Devotion in Every Bowl: The Secret Behind the Delicious Noodle Dishes at Seven-Eleven Japan

That’s wonderful to hear! Today, we’re joined by Sasaki, a noodle-making specialist from Nissay Delica, and we’ve also prepared some of our new noodle products — so please look forward to them!

Although I’m involved in noodle production, I rarely get the chance to hear directly from customers, so I’m truly honored to be here today.

I’ve also visited Tomita myself, and I was amazed by both the hospitality—like that of a fine Japanese restaurant—and the exceptional flavor. I definitely hope people will not only enjoy the 7-Eleven products but also experience the authentic taste at the main restaurant someday.

Since our noodles are machine-made, we don’t actually make them by hand. However, to become a noodle-making specialist, you need to fully understand the characteristics of the machinery, ensure consistent flavor, and be able to fine-tune the settings according to each type of noodle.

You also have to possess deep knowledge about noodles and the ability to judge the quality of taste. Only after passing a series of rigorous tests are you officially certified as a noodle-making specialist.

That’s quite a challenging process, actually. There are countless factors to check — the temperature when mixing the flour, the temperature after kneading, the thickness and width of the noodles, and how they’ll turn out once boiled.

Even though the noodles are made by machine, the level of precision required is incredibly high. It took us years before we were finally able to place certified noodle-making specialists across the country.

Since the soups are made by other partner manufacturers, I can’t go into too much detail about them—but as we often say, "noodles are alive." Their flavor subtly changes depending on factors like the room temperature or the temperature of the water. Of course, we can’t use that as an excuse, so we work hard every single day to make sure we deliver the same great taste, no matter the conditions.

You’ve got sharp taste! Until now, the flavor leaned more toward soy sauce, but this time we adjusted it to bring out the richness of the dashi  (broth) instead.

For the noodles, we use a blend of coarsely and finely milled buckwheat flour. The finely milled flour gives a smooth texture and pleasant swallow, while the coarser grind adds a more pronounced bite. By balancing the two, we bring out the full aroma of the soba.

Also, since the broth has been adjusted this time, we made the noodles slightly thinner to improve how well they blend with the soup.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on the shoyu ramen too, right, Sasaki?
This time, we went with thicker noodles that offer a really satisfying bite—the look and texture are hard to believe they were made by machine. In the past, we focused on developing products that would appeal to a wide range of customers, but for this one, we decided to take a bold step and create something that really feels new and distinctive.

You may have noticed the noodles are slightly wavy—that’s because we changed the way they’re cut. Okazaki, since you often visit different noodle shops, I imagine you might have felt that the texture is quite close to hand-made noodles.

What’s even more fascinating is how the way the noodles are cut actually changes how the soup clings to them. Depending on whether the rough or smooth side has more surface area, the taste and texture can feel completely different. It’s truly a deep and intricate world.

The world’s three major grains are rice, wheat, and corn, and each region’s food culture has developed according to its climate and soil conditions. In Japan, rice has long been the staple food, but I think the increase in wheat imports over time helped establish and expand our noodle culture.

Absolutely!

It’s great that noodles can be enjoyed either hot or cold and can be served quickly at the table. But above all, I think it’s the advancement of noodle-making technology that made this possible. Making noodles by hand is a lot of work, yet now you can easily buy pasta or instant noodles anytime.

What’s truly remarkable about Seven-Eleven Japan, I think, is not only how it has made noodle dishes so widely accessible, but also how deeply it commits to perfecting every aspect of the noodles themselves.

I’d like to continue pursuing the ultimate flavor of soba. There’s a saying that good soba depends on the "three freshly made" principles—freshly milled, freshly kneaded, and freshly boiled. The hardest part to reproduce is the "freshly milled" aspect, since it’s closely tied to distribution logistics. But someday, I hope we can deliver soba that truly embodies all three to our customers.

These days, with so many dining options available and competition growing fiercer, the product life cycle is becoming shorter and shorter. That’s why I think people are now looking for products that spark curiosity—something that makes them want to explore.

If customers can take a familiar dish and think, "Wait, this tastes a little different—in a good way," then I believe they’ll grow even fonder of 7-Eleven.
I’ll soon be transferring to the Overseas Business Division, but I hope to carry with me—and share abroad—the passion for noodles that I’ve cultivated together with Sasaki.