 
Udon noodles, silky and smooth, are one of Japan’s best-loved snacks. And in the minds of many an aficionados Kagawa Prefecture’s Sanuki udon is the best of the lot.
Udon is a simple food, just wheat flour, salt and water, but somehow the noodlemakers of Kagawa manage to turn out a dense, wonderfully chewy noodle that stands head and shoulders above the rest. Many people travel to Shikoku just to eat udon, and for those who can’t make the trip Sanuki udon shops have opened in droves across Japan.
 Kagawa is Japan’s smallest prefecture, but it’s claimed there are over 700 udon shops here. So how does a traveler know where to go? Just look for the customers. If you see a line of people extending down the sidewalk from a little noodles shop, that’s probably a good bet. And in stark contrast to some of Japan’s other famous cuisines,  you’ll only pay about 500 yen for a good meal. You can order it in a hot soup or cold with a dipping sauce, you can get in it small, medium or large sizes, you can top it however you like (at least in the popular self-serve shops), but however you choose to eat Sanuki udon, you’re in for a very satisfying meal.
- Matt Mangham
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