Soba no Hi (Soba Noodle Day)

What Is Soba no Hi?

December 31st is "Soba no Hi," Soba Day -- and in fact it comes around every month. The Japan Noodle Industry Association designates the last day of each month as Soba Day, after misoka soba, the Edo-period merchant habit of eating soba at month's end. The final month-end of the year doubles as the day for toshikoshi soba, the "year-crossing" bowl. The Japan Anniversary Association has also registered a "Misoka Soba Day" on the last day of every month, established by Honda Shoten, a noodle maker in Unnan, Shimane. A separate Soba Day falls on October 8th, established by the Tokyo Noodle Restaurant Trade Association on a pun -- ten reads "so," eight reads "ba" -- and on the arrival of the new buckwheat harvest.

The Merchants Who Ate Soba at Month's End

In the Edo period, merchant houses settled accounts at the end of each month. The last day meant collecting payments and taking inventory from morning to night, with no time for a leisurely meal. Soba could be ordered in, arrived fast and was eaten quickly, which made it the natural choice -- misoka soba. The long, thin noodles also carried a wish that the business would run long and unbroken, and the practical habit turned into a lucky one.

• Long life and lasting ties: the long, thin shape is said to stand for a long life and enduring connections
• Cutting off misfortune: soba breaks easily, so it is said to sever the year's hardships
• Gathering wealth: goldsmiths used buckwheat dough to collect scattered gold dust, lending soba a link to gathering money
• When to eat it: carrying the noodles into the new year is considered unlucky, so the bowl is finished before midnight

The Written Record Goes Back Over 200 Years

Of all the monthly misoka soba, only the December 31st bowl survived as an observance, becoming toshikoshi soba. It is thought to have spread by the middle of the Edo period, and Ōsaka Hanka Fudoki, published in 1814, already refers to it -- evidence that it was an established annual custom in the Kansai region by then at the latest.

Choosing the Last Bowl of the Year

• Kake soba: plain noodles in hot broth, lifted by green onion and wasabi
• Tempura soba: topped with shrimp tempura or kakiage, the celebratory version
• Kamo nanban: duck fat and sweet long onion dissolved into the broth, a winter pairing
• Zaru soba: served cold with dipping sauce, the clearest way to taste the buckwheat itself

Tips for Marking This Day

• Get to a neighborhood soba shop before it closes for the year
• Set out condiments and tempura and let everyone build their own bowl
• Decide the time in advance so you finish before midnight
• Take up the misoka soba habit and plan a bowl for next month's end too

One Last Bowl, With Something Riding on It

For an Edo merchant, soba was a quick lunch and a lucky charm at the same time. Fast enough for a frantic year-end, and still able to carry a wish -- there is very little waste in the last bowl of the year. Take your time over it.