Omen Udon
Multiple locations throughout Kyoto

On our last day in Kyoto was spent checking out the multitude of temples around Kiyomizudera Temple.  The temple, the view, and the surrounding narrow streets were breathtaking but severely marred by the THRONGS of tourists teeming through every nook and cranny of that area.  It made the morning trek so exhausting.  By midday, we had enough of the temples and the tourists.  We set our sights on some delicious udon.  It was almost 2pm and this place still had a line outside, albeit a short one.  I’m glad we weren’t visiting the main location near Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion) and the Philosopher’s Walk, which was the original plan had I not become fed up feeling like another sardine in a tin can.

Nadai Omen Noodles
We tried 1 hot and 1 cold omen noodle special with tempura.  

The vegetables were added to the dipping sauce.  Everything was very light and refreshing.  I thought all those vegetables might have diluted out the flavor of the sauce, especially for the hot one.  I wished I had kept it separate.  It was still tasty.

I didn’t add too much of the toasted sesame seeds.

The noodles were slippery and chewy.  I preferred the cold udon while The Annoyer preferred the hot udon.  Both were essentially the same.  The Annoyer pressured me into ordering the large portion of udon, which of course I couldn’t finish.

The tempura was hot and crispy.

Omen had good udon, but it wasn’t anything more outstanding than the udon I’ve had back home.  I’m glad we didn’t wait in some insane line.  And I’m also glad that I got to eat a nice bowl of noodles instead of go elbow to elbow with a bunch of Chinese tourists.

10 – You NEED to eat here
9 – Awesome 
8 – Very good
7 – Good
6 – OK
5 – Average
4 – Not bad
3 – Not good
2 – Terrible
1 – Do NOT eat here