Kakizato Shoten

180 years of hand-stretched tradition, reimagined in color

Stretching the dough by hand, one careful movement at a time

Long strands of noodles hung to dry

Each knot shaped and finished entirely by hand

Colorful knotted noodles from the KAKIZATO brand

Okado Somen in its traditional paper wrapping

About Kakizato Shoten

In the rural city of Tonami, Toyama Prefecture, a hand-stretched noodle tradition known as Okado Somen has been passed down for around 180 years. The craft traces its origins to noodle-making techniques brought from the Noto region during the Edo period, when the Kaga Maeda domain held sway over this part of Japan. Local farming families took up the work as a winter occupation, and at the industry's peak in the early Showa era, more than 60 producers were active in the Okado district. Today, that number has fallen to single digits.

Kakizato Shoten was founded in October 2016 with the aim of keeping this tradition alive. The company began by renting a former noodle factory that had closed, and learned the craft hands-on from retired local artisans who had spent their working lives making Okado Somen. With no prior experience, the founders built their knowledge from the ground up, ensuring that skills which might otherwise have been lost were passed on to a new generation.

In 2017, Kakizato Shoten launched its own KAKIZATO brand, using the inherited techniques of Okado Somen as the foundation for a new line of hand-stretched noodles. Products such as the red-and-white celebratory noodle "Enishi no Musubi" and the colorful "Ito" series demonstrate how traditional craftsmanship can take on new forms. Awards followed, including the grand prize at the 89th Tokyo International Gift Show (2020) and the grand prize at the 5th Kyoto International Gift Show (2024). Kakizato Shoten continues to pursue both directions at once: preserving the original Okado Somen, and exploring what hand-stretched noodles can become.

Maker Info

Company: Kakizato Shoten Co., Ltd.
Founded: October 2016
Head office: 113-4 Takamichi, Tonami, Toyama, Japan
Specialty: Hand-stretched Okado Somen and KAKIZATO brand noodles