Minatoya

Unexpectedly great! We went there around 17:20, right before their evening opening. There were already five people before us lining up. They ordered ‘extra large’ servings but we stuck to the ‘regular’ portion. It turned out to be the right choice.
Their noodle is traditional hand-​made buckwheat noodle, but combined with spicy sesame oil in the dipping source.
Soon after we arrived, others joined us in the line, and the line grew longer and longer.
The source is very salty so it is a good idea mix the egg that comes with the noodle into the dipping source (you have to ask for it, but it is free).

This is basically a Soba place but it’s not an ordinary/​traditional Soba. It’s almost like «Tsukemen» style Ramen and got a very distinct flavor. Your image for Soba will probably change quite a bit.
The place is standing-​style so you don’t get to set at a table. You keep standing while eating and it’s a «go-​in-​and-​eat-​and-​get-​out» place. It gets very crowded during lunch time and you should expect to get in a line for 20 – 30 minutes.
The downside of this place is that they are not open for weekends. You must go on a weekday and it’s located far from any station. But it’s worth it and you should give it a try at least once. As it’s got a rich flavor unlike traditional Soba, I’m certain that foreigners will like it.

This store is very popular to Japanese locals and if it is about lunch time (11:30 to 13:00), you will have to wait for 1 hour to get in the restaurant. I decided to go around 18:00 to avoid the line and it still took 15 minutes.
The restaurant looks very shady on the outside and unless you know what you’re looking for, it’s easily missed.
My first impression of this restaurant was it is very small and there are not even chairs available to sit down. Additionally, I was not able to find a menu inside the restaurant so I was wondering what to order. However, you do not have to worry about it since they only have few items to select from and the two most popular items are the following:
Attakai Tori Soba (Chiken Soba Noodles in Hot soup)
Tsumetai Niku Soba (Pork Soba Noodles with Cold Soup)
Both are at 870 yen and if you want to go with the large size, it is 100 yen additional. I ordered Niku Soba this time.
The soup was mixed with Chili oil and to me, it was a bit too oily and the noodles were very firm unlike typical Soba style noodles. The Soba noodles were covered with seaweed and green onion. It was very enjoyable and if you are familiar with the typical style, this is the one you definitely should try. I also liked that it came with a raw egg. Don’t be scared to have a raw egg in Japan. It is safe and tasty so when you finish half way, I recommend you to put the raw egg in the soup so that you can enjoy a different taste.
After finishing your meal, make sure you return the meal plate to the counter. As it is very crowded inside the restaurant, be sure not to hit others while walking with your plate.
If you are looking for a place where you can enjoy chatting with friends, this is not the place for you. You may be even separated from your friends depending on the space availability.

This place is one of the most popular lunch spots around, and with good reason. It used to be less crowded, until they erected the gigantic +50-​floor «Toranomon Hills» skyscraper right next to it. Since then it has been extremely crowded for lunch due to all the workers in «Toranomon Hills» buzzing down the elevators to pick up their meal for the day.
Consequently the place is not that difficult to find even though their sign is smaller than a 5-​dollar bill — you will find it by looking after the 30 – 50 meter long line outside. So expect a wait, unless you arrive at an odd hour of the day (My Japanese co-​workers and I waited for around 45 minutes to get in). It did not feel so bad, but this was July and the sun was pretty scorching. Once you get in the food is served up almost instantaneously though, as seems to be common in Japanese lunch spots.
The interior is basically one big round table that everyone eats around. It is very minimalist and efficient, and in some sense kind of stylish, although they probably could have made more out of the space. You won’t have many options to choose from though (counted 4 or 5 on the menu, without knowing what they actually were, except «Beef» and «Chicken» as my Japanese friends explained). You can order a «large» portion for an additional 100 Yen, but for most people this is not necessary. The portions are decent size.
The food is very delicious — probably some of the best noodles I had in Japan. Don’t expect to spend much time savouring the food though — this is a Japanese lunch place and people eat fast and get on with it. I am always the last to finish among my co-​workers, even though I feel like I am eating pretty fast.
The price, as I reckon is common for lunch places in Japan, is very low — the 8 – 900 Yen you will pay for your meal will translate into around £5 or $ 7 at the current exchange rates.
So to sum up: if you want cheap, delicious lunch and you have around 45 – 60 minutes to spare, go for this place for sure. Also, as a tourist it is a cool experience this as it feels so different from anything you will do in the US or Europe.

Easy place to find even though there is almost no signage out front. Just look for the extra long queue, normally 30 people deep — don’t worry the line moves fast.
Sadly there is no English and it might be hard to order the food if you are picky. Luckily there are only a few options to choose from. Hot or cold soba noodles, spicy and with meat (beef or chicken). Just point to the expensive thing on the menu if you can’t speak Japanese (like me) — you shouldn’t be disappointed.
Next queue up and give the workers behind the counter your order — it will be done shortly. They will help bring your order to an open standing area.
In front of you, you will have your soba noodles in a bowl and some broth in another bowl. Crack one egg (they where very adamant that you only get 1 egg!) into your broth or noodles — and toss in some fried bits (looks like rice crispies… might be tempura? don’t know, just delicious though) into the noodles/​broth as well.
Now just eat it Tsukemen style — and enjoy!
Oh as a side note — the soba is extremely al-​dente, some of my Japanese friends said it was not normal — but this was delicious to me!