Sakurabana

Where to Lunch: On a Rainy Day

Grey, rainy days like today are good for cuddling in blankets, a good book or bad TV, and soup. 

If you're stuck at work in Boston's Financial District, only one of those is feasibly within your grasp. Enter Sakurabana with a steaming bowl of one of my very favorite comfort foods: sansai udon soup.

Sansai Udon 

I used to find this pot of goodness at Ittyo, the last in a line of Japanese restaurants at the Porter Square Exchange. They recently had a change of management and, while they added all sorts of build-your-own noodle bowls, my beloved bowl of mountain vegetables (literal translation of sansai) is no longer a menu staple. True, I could probably build a better bowl, but at what price? (Two or three dollars more. It's a principle thing, really.)

Thinking I would be sansai-udon-less forever, I was happy to find Sakurabana on the corner of Broad Street and Milk Street. The name of this spacious Japanese restaurant translates to "cherry blossom." Hence, the pink blossoms on their awning and the small vases of pink flowers attached to the windows. It's a sit-down place, which means adding tip and tax into your meal, but it also means feeling snug and warm while watching the rain through the slotted window screens.

Edamame

I always, always go with the sansai udon, so I can't speak to the sushi. Though I'm not 100 percent sure what sansai are, I know there's mushrooms, carrots, and some green bits; the udon is chewy and the veggies are woodsy and together it's totally yummy. On a particularly chilly day, I add a cup of hot green tea (75 cents.) If I'm feeling like my pockets have some extra padding, I'll also do an appetizer of edamame or gyoza. The edamame is always fun to eat, though level of saltiness has varied with Sakurabana.

Lunchtime can get crowded so it's sometimes better to catch this place on an off-hour. Plus, then you can hear the Bedtime-Magic-esque soft rock they play as you fill your stomach with warmth and nutrients.

Sakurabana
57 Broad St., Boston
Ate: Edamame, Sansai Udon, and Hot Green Tea
Total: $16 (with tax, without tip)

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