[Just Before the Event] "Dried Noodle Grand Prix 2026" Gathers 36 Masterpiece Menus from Food Manufacturers! Japan's Largest "Dried Noodle" Food Festival to be Held on May 16th & 17th in Komazawa Park, Tokyo

Nippon Access Co., Ltd. (Location: Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director, President, Executive Officer, CEO: Shinya Hattori) will host "The Dried Noodle Grand Prix 2026 in Tokyo," a dried noodle festival, at Komazawa Olympic Park Central Plaza on Saturday, May 16th and Sunday, May 17th, 2026. This is Japan's largest dried noodle food festival*, where 36 companies will gather with 36 menus, and visitors will taste and vote to decide the most popular dish. (*Japan's largest dried noodle food festival: According to Nippon Access research as of the end of April 2026) Menu images are for illustration purposes only. 36 menus will be featured! Affordable prices of 250 yen or 500 yen per bowl! The lineup allows visitors to fully enjoy the deliciousness, diversity, and various arrangement methods of dried noodles through tasting. ▼Check the official "Dried Noodle Grand Prix" website for all participating menus: https://promotion.nippon-access.co.jp/event/kanmengp/ Participating companies are dried noodle and food manufacturers that brighten up dining tables. Dried noodle and food manufacturers who bring out the maximum deliciousness of dried noodles. Pay attention to the dried noodle experience full of surprises and discoveries, and the passionate competition among the participating companies! Your vote decides the Grand Prix! When purchasing a menu item, you will receive a medal. Place your medal in the ballot box of your favorite participating company. The Grand Prix and various awards will be decided by the total number of medals received over two days. "Dried Noodle Grand Prix 2026" - Four points you can also enjoy here! [Point 1] It's all about noodles! Noodles! Noodles! Dried noodle menus you can recreate at home! Dried noodles from dedicated manufacturers gather. This category brings together dried noodles meticulously crafted by dried noodle manufacturers from all over Japan, staking their "technology and pride." Dried noodles, infused with each manufacturer's knowledge and technology, from ingredient selection to manufacturing methods, noodle thickness, and shape, are offered as simple bowls that best convey their unique differences. A lineup of somen, soba, udon, and Chinese noodles, proudly presented by dried noodle manufacturers from various regions across Japan, will be available for tasting, allowing visitors to compare differences in origin and manufacturing methods. You can experience the charm of dried noodles that highlight regional characteristics and manufacturer techniques, such as the chewy Handa somen, hand-stretched somen, 100% buckwheat soba, Shinshu 80% buckwheat soba, Sanuki udon, and Nagoya's "Kishikoro." "Surprising and moving arrangement experiences" that can be imitated at home. This category allows visitors to discover new charms and possibilities of dried noodles. Food manufacturers themselves have devised and offer arrangement menus. While offering unexpected combinations that make you exclaim, "I never thought of that!", these dishes are packed with ingenuity to maximize the texture and flavor of the noodles, and are also characterized by being easy to recreate at home. A diverse range of menus combining various arrangement elements based on dried noodles will be available. Unexpected combinations will appear one after another, such as soupless mala tang generously topped with pan-fried dumplings, and Korean-style bibim somen using tomato mentsuyu! Furthermore, the lineup also includes hearty and trendy bowls like soy milk tantanmen, Chinese noodles with wontons, and double meat soba. ◎Click here for a list of all 36 menus on the "Dried Noodle Grand Prix" official website: https://promotion.nippon-access.co.jp/event/kanmengp/ [Home recipes for all 36 menus to be released!] To enable home cooking of all participating menus, a home recipe book will be distributed at the venue, and past participating menus are also available on Cookpad's recipe website. Please enjoy "that taste" from the event at home. *Recipes for the 2026 participating menus will be added later. ◎Click here for "Cookpad" home recipes: https://cookpad.com/jp/users/40430036 [Point 2] Soba enthusiast Shuichi Ikemori of DEEN x Tomomi Nishimura & Mariya Nagao to appear! A two-day talk show featuring Shuichi Ikemori of DEEN, known as a soba enthusiast! As guests, talent Tomomi Nishimura will appear on the 16th (Sat), and actress/model Mariya Nagao on the 17th (Sun), delivering a special time. Both days will have three sessions (11:00~/13:30~/15:00~). *Advance lottery for seated viewing areas has ended. *Even those without seated viewing tickets can watch from standing areas. This year, various special guests will also appear on stage. Neba~ru-kun will be on the 16th, and the idol group "SHAKEBE" (Sakebe), produced by Mariya Nagao, will make a special appearance on the 17th. Furthermore, Miss Ibonoito will perform her first stage after her inauguration on both days, adding glamour to the venue. [Point 3] Discover the best pairing of dried noodles x sake.