Matsugen, Tokyo

For fans of soba noodles, texture is key, and noodle shop Matsugen is reputed to have perfected it. Located on the third floor of a Ginza office tower, Matsugen attracts a business lunch crowd with its quiet ambience and low-key decor: dark wood furniture with strong lines. The three Matsushita brothers—who own this and 15 other Tokyo restaurants, as well as Matsugen's Honolulu outpost—achieve noodle perfection by grinding the buckwheat for the noodles in house. They're generally served cold (heat causes them to fall apart) with a dipping sauce and sushi, tofu, and soba-noodle dumpling soup.