Is Japan’s Marugame Udon biting off more than it can chew with US noodle push?

Toridoll founder and CEO Takaya Awata went from college dropout to billionaire, selling bowls of chewy udon noodles across Japan primarily through his company’s flagship Marugame Udon brand. Now, he is betting the humble dish can become a global fast-food category alongside burgers, chicken and pizza, with the US at the centre of his restaurant company’s overseas ambitions. “We want udon to become one of those major global categories,” says Awata, 64, at Toridoll’s headquarters in Tokyo. He...