Otafuku Restaurant

"Otafuku is a family-run Japanese restaurant that treats soba noodles with near scientific precision. The three kinds of soba here vary in texture, size, and taste, but all are made in-house every day with flour imported from Japan. In other words, you don’t see them elsewhere around LA. The all-white seiro is our favorite, but whatever you choose will be served cold on a bamboo plate with a tiny dish of garlic soy sauce for dipping on the side. It’s simple, fresh, and exactly what we want during a heatwave." - brant cox, nikko duren, kat hong, garrett snyder, sylvio martins

"If you’re getting a bit bored of the ol’ boxed fusilli + ketchup routine (we ran out of tomato sauce), but still want a big bowl of noodles, then it’s time to order from Otafuku. This family-run Japanese restaurant in the South Bay makes their soba in-house every day, with special buckwheat flour imported from Japan. Served with nothing but a tiny dish of garlic soy sauce for dipping, this is the kind of straightforward, simple meal that’s exactly what you need when you can’t bear to squirt Heinz onto dry pasta any more (we didn’t want to waste water). Otafuku Noodle House is available for takeout, call (310) 532-9348 to order." - kat hong

"Otafuku crafts two different types of soba noodles: the signature milky-white seiro soba and a darker kikouchi soba made of buckwheat flour. Both are served firm in a variety of cold preparations." - Cathy Chaplin, Matthew Kang

" Otafuku is a quaint, family-run Japanese restaurant that treats soba noodles like science. The three kinds of soba here vary in texture, size, and taste, but all are made in-house daily with special flour imported from Japan. We prefer the all-white seiro, best ordered chilled on a bamboo mat with dipping sauce and a choice of crispy tempura. It’s simple, fresh, and exactly what we want during a heat wave. The lunch menu includes Otafuku's greatest hits (order the spanish mackerel bowl), but during dinner, the kitchen serves excellent yakitori and sashimi, too." - garrett snyder

"Otafuku is one of Gardena’s longtime izakayas and is hugely popular with the after-work crowd. It’s a fantastic place to try homestyle Japanese dishes and handmade noodles. Chef David Chang raves about the eel tempura here, so be sure to try that if it’s on the menu." - Matthew Kang