Nagano Meijitei — Restaurant in Nagano

I was immediately enveloped in a relaxing ambience – the perfect setting for a satisfying meal. The air was calm, the lighting soft, making it an ideal spot to unwind.

I opted for the soba and katsudon set meal, and let me tell you, it was quite a volume! Definitely a meal that leaves you feeling pleasantly full without being overwhelmed. More importantly, the quality was consistently good across the board. Hailing from Nagano, a region renowned for its soba, this dish truly lived up to its name. Each strand was perfectly firm yet yielding, with that distinct, earthy buckwheat flavor. It was clear why Nagano soba is so highly regarded – "sasuga Nagano meibutsu" indeed! The dipping sauce was flavorful, allowing the natural taste of the soba to shine through.

And then there was the mini katsudon, which was anything but an afterthought. It was exceptionally well done, featuring a perfectly fried pork cutlet that was tender inside and crispy outside. What truly elevated it was the sauce – a savory, slightly sweet concoction that complimented the katsu so well, tying all the flavors together in a harmonious bite. It was the ideal companion to the refreshing soba.

Overall, this soba and katsudon set meal offered a fantastic balance of quantity and quality in a wonderfully relaxing environment. A highly recommended spot for anyone craving authentic and delicious Japanese...

I went here around 12:05 on a Tuesday after arriving from Matsumoto. There was a bit of a wait, I put my name onto the list behind about 6 or 7 groups. I got seated after about 15 minutes. I quickly ordered right away because my shinkansen ticket was for 30 minutes later. The food arrived pretty quickly despite the restaurant being crowded, I got the food after 10 minutes. I had to eat quickly, but the katsudon was delicious with the sauce on it. The soba was good as well. The horse sashimi was not bad, but one piece was a bit tough to chew.

Overall, it's a great way to try 3 specialities of Nagano in one meal.

And I managed to make my shinkansen with a few...

Food was OK (4 stars). But rather surprisingly, there was a trick with the drinks served. The drinking menu shows a big draft beer (pint or 0,5 liter), while the served beers were in tiny 2,5-3 dl glasses. Check out the photos. The waiter, and what seemed to be the manager, did not recognize the problem, or pretended not to. It is not a huge problem to pay for two overpriced beers, but in our experience it is quite uncommon in Japan that you are mislead by the menu. It would be recommended that the restaurant stated precisely how much is included in the price, instead of creating a false impression with a photo of...