Omi Champon

Omi champonHikonedashi brothvegetableslocal specialty

Shiga · Hikone

35.2727°N, 136.2625°E

Omi champon has nothing to do with the Nagasaki dish beyond the name. There is no pork bone broth and no milk: the soup is a clear golden Japanese dashi with soy sauce, poured over noodles piled with cabbage, onion, carrot, pork and kamaboko, and a bottle of vinegar is put on the table because adding a splash partway through is the local convention.

It came out of a noodle shop in Hikone called Menrui Okabe, opened in 1963, whose recipe was carried on when Champontei Sohonke opened in 1988. That shop has since spread across the Kansai region, but the original site by Hikone Station is where the dish is from. It is a large volume of vegetables in a light broth, which is why it is eaten as ordinary weekday food here rather than as a treat.

Essential Information

Opening Hours

Varies by branch — confirm before travelling

Closed: Varies by branch

Entrance Fee

About ¥680 for standard champon | About ¥830–880 for larger and meat versions — confirm current pricing

Best Season

Year-round

Visit Duration

45 minutes – 1 hour

Getting There

Access Information

Champontei Sohonke Hikone Ekimae Honten at Asahi-machi 9-6, Hikone City, immediately by Hikone Station on the JR Biwako Line. Standard champon around ¥680, with larger and meat versions from about ¥830 to ¥880 — confirm current pricing. Hours and closing days vary by branch; the group operates further branches around Shiga and the Kansai region, and other shops in Hikone serve their own versions.

Insider Guide

Premium

**Add the vinegar.** A bottle is on the table and adding a splash halfway through is what everyone local does. The dashi is built to take it. **It is not Nagasaki champon.** Clear soy and dashi, no pork bone, no milk. Ordering it expecting the Kyushu dish is the standard disappointment. **The vegetables are the volume.** Cabbage and onion piled high, which is why this reads as everyday food in Shiga rather than as indulgence. **Menrui Okabe closed; the recipe did not.** The 1963 shop is gone and the 1988 successor by the station carries the taste forward, which the group states openly. **Hikone Castle is 15 minutes on foot.** One of only five castles with National Treasure keeps, and the reason most visitors are in Hikone at all.

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