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Japan has already figured out cold noodles and cold coffee taste great in the midsummer heat, so why not combine the two?

In western food and beverage traditions, pasta and coffee are usually served hot. For quite some time, however, Japan has known that both noodles and java can make for refreshing summertime treats when chilled.

So recently Japanese specialty coffeehouse Tanuki Coffee, located in Chiba, got to thinking, if zaru soba (cold buckwheat noodles) and iced coffee are both so tasty, what if you somehow tried to combine those two culinary experiences?

The result is the eye-catching Coffee Gelatin Soda, which makes its debut this week.

 

Like with all Japanese noodles, you’re supposed to eat the Coffee Gelatin Soba with chopsticks. Despite its name, though, there’s no buckwheat used. Instead, the noodles are long strips of gelatin made with Tanuki Coffee’s special French-press brew, which is prized for its blend of sweet and tart notes.

Cold soba is usually accompanied with a bonito stock broth that you dip the noodles into before taking a bite, but since the Coffee Gelatin Soba is a dessert, Tanuki Coffee obviously opted for something a little less seafood-savory.

 

So instead, the Coffee Gelatin Soba comes with a container of blueberry syrup, which makes use of locally grown berries from farms in the Chiba Prefecture town of Kisarazu and can be seen in the video below.

https://youtu.be/PkzEJwcVx60\

▼ Tanuki Coffee also has adorable tanukiyaki cakes, shaped like Japan’s famous racoon dogs and filled with sweet bean paste.

 

The Coffee Gelatin Soba is priced at 650 yen (US$6) and joins Tanuki Coffee’s menu on June 29. As with many of Japan’s more innovative desserts, it’ll probably only be around for a limited time, but should be available at least through the height of the summer heat.

Cafe information
Tanuki Coffee
Address: Chiba-ken, Kisarazu-shi, Gion 1-26-9
千葉県木更津市祇園1-26-9
Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Closed Mondays, Tuesdays