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The Sanuki udon pilgrimage is an informal tradition of visiting as many udon shops as possible in a single day, with each stop yielding a small bowl for ยฅ350โยฅ600. The classic circuit visits shops ranging from suburban factory canteens to farmhouse operations open only three mornings a week, requiring either a rental car, a specialist udon taxi service, or a guided bus tour. Kagawa tourism offices in Takamatsu stock detailed udon map booklets in English.
Kagawa's Sanuki udon โ thick, springy wheat noodles in a delicate anchovy-and-kombu dashi โ is the prefecture's lifeblood, with over 700 shops and a per-capita consumption rate double any other prefecture. The self-serve 'ordinary style' (futsuu) at producers and rural udon shops โ where you pour your own broth and choose toppings โ is an indispensable Shikoku experience costing under ยฅ400.
Sanuki udon from Kagawa is Japan's most celebrated regional udon style โ thick, firm noodles with a distinctive springy bite (koshi), served hot or cold in a mild anchovy-and-kelp dashi broth. The prefecture has over 600 udon shops, and a full-day udon pilgrimage visiting five to eight shops in sequence is a rite of passage for food lovers visiting Japan. The self-service shop format, where customers select noodles and ladle their own broth, is a uniquely democratic dining experience.
Honetsuki dori is Kagawa's beloved bone-in chicken specialty โ a half-chicken marinated in a savoury tare sauce and grilled over charcoal until the skin is crisp and caramelised. The dish is eaten by gnawing the meat directly off the bone, which locals consider the only correct way. Ippuku, the restaurant widely credited with originating the dish in Marugame, still draws queues of devotees despite having been open for decades.
Kamaage udon is one of the purest ways to experience Sanuki noodles โ freshly boiled noodles served directly in their hot cooking water in a wooden tub, with a small dish of concentrated dipping sauce on the side. The noodles absorb the cooking water and develop a soft exterior while retaining their characteristic bite inside. Yamashita Udon near Zentsu-ji is among the most revered kamaage-only shops in Kagawa.
The Seto Inland Sea supplies Kagawa with exceptional seafood including sea bream (tai), young whitebait (shirasu), and the prized mantis shrimp (shako). Tai is revered in Japanese culture as a celebratory fish and Kagawa's version, raised in the strait's swift currents, has particularly firm and sweet flesh. Shirasu-don โ a bowl of warm rice topped with tiny raw or semi-dried whitebait โ is a popular lunch dish in coastal towns throughout the prefecture.
Shodoshima island is Japan's birthplace of olive cultivation, having grown olives since 1908 when the Meiji government selected it as one of three test sites for the crop. Today the island produces extra-virgin olive oil, olive-fed beef and pork, olive-leaf tea, and a wide range of cosmetics and food products. The annual Olive Festival in October celebrates the harvest with pressing demonstrations and farm tours across the island's terraced groves.
The waters around Shodoshima produce some of Japan's finest wakame seaweed, harvested in winter and early spring when the fronds are at their most tender and flavourful. Fresh Shodoshima wakame has a vivid green colour and a delicate oceanic flavour quite different from the dried product used in most restaurants. It is eaten as a salad with sesame dressing, added to miso soup, or served simply blanched with ponzu โ and is available at island markets and Takamatsu's Marchรฉ from January through March.
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