Nishiwaga Soba Kaido Snow Cellar Soba Festival 2026

About this event

The 'Nishiwaga Soba Kaido Snow Cellar Soba Festival 2026' will be held for 9 days from Saturday, August 22 to Sunday, August 30, 2026, in Nishiwaga Town, Iwate Prefecture. This festival is a special event where visitors can taste buckwheat harvested in Nishiwaga last autumn that has been stored at low temperatures in a 'yukimuro' (snow cellar), which stores winter snowfall and uses its cold air to preserve food. Nishiwaga Town is one of Japan's premier heavy snowfall regions, and by utilizing this snowy blessing, techniques are used to prevent the deterioration of unhulled buckwheat even during summer, preserving the buckwheat's original color and flavor. Six restaurants in the town will captivate visitors by serving limited-edition menus using this snow cellar soba. Participating restaurants offer unique dishes crafted with care, including 100% buckwheat juwari soba, tenzaru soba with plenty of summer vegetables, and creative soy milk-based soba. In particular, 'Rest House Yunosawa' will offer a special menu limited to 100 people: 'All-You-Can-Eat Nihachi Soba with Snow Cellar Soba.' Dining at participating restaurants during the event period earns a 'Nishiwaga Town Tour Pass,' providing discount benefits at onsen facilities, sightseeing spots, cafes, and more within the town. This period is also a beautiful season when white flowers blanket the town's buckwheat fields, making it the ideal opportunity to slowly tour summer Nishiwaga while enjoying snow cellar soba, soaking in hot springs, and gazing at buckwheat blossoms. Nishiwaga Town hosts seasonal soba events—the 'Cold-Exposed Soba Festival' in February, the 'Snow Cellar Soba Festival' in August, and the 'New Soba Festival' in October—sharing the appeal of buckwheat nurtured by Nishiwaga's rich nature and the unique wisdom of snow country.

Venue

Nishiwaga Town

Nishiwaga-machi, Waga-gun, Iwate