Ai Nishimura
Administrator of the blog "My Diary," which began in 2004. A writer who has traveled to all 47 prefectures and loves local culture and history.
Author of Shimane's "Geography, Place Names, and Maps" Mysteries (Jitsugyo no Nihonsha), My Town is the "Number One in Japan" Dictionary (PHP Institute), and Prefectures Explained in Neko Neko Japanese History (Jitsugyo no Nihonsha). Official blogger for Suntory Gourmet Guide, official top user for Retty, and official platinum blogger for Excite.
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I've put together a list of food spots, mainly around Kikuchi Onsen. Kumamoto Prefecture is Japan's proud agricultural and dairy prefecture. I stopped by the Italian restaurant "Contorno Shokudo," where you can enjoy a variety of ingredients. I also took a tour of the retro restaurants in the historic town.
Contorno Shokudo is an Italian restaurant that uses plenty of Kikuchi's carefully selected ingredients.
Rokkengai, located near Kikuchi Onsen town, is a dining district where small shops are gathered in one place, in the style of old-fashioned long houses.
Contorno Shokudo is located at the very back of the restaurant. It was opened four years ago by Chef Kikuchi, who was born in Kikuchi and honed his skills in the Kansai region. It is a casual restaurant that is extremely popular with locals.
Since most of the ingredients are from Kikuchi, I ordered an appetizer platter. The food is basically meant to be shared, so it would be best to share a variety of dishes with a few people.
The chef recommends a sparkling wine that can be enjoyed with wine or alcohol, and is accompanied by a spread made with "Running Pig" as an appetizer. For the appetizer, we had handmade mozzarella made at the city's pizzeria "Naples Pizza Laboratory Il Forno d'Oro," a cheese that has won a cheese award. This is combined with Kikuchi's "Taishuu persimmon" and drizzled with olive oil. Other dishes include rice field burdock, log-grown shiitake mushrooms, Running Pig prosciutto, and porchetta. The pasta was handmade pappardella with "Ecome beef" ragu sauce.
Enjoy plenty of ingredients from Kikuchi at the Italian restaurant "Contorno Shokudo."
Rokukengai. There are six tenants in this one building.
The restaurant we visited this time, Contorno Shokudo, is at the very back.
This is a restaurant where you can enjoy your meal with a glass of wine or alcohol in a casual and enjoyable atmosphere.
Pate made with "Running Pig" and bread made with wheat from Kikuchi.
I ordered an assortment of appetizers so that I could try a little bit of a variety of Kikuchi ingredients.
Homemade prosciutto made from "running pigs" raised free-range in the hills of Kikuchi.
"Paddy burdock" is planted after the rice harvest. Because it is grown in the mud, the fibers are soft and the texture is fine.
The Kikuchi mozzarella cheese is from the pizzeria "Il Forno d'Oro" in the same city, along with "Taishuu persimmons."
Porchetta made with "Running Pig." Garlic and rosemary give it a fragrant aroma.
Another dish is pasta. The handmade flat pasta pappardelle is made with Kikuchi-grown Minamino Kaori wheat, organic durum wheat, and free-range fertilized eggs.
A ragu sauce with large chunks of meat. It's mellow and rich, but not too heavy, so you can eat as much as you want!
They use "Ekome beef" that is raised on Kikuchi rice. This brand of beef is renowned for being healthy, light, and delicious.
Chewy pasta and concentrated sauce. Perfect with wine!
This sign is no lie! It's a famous restaurant that I definitely want to visit again the next time I visit Kikuchi.
It was "Contorno Shokudo"!
We also stopped by "Togen" in Rokukengai, which was highly recommended by a local.
A long-standing gyoza specialty restaurant.
It is carefully prepared in a frying pan, not on a hot plate, and is characterized by being fried crispy with lots of oil.
Eight servings per person! Although this was all we ordered, it may have been the deepest night in Kikuchi, involving the other customers. It was fun!
There are many long-established restaurants within walking distance! Yakisoba at "Sanma Shokudo" and Chanpon at "Kotobuki Shokudo".
This retro, relaxed town is filled with long-established stores that fit perfectly with the atmosphere and are loved by everyone.
We visited a number of nostalgic shops, mainly ones that were recommended to us while chatting with locals, and we hope that they will continue to exist forever.
"Mimaki Shokudo" is a popular restaurant among high school students because of its low prices and large portions. The taiyaki is also a size larger than usual, which has supported the appetites of growing children.
Kotobuki Onsen Shokudo was a restaurant attached to a hot spring. However, the hot spring has closed and it is now operated as a restaurant. Nostalgic tunes are played in the restaurant, and the customers order champon, omelet rice, and a variety of other dishes, from a la carte to set meals. Takeaway menu items, sushi rolls and inari are also popular. With the Heisei era drawing to an end, it is rare to find a restaurant that still retains such a strong Showa atmosphere. I would like to continue to take the initiative to experience these types of restaurants that remain in various places.
"Mimaki Shokudo" is popular among students. In fact, this building is said to be the oldest restaurant in Kikuchi.
The menu is colorful and has a handmade feel to it, and is cheap. The prices are great for students.
The atmosphere evokes nostalgia. It makes you feel like you're back in your school days.
They cook it one by one on a small hot plate, with the mother's skillful hands.
I ordered a deluxe serving of squid and cabbage.
The noodles are thick and soft, allowing the sauce to cling to them easily.
The larger taiyaki makers are well used.
100 yen each. The dough is fluffy.
The mildly sweet bean paste is sure to please anyone.
I had champon lunch at Nostalgia Restaurant.
Kotobuki Onsen Restaurant at Kotobuki Kaikan.
A nostalgic display case of food samples! You can choose your menu here and order before entering the store. Payment is made after the fact.
Orange box seats.
A cute, retro shop. The background music they play is great.
This champon is full of vegetables and has a light yet rich flavor that lingers in your mouth.
A handmade udon restaurant near Kikuchi Plaza. This is also recommended by locals.
This is a restaurant that has thoroughly researched udon noodles. You can eat freshly made udon.
On this day, families and groups came one after another. The restaurant has been in business for 30 years since 1988.
Meat and shrimp tempura udon. A unique style with carrots and shrimp sticking out of the bowl. The light broth and tempura go perfectly together.
The udon noodles are boiled slowly over time, then rinsed thoroughly in cold water, and then returned to hot water to be reheated. This is how the firm, chewy udon noodles are created.
A trip to Kikuchi, a town that retains the elegant atmosphere of a castle town
On this trip, we experienced the history, nature, hot springs, and food of Kikuchi City, located in the northern part of Kumamoto Prefecture.
As you'd expect from a castle town, there are many temples, a laid-back atmosphere, good quality hot springs, and I met many kind people who live there.
Walking through this city, where medieval history remains, fulfills my desire to learn. I felt that the things our ancestors built were still firmly ingrained in the everyday spots and food culture.
I also walked a lot through the city, which is blessed with magnificent nature, and it was a trip that allowed me to completely free myself from the stresses of everyday life.
There were many temples and shrines in this small town. "Kotaijingu" (Imperial Shrine). Amaterasu Omikami is enshrined there.
"Saigakuji Temple." It is said to be the site of the headquarters of the Southwest War.
The tree is said to be about 600 years old, and its branches stretch out to their fullest, creating a symbolic appearance.
This temple has the grave of a man named Sodenji, who used his own money to build the tombstone for Takemitsu at Shoganji Temple.
There are also many local cats.
The town is decorated with the Kikuchi family crest, the hawk's feather. The town is filled with pride that this is the town of the Kikuchi clan.
The contents published are accurate at the time of publication and are subject to change.
