Takezaru, or a woven bamboo plate, is what they serve soba on. For Togakushi soba, most of the plates are made of local Togakushi bamboo.
Togakushi bambooware has been handed down as a handicraft of winter when there is nothing to grow under heavy snowfall. It uses locally produced nemagari bamboo that grows naturally in mountains with an elevation of over 1,000 meters. This bamboo got its name from the way it grows, bending from the root. In order to protect the local industry, only craftsmen in the Chū-sha area were allowed to collect them.
Nemagari bamboo has a unique luster and suppleness due to the fineness of its fibers. Togakushi bambooware is woven by hand by craftsmen who are experts in this type of bamboo. Even a highly-skilled craftsman can only weave two soba plates per day as the bamboo requires finesse since it might crack under too much force.
When we asked craftsmen what’s required to grow good bamboo, they said plenty of natural light and water. Those two things are indispensable for bambooware.
