plain soba in hot broth; soba without toppings
A basic bowl of soba noodles served in hot broth, typically with only chopped green onions. Contrasts with もりそば (cold soba with dipping sauce) and ざるそば (cold soba on a bamboo tray).
See also: そば
On a cold day, plain hot soba is the best.
I added tempura as a topping to my plain soba.
Soba in hot broth topped with sweet fried tofu, whereas かけそば has no toppings.
Soba in hot broth topped with tempura bits (tenkasu), whereas かけそば is plain.
盛り (as an abbreviation of 盛り蕎麦) is cold noodles with a separate dipping sauce, while かけ蕎麦 is served hot in broth, making them the two basic contrasting soba styles.
soba with broth poured over it
Kana spelling is standard; the word is usually written in kana.
Kanji spelling with 蕎麦 for そば; less common but still seen.
Full kanji spelling; less common but still seen.
Search-only kanji form; not a standard spelling.
Shortened from ぶっかけそば, soba served with hot broth poured directly over the noodles; かけ derives from 掛ける “pour over.”