Katanaya
刀屋
The miso-dare (broth) Sanada soba is a popular choice at this store that Shotaro Ikenami, a famous author, used to visit during his stays in Ueda to write a novel about the Sanada clan.
More Information-
Soba noodles Made by hand from locally-grown buckwheat, soba noodles are a Nagano delicacy, with many shops to choose from.
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Restaurants Japanese cuisine is available, but be sure to visit izakayas or try Chinese cuisine as well!
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Local cuisine Ueda’s cuisine is here!
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Japanese confections Visitors coming to Japan should certainly try these Japanese sweets!
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Souvenirs/Takeout Friends and family will love these souvenirs brimming with over 100 years of history! Local specialties, sake, and more!
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Soba noodles
Made by hand from locally-grown buckwheat, soba noodles are a Nagano delicacy, with many shops to choose from.
Yaguratei
やぐら亭
Guests have been visiting this soba restaurant for 22 years to feast on its delicious soba and seasonal menu items. A meal here will surely become a great memory of your visit to Ueda!
We recommend trying a tasting set that will allow you to sample three types of broth: straight broth, broth with walnuts, and broth with grated yam, accompanied by tempura (fritter).
Kurano
倉乃
Cultivated in-house in Kirishita at an altitude of 1,000 meters, the hand-prepared soba here is made by combining homemade buckwheat flour with spring water from Mt. Azumaya.
More InformationRestaurants
Japanese cuisine is available, but be sure to visit izakayas or try Chinese cuisine as well!
Kobutaya
こぶたや
This long-running restaurant features tonkatsu (pork cutlet) dishes that can only be enjoyed here. The carefully selected tonkatsu boasts a crispy texture, juicy meat flavor, and oily sweetness. Be sure to try it with Kobutaya’s original sauce blend!
Just one bite is enough to leave you with a delicious memory that will last a lifetime.
Kobutaya’s tonkatsu has many fans, and it’s also very popular with the locals.
Fukuro
福楼
Visitors can relax and drop in for some authentic Chinese cooking. This store uses all its experience to produce flavors and meals that can only be enjoyed here. It’s also in the perfect location to visit after walking around the downtown area or Ueda Castle Park! Whether alone, with family, or with friends, all are welcome to visit!
We recommend the Fukuro set (only available during lunch). Its generous portions are sure to fill you up, and you’ll be able to choose a rice and noodle dish that suits your liking!
Shanchi Dining Hall
香吃大食堂
This Chinese restaurant located in the relaxed atmosphere of a Japanese house boasts a menu featuring Cantonese cuisine and dim sum. The lunch set is perfect for a midday meal. We’re sure you’ll be addicted to the savory dumpling skin and piping hot juices inside!
More InformationBarbecue and Grilled Meat Marco Polo
焼き肉の家マルコポーロ
To create a local food culture, Marco Polo strives to provide local brand products that are caringly cultivated by local producers.
Specialty item: Shinshu Gibier. “Gibier” is French for "meat that has been hunted". Be sure to enjoy the healthy and mild venison here.
12 Banchi
12番地
This teishoku (set meal) shop is located on National Route 143 on the way to Aoki Village. You can find it on the right side of the road about 200 meters past the Akasaka intersection. Although seating is limited to about 25 guests, the shop has been running steadily for almost 6 years thanks to locals, travelers, and many other customers. If the store keeps operating for many years, it will grow up just like its customers. This idea is what keeps the owner working hard while having fun.
More InformationSeasonal Japanese Cuisine Shoraitei
四季のあじわい 松籟亭
Along with authentic Japanese cuisine prepared by a chef with more than 15 years of experience, this store also offers a fantastic view from the high ground where it is situated.
Popular course meals using seasonal ingredients allow you to taste the differences between each season. Some famous items include the "mackerel stick sushi" and "tamagoyaki". These can be ordered as takeout and enjoyed as souvenirs.
Many visitors both from within and outside of Nagano come to this restaurant in fall to enjoy dishes using matsutake mushrooms. Seating space is limited, so be sure to make a reservation before visiting.
Specialty item: Matsutake Course Meal "Kohaku”. This full course includes a host of dishes made with matsutake mushrooms such as matsutake steamed in earthenware bottles, roasted whole matsutake mushrooms, tempura, chawanmushi (an egg custard dish), and sukiyaki. The seasoning on each dish pairs perfectly with the matsutake mushroom’s flavor.
Mushroom Cuisine Shinzan
きのこ村 深山
This restaurant is run by mushroom farmers and specializes in mushroom-bashed cuisine. Everything served here uses freshly picked mushrooms from their factory. Visitors can also enjoy matsutake mushroom fare from September to November. A shimeji mushroom picking experience is also available at the restaurant’s factory (reservation is needed).
In summer, the restaurant serves Yubari melons directly from Yubari City, Hokkaido, and other various sweets. Take-out lunch boxes are also available (reservation is needed). The restaurant also accepts reservations for parties.
Local cuisine
Ueda’s cuisine is here!
Koinishi
鯉西
The Chikuma River serves as the backbone of this company that engages in business operations such as freshwater fishing, food and beverages, processed products, direct gift sales, wholesale, and more. June marks the peak season for this company, and the smoke of fish grilling in a small hut wafts on the winds from the Chikuma River. More than 50 ayu (sweet fish) are used to make the broth for Ayu Ramen, the shop’s specialty dish. The noodles soak up all the flavor of the salt-based soup stock and are decadently topped with a piece of grilled ayu.
