Kyushu "Roadside Stations" Top 10 Soft Ice Cream/Ice Cream/Kumamoto/Oita

Fluffy Special! Kyushu Roadside Station Soft / Ice Cream
Top Ten Roadside Stations in Kumamoto and Oita

In the hot summer, it's roadside soft serve ice cream!
The Japanese archipelago is hit by a heat wave every year. This is the time to enjoy soft ice cream at a roadside station! Try the delicious, cold soft-serve ice cream and ice cream made with local ingredients! Some of the items are eligible for discount coupons that can be used in the official Kyushu-Okinawa Roadside Stations Stamp Book, so if you have a stamp book, be sure to check it out!

Roadside Station Suika no Sato Ueki

Watermelon fresh gelato 300 yen

As the station name suggests, watermelons are available almost year-round at this roadside station. In spring and fall, when shipments are at their peak, the rows of large, round watermelons are a sight to behold. A wide variety of processed products using watermelons are also available. The gelato is also not to be missed. The aromatic, crunchy texture and refreshing sweetness are the very taste of Ueki watermelons. The fresh taste of the fruit is preserved by using unheated fresh juice.

Roadside Station Uki

Vegetable and fruit gelato single 300 yen and up

The secret behind the popularity of Gelato Kobo since its opening is the delicious taste of its Italian-made gelato machine. In addition to the standard strawberry and tangerine flavors, the shop offers other flavors such as spinach and asparagus. The flavors of the ingredients are used to enhance the taste of the gelato without destroying its aroma or taste. The ginger flavor is one of the most popular. The ginger flavor adds a refreshing aroma to the rich sweetness of milk, making for a surprisingly good match. The variety changes with the seasons, but there are always more than 10 varieties on display in the showcase.

Roadside Station Aso

Soft ice cream from two farms, 400 yen each
(Photo is for reference only)

This roadside station is always busy as a base for sightseeing in Aso. The pride of the station is milk soft serve ice cream made from fresh milk produced at two local ranches. The "ASO MILK" from Abe Ranch was the first Japanese product to be awarded three stars by the International Taste Institute, known as the Michelin Guide for food products. The milk soft serve made from this milk has a gentle, natural sweetness that emphasizes the original taste of the milk. The other is Takehara Farm's milk soft serve. It pushes out richness and sweetness, and attacks with a thick flavor. However, the soft and fluffy texture leaves a refreshing aftertaste. Now, which one will you choose?

Roadside Station Sakamoto

Banshakuyuzu soft serve ice cream 380 yen

The restaurant was severely damaged by the torrential rains in southern Kumamoto in 2020 and has not reopened, but the Banshakuyuzu soft serve ice cream is still available. It is also a coupon item in the official stamp book. Banshakuyuzu is a volleyball-sized citrus fruit native to Malaya, and Yatsushiro City accounts for 90% of the total production in Japan. The refreshing taste with a hint of bitterness makes Banshakuyuzu soft serve ice cream a little bit more mature. But then I heard that a new "Otona no Banshakuyuzu Soft Serve" (420 yen) topped with Banshakuyuzu soft serve ice cream and Banshakuyuzu paste has been added to the ice cream. More mature taste, huh?

Roadside Station Namino

Soba-tea soft serve, large: 380 yen, mini: 280 yen

Soba grown in the Hano Highlands is served at the restaurant. The soba is processed at a factory on the premises, so you can enjoy freshly ground, freshly beaten, and freshly boiled soba. The restaurant also offers a full lineup of processed buckwheat products. Souvenirs such as buckwheat flour, round buckwheat seeds, dried noodles, buckwheat buns, and karinto are also available. One of the most popular products is the "buckwheat tea soft serve," which is the original soft serve ice cream of the roadside station and attracts many repeaters. The rich milk-based soft serve is flavored with the aroma of buckwheat tea, giving it a refreshing taste.

Roadside Station Minamata

Rose soft serve ice cream 350 yen

Adjacent to the Minamata Rose Garden, the area becomes even more gorgeous during the Rose Festa in spring and fall. It is an ideal spot for a women's trip. The station's original "rose soft serve ice cream" is not to be missed by women. The ice cream is made from local milk and contains petal extract of "damask rose," the queen of roses grown in a pesticide-free rose garden in Miyazaki. It has an elegant rose pink appearance, and the aroma of roses spreads the moment you eat it. Just this alone is enough to make you swoon! It is a long seller, selling 4,000 units a month at its peak. Get a 50 yen discount with the official stamp book.

Roadside Station Seseragi-Sato Kamitsue

Wasabi soft serve ice cream 350 yen

Mixed with horseradish, a specialty unique to Kamitsue, a village of clear streams. It has a slightly greenish appearance. Along with the rich, milky flavor, the first bite gives you a refreshing sensation peculiar to wasabi that escapes through your nose. While thinking that there is no spiciness in wasabi, from the second bite, a tangy spiciness spreads down the throat and into the mouth. This is truly wasabi! The stimulation becomes addictive after one bite, and the aftertaste is refreshing and suitable for adults. A mix with vanilla is also available.

Roadside Station Saganoseki

Kurome soft serve ice cream 500 yen

Kurome" is a seaweed belonging to the kelp family and the swordfish genus. It is a rare and precious seaweed that is collected in only two months and in very small quantities. The seaweed is made into a sauce and poured over soft-serve ice cream made from goat's milk from a goat farm in Oita City. Topped with seaweed sauce? For a moment, I was puzzled, but then I took a mouthful of it and my eyes lit up! The sweetness of the milk soft serve transforms the chrome sauce into a caramel-like sauce. What a surprise! The goat milk soft serve also has a mild and gentle taste. This is why you should never underestimate the local soft serve at a roadside station.

Roadside Station Nakatsu

Kuroda Kanbei Soft (350 yen)

The year the station opened, NHK's historical drama was "Gunshi Kanbei. The main character was Kanbei Kuroda, who built Nakatsu Castle in his hometown. This is what was made there. The original paste of black soybeans "Kurodamaru," a specialty of Oita Prefecture, cooked beans, and Amao sauce are topped with rich vanilla soft serve ice cream to represent Kanbei's trademark Gakko-shaped helmet and chain mail. Is Kanbei, the military strategist who attacked the sweet tooth, not lacking in care? It is a satisfying and cost-effective gem.

Roadside Station Yabatopia

Sobanko soft 370 yen

The station manager, who loves buckwheat, developed his own "Sovara" (buckwheat flour) by roasting brown buckwheat flour. He even patented it. The "Sobanko Soft" served at the take-out store is made of vanilla soft serve with a generous amount of "Sovara" sprinkled on top. The roasted buckwheat flour's cacao-like aroma and subtle bitterness match the sweetness of the vanilla soft serve. Incidentally, "Sobara Manju," a bun with buckwheat flour kneaded into the skin, is also sold at the store.

You should definitely try it when you stop by a roadside station in Kyushu.
We introduced the roadside station's specialty soft serve ice cream and ice cream!