This “Kyushu soul food” also has a fun connection to the creator of a manga/anime series of titanic proportions. For 70 years, the Hita, Oita Prefecture-based restaurant Sofuren has been filling the b

This “Kyushu soul food” also has a fun connection to the creator of a manga/anime series of titanic proportions.

For 70 years, the Hita, Oita Prefecture-based restaurant Sofuren has been filling the bellies and hearts of locals with legendary yakisoba noodles. The chain is the originator of Hita-style yakisoba, which are made by placing uncooked noodles directly onto a grill plate so that the end result is pleasantly crispy.

In a new development, beginning this month for the first time ever, Sofuren has added a food truck to its arsenal to introduce the beloved Kyushu institution to residents of the southern Kanto region.

▼ The Hita yakisoba method

The new food truck won’t be stationed in a fixed location but will rotate to various business districts and special events in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama prefectures. A Sofuren representative shares that the company thought it could reach more people with a food truck than it could with a physical restaurant location while also appealing to those with various lifestyles and workers who may not always have time to sit down and eat lunch. Customers don’t have to worry about the quality of their meal, either, because only specially trained “grill masters” will handle the cooking on the exact same kind of iron grill used at Sofuren restaurant locations.

▼ Sofuren’s signature yakisoba is called Sofuren-yaki (1,150 yen/US$7.10)

In fact, customers can even watch the masters in action because the truck utilizes an open-kitchen concept. It’s nothing short of culinary entertainment to hear the sizzling of the grill and the scent of the special yakisoba sauce wafting through the air before being presented with your very own tantalizing plate of noodles.

Additionally, in a fun nod to pop culture, there’s a longstanding connection between Sofuren’s yakisoba and Hajme Isayama, the author of mega-hit manga/anime Attack on Titan. Isayama grew up in Hita and worked part-time at Sofuren when he was in high school, so fans of his works may be curious to try the same noodles that undoubtedly provided energy for him as a developing artist.

▼ A signed illustration for Sofuren of Attack on Titan characters with yakisoba by Isayama

Since Sofuren’s food truck doesn’t have a fixed location, you can find its monthly schedule on Sofuren’s homepage (click the food truck icon in the bottom right) and see updates on its Instagram. We’ll definitely want to swing by sometime when it’s in our area–classic yakisoba sounds way more appetizing than one of our other new fried food discoveries.