More InformationLemon
檸檬
This Chinese restaurant has enjoyed great popularity with the locals since its establishment in 1983. The soup here is carefully prepared early in the morning, and the store makes sure to offer reasonably priced authentic Chinese food to everyone. We highly recommend the ankake yakisoba (fried noodles) that are topped with plenty of vegetables and a light taste. Thin yet crispy noodles are wonderfully mixed into this dish that boasts enjoyable accents of vinegar and mustard flavors.
More InformationRuriya
るり家
Ruriya is an izakaya open in the evening. In trying to recreate the flavors of a long-running yakitori (char-broiled chicken) restaurant, Ruriya created its own delicious, original oidare sauce that even first-time customers are sure to love.
More InformationKakurega En
隠れ家 えん
This yakitori restaurant is the only place where you can enjoy the local “Oidare Yakitori” from 10 am. This shop operates in the back of a shop called Korabo on Yanagimachi Street. Be sure to pick up some “En no Oidare" as a souvenir.
More InformationYakitori Shop Bancho (Ueda Ekinaka Branch)
やきとり番長® (上田駅ナカ店)
This yakitori restaurant located within the station is a perfect place to visit while you wait for your train. Visitors can enjoy an unbeatable combination of Ueda's local sake and delicious Oidare Yakitori that won a prize at the ITI International Taste Contest.
More InformationCharcoal Grilled Seafood Rarawanya
炭火焼海鮮処 らら和んや
This izakaya is open in the evening. The smoky, high quality meat and ingredients are made even more delicious thanks to the restaurant’s oidare sauce. Eat the food here one skewer at a time to truly appreciate its deliciousness.
More InformationFuji Ice
富士アイス
This long-running confectionery is beloved by locals and the jiman-yaki sold here boasts both anko (red bean paste) and custard flavors for visitors to enjoy. Its popularity means there’s almost always a line of customers waiting, but you’ll be able to enjoy some piping hot and freshly made confections.
More InformationJapanese confections
Visitors coming to Japan should certainly try these Japanese sweets!
Nisshindo
日進堂
This store manufactures and sells its own products and focuses on Western confections. Their lineup includes products made mainly from local ingredients, award-winning cookies, anniversary cakes, gift confections, and more.
We highly recommend the Kurumi Jokamachi Sable here. Its crispy texture and delicious aromatic flavor is sure to delight.
Tamakiya
玉喜屋
Tamakiya’s dumplings boast a fantastic texture thanks to the great care that goes into making them, including the use of a pestle and mortar. We recommend the kurumi dango (walnut dumplings), which happen to be one of Ueda's specialties. Other menu items may appear during cherry blossom season, such as sakura bean paste, zunda bean paste, and sesame ginger miso.
More InformationChino Confectionery
千野菓子店
This store specializes in Japanese confections and strives to create both a store and sweets influenced by Ueda’s historical four seasons and culture.
The Sanada-ishi here make perfect souvenirs. The motif is based on the large, 3-meter-wide Sanada stone in Ueda Castle’s stone wall.
Natori Seianjo
名取製餡所
This Japanese sweets shop produces and sells walnut ohagi (a type of coated rice ball). The Ueda area is known for its walnut production. These highly popular, delicious, and chewy ohagi are made with entirely local mochi rice and are coated with walnuts that have been crushed into large grains.
More InformationTakeda Confectionery
竹田製菓舗
This confectionery sells excellent souvenirs. Western confections, oyaki dumplings, Japanese confections, sweets with anko, and more are all made right here at the store.
More InformationSouvenirs/Takeout
Friends and family will love these souvenirs brimming with over 100 years of history! Local specialties, sake, and more!
Iijima Shoten
飯島商店
This shop developed from grain merchants in the 1800s and now deals with fruit and souvenirs. Its headquarters building was built in 1924 before having its interior renovated and becoming a store that kept the same exterior. The building continues to give off an air of fantastic elegance and sleekness that was characteristic of Taisho Period modernism. This must-see building is a symbol of Ueda City, which was referred to as the “silk capital.”
“Misuzuame” candy is a Nagano specialty that was first produced in the late Meiji Period and has been loved for over 100 years.
Shinshu Apple Pie Laboratory
信州アップルパイ研究所
This pie and juice specialty store uses Shinshu apples for its products. Nagano is an apple-producing region where many varieties of apples are cultivated. This store strives to produce the true taste, texture, and deliciousness of the distinctive local apples.
Each variety of apple has its own sourness and sweetness, meaning guests can enjoy comparing pies made with different apples.
Local Japanese Sake Miyajima
地酒屋 宮島
A specialty store that only sells Nagano Prefecture’s local sake.
More InformationOmiyagedokoro Kitamura (souvenir shop)
おみやげ処北村
This store boasts a selection of souvenirs unique to Nagano along with local sake from Ueda. Additionally, they also ship grapes, apples, and other seasonal fruits throughout all of Japan.
Specialty item: Tokubetsu junmai namagenshu sake (raw unprocessed sake made only with rice, koji, and water), sold from a storage tank that measures nearly two meters high. This fresh sake can only be enjoyed at a sake brewery.
