Tokyo, every so often I suddenly want to go to Kagawa and eat all the udon I can.