Tosenkyo Somen Nagashi
唐船峡そうめん流し
The birthplace of 'rotating flowing somen' in the Tosen Gorge at the foot of Mount Kaimon. The noodles spin in a round water channel fed by spring water at about 13°C, and diners pick them up as they pass.
Tosenkyo lies on the northern foot of Mount Kaimon. The gorge yields about 100,000 tons of Kyoden spring water each day, at a constant temperature of about 13°C year-round. In 1962, the rotating flowing somen was invented here. A water channel in the center of the round table keeps the noodles circling in the cold spring water, and diners pick them up with chopsticks and dip them in sauce. Set meals can include salt-grilled rainbow trout and carp sashimi. The municipal restaurant is open about 10:00 to 17:00, with extended hours in summer, and a bowl of somen costs several hundred yen. It is about 10 minutes by car from Lake Ikeda and about 25 minutes from Ibusuki Station.
Opening hours
Approx. 10:00–17:00 (extended in summer)
Nearby sights
- Hirakiki Shrine
- Lake Ikeda
- Mount Kaimon
- Nishi-Oyama Station
- Lake Unagi
- Flower Park Kagoshima
- Cape Nagasakibana
- Tamatebako Onsen