I was checking out the to go menu from Hinotez after they had reopened following the last Covid shutdown. Of course, I didn't expect to see the wonderful breakfast that always takes me back to my youth; after all, they were only doing dinner takeout. I did notice something I hadn't recalled seeing in San Diego, Mazesoba, basically a soupless noodle dish. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to try Taiwan Mazesoba when we visited Nagoya where the dish is said to have originated. I filed it away, meaning to order some on an evening when the Missus was working. And then…promptly forgot about it….until Kat mentioned it in a post (please check out her blog if you haven't already – it's been a favorite of mine for nearly 15 years!). Well, that must be a sign, right?
So, I placed an order online and headed on over to pick up my Wasabi Shio Mazesoba ($11).
My package was waiting when I arrived……I was a bit worried since this is a noodle dish and there was but one container in the bag….but, since this is basically a "soupless" dish; perhaps things would be fine. Plus, the folks who started Hinotez and Yakyudori are form Nagoya; so they should really know how to pack this stuff to go, right?
I managed to wrestle things in a fairly neat manner into a bowl; which I had poured boiling water into, then emptied for some carry over heat. I basically really enjoyed the flavoring, not overly salty, a pleasant hint of wasabi, the katsubushi added a nice oceany-savory component. The chashu was really good and possibly my favorite item in the dish. The egg was kind of a mess with everything stuck to it. The bean sprouts were blanched for too long and mushy.
The one item I didn't care for was a big one….the noodles. I usually enjoy thick-toothsome noodles with a nice…this however was severely overcooked, mushy, and falling to pieces as well. It was terrible. I guess there should be some "soup" at the bottom with regards to Mazesoba…..there was nothing here; I guess it all got sucked up.
Well, lesson learned on this one. I wish Hinotez would have come up with better packaging for this. I guess that having a well packaged takeout from Yakyudori didn't translate here.
I will definitely have this again; but I'll be "dining in".
Hinotez
7947 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 565-4244